I'm am interested in almost anything! I am trying to start a little backyard nursery and I need all the variety of plants I can get. I have about 50 varieties already so I have a lot to trade. subuch-I would be very interested in your fragrant plants! Maybe you could email me a list of what you have and I can email a list of what I have! Elly

Hi Everyone, We are now all moved although NOT completely settled! LOL. We have much work to do and not enough time to do it in. I would like to know what is the best date for everyone to come. Please let me know. Either May 2nd OR May 16th. I am open to any time. I will ask that you bring any lawn chairs you might have so you will be comfortable while eating and talking and getting to know each other. Would you like to do 12:00 to 4:00 We can have a picnic type lunch before the swapping starts and after lunch do the side trades then get to the swap itself. I would like to have the 4 hour window that way anyone who might not wish to come to lunch can come in between 12:30 and 1:30 and then join us for the swap. OR we could start a little earlier and do the side trades then eat and then do the swap. Please let me know what you all would like to do. I want us all to have fun and have it when all can attend! Please don't forget to bring lawn chairs and tables if you have them! :) Fran

Since people will probably want them, I'll bring all Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) divisions and Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) volunteers that I can. So far I've only seen 2 spicebushes, but I'm hoping I'll come across more. Please let me know about the other plants though, since I may or may not bring enough for you otherwise (Lisa, Ellen, and sugar_magnolia, I'll bring the plants you mentioned for yourselves--creeping phlox , Japanese maples, and evergreen azaleas respectively). You dont need to reply for those unless youre not interested). Dana, let me know what youre interested in. (in case itll make you feel better, if you used to use the name danaNJ, Im still enjoying some of the plants you gave me 2 summers ago! Go ahead though, even if you're not.) Will bring if requested: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Blue Cardinal Flower aka Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) - swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)- could bring 1 or 2. - butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)- could bring 1 small plant - My same mystery hosta with medium green leaves with light variegation in middle - Rose 'Tamara' - hosta Undulata (Mediovariegata) - garden phlox - A low growing yew (Taxus) - creeping phlox (Phlox stolonifera) - ferns (New York fern? lady fern?), get to be about a foot or 2 tall. Light green, graceful looking. Winter Sowing results. I will bring if requested (first year I tried this. All look the same. I apologize in advance if Im giving you weeds): ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Red Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) - Monkey Flower (I think. Mimulus ringens or Mimulus alatus?) The following 2 plants grow fairly rampant for me: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) - Sedum Autumn Joy Volunteers. (For azalea and blackhaw, dont know yet if they have their own roots) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - azalea - mother plant about 3' H x 4' W, white flowers - Japanese Maple - Blackhaw (I think. Viburnum lentago) Plants and/or seeds I'd like ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Joe-Pye Weed (Eupatorium dubium, E. fistulosum or E. purpureum) - barren strawberry (Waldsteinia fragarioides) - just about anything native I don't have, especially for moist shade

Hey, everybody, sorry I've been late responding. Thought Marianne might post something. I was off work Monday and Tuesday and don't have internet access at home anymore. Then our power went out at work yesterday with the storms. Anyway, everything went really well Saturday. We were dreading the cold temps, but the caretaker at Rock Castle, Tom, generously offered us the run of the vistors' center. I'm a naturalist in many ways, but God bless central heating. We had a much better turnout than we expected, given the weather. We were all heartbroken, as I'm sure thousands of people have been, about losing some treasures to the cold temps. But Mother Nature is a great teacher. About the swap: Five people showed up after having heard about our swap on Garden Web, three of the master gardeners who maintain Rock Castle, a few other people that I lost track of and can't honestly tell you where they came from, (I'll have to consult our sign up sheets later) and the five of us who put the swap together, plus several of our respective family members and friends. I was afraid we'd wear out our welcome at Rock Castle, but Tom said he's looking forward to hosting our spring and fall swaps every year! We had a really good plant selection. I got some great stuff, we donated several plants to Rock Castle. Mostly, though, we had a blast. Everybody said they'd come back in the spring and fall and we hope to keep building the group. We are definitely planning on expanding to include a pot luck this fall and may add a speaker at some point. Those of you who missed the event, we definitely understand and look forward to seeing you this fall. We have a tentative date for the fall swap of Oct 20th. The 13th is already spoken for at Rock Castle, but if they have a cancellation, Tom promised he'd let us know. I'm planning on coming to the river for the MTPS in May, and am really looking forward to it. We have the perennial sale this Sat. at the fairgrounds in Nashville, and the herb sale on the 21st! Always something to look forward to. Thanks again for all the help an interest we've gotten from everyone!! Here is a link that might be useful: Perrennial Plant Sale info