Here are some conifers: Picea abies 'Nidiformis' - "Bird's Nest Spruce - Green Variation": Probably my top pick. This conifer is green with beautiful overtones in summer, but when the weather starts getting cold in fall it begins to turn yellow. Then come December or so, it's a bright school bus yellow. This is one of the best around. Pinus contorta var. latifolia 'Chief Joseph' (midsummer) Pinus contorta var. latifolia 'Chief Joseph' - winter Another with yellow winter coloration. Simply striking! Pinus mugo 'Zundert' Some blue-color: Picea pungens 'Saint Mary'/'Saint Mary's'/'St. Mary's Broom' - a million spellings out there. This is a special blue dwarf picea pungens that grows very slow but has some of the most beautiful color not usually captured by the camera. A larger specimen would need to be purchased... Pick up at any nursery: Picea pungens 'Globosa' And just something else for variety's sake. Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Silver Lode' All these are slow-growing. The 'Silver Lode' plant can simply be sheared. The other conifers to control growth, when they push their new spring growth and needles are extending from the growth (about 2 weeks in), simply pinch off the new growth where you wish and buds for next year will form at that point thus keeping the growth 'pruned for life'. Then of course this should be treated like a bonsai project if you really want to keep something say should you like it. You'll simply need to watch the root system(s) and prune them every so often replenishing while removing old garden soil from roots and root pruning at this time. Early spring would be a good time to to this anytime before the plants start growing. Your current mix of topsoil and compost is not a good mix for any container plant, honestly. Sure annual flowers, etc will do fine in this type of a mix, but really topsoil is like mud and should be avoided. I realize you are a gardener so I didn't push this topic earlier. But quite honestly, you need to get a better mix. Photos courtesy of some of my GW friends who really have beautiful stuff happening. Dax

Hmmm. There are several plants that go by the common name "hummingbird bush", but Clethra alnifolia isn't one of them. "Summersweet" is the name that most nurseries would use for C. alnifolia. Could you be referring to Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird' -- the semi-dwarf form of summersweet with white flowers? In any event, I wouldn't expect to see them for sale in SoCal. It's really a northern plant that wants acid soil and cooler conditions. If you're really determined to get one, you could order one from ForestFarm in southern Oregon. Here is a link that might be useful: Summersweet selections

Susan, What a great list you have compiled for Carol! I was thinking of 'Sky Pencil' as well, but it is a different one than the one you mentioned. Carol, Here's a couple of additions to the list Susan gave you. The heights and widths I've listed for them are just estimates. In our climate that may get a little bit taller and a little bit wider, but not excessively so. Japanese Holly--Ilex crenata 'Sky Pencil' This holly has a different form than most hollies. It is tall and thin--like a telephone pole. When mature, it will get about 8' tall and will spread out about 15" to 18" wide. It has lovely forest-green leaves and would make a bold accent piece. It is very low maintenance too. It would do best in full sun to part sun. Eastern Red Cedar--Juniperus virginiana 'Skyrocket'. Unlike the native eastern red cedars found all over Oklahoma, this improved one has a very upright, columnar shape. It will reach a mature height of 12' to 15' tall, and a mature spread of 18". It has that rich blue-green foliage and grows well in full sun and fairly dry soil once it is well-established. Eastern Red Cedar--Juniperus virginiana 'Blue Arrow'. This is another improved eastern red cedar that grows fairly tall and remains pretty narrow. It will reach a mature height of about 10 to 12' and a spread of about 3'. Boxwood--Buxus 'Green Tower'. This boxwood differs from the standard rounded, mounded shapes of many boxwoods as it also grows upward in a columnar manner. It will reach a mature height of about '8 to 10' and will get about 18" to 24" wide. It would probably do best in partial shade, but I have seen them in full sun, as long as they receive adequate irrigation. This is the standard deep green boxwood color. European Barberry--Berberis thunbergii f. atropurpurea 'Helmond Pillar'. This is a purple barberry and it is deciduous. It will reach a mature height of about 6' and a width of about 18" to 24". It is cylinder-shaped, but the top of the shrub broadens out a little more than the base. In the spring it will bloom with little yellow blooms, followed by red fruits. The 'purple' foliage is a sort of burgundy with the smallest amount of a green tint in the spring and summer. In the autumn the leaves turn a brilliant red before they fall. It is pretty pest and disease-resistant. Can grow in full sun to partial sun to dappled shade. If you want somthing that has a lovely scent, the following two plants are good possibilities. However, they are not as tall as the other suggested plants: Summersweet--Clethra alnifolia 'Rosea'. This is a selection of native summersweet. It will only get 4' to 6' tall when mature, and will spread to about 3' wide. It has glossy deep green foliage in summer and the foliage will turn a golden-yellow to orange in the fall. It blooms in late summer and the rosy-pink spiky flowers have a honey-like scent. This shrub will grow in nearly any soil and is relatively pest free. It can grow in sun to shade, but will bloom best if it has a least half a day of full sun. Summersweet--Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice'. The growth habit of this one is very much like 'Rosea' above. Its' flowers are a deeper dark rosy red or ruby red. Summersweets like a humusy acidic soil and will require a little more pruning to keep them from becoming too twiggy. Once the summersweets mature, their bark is really lovely too. If you need something taller than the ones we suggested, let us know. Dawn

Anise Hyssop White Horehound Valerian Pretty Bonnets Echinacea-White Swan Filipendula ulmaria (meadowsweet) Geranium Pratense Geranium Mrs. Kendall Clark Heliopsis Hosta-New American Hybrids Mix Primula Mix Verbascum mix Viola Penny Lane Mixture Alpine Strawberries Ruegen BERGENIA, HEART-LEAF-NEW HYBRIDS MIX CORAL BELLS, NEWEST HYBRIDS CHRISTMAS ROSE (warm cold warm cyler) PRIMROSE, RONSDORF HYBRIDS DRUMSTICK Actaea pachypoda (Doll's Eyes) (warm cold warm) Allium cernuum (Nodding Onion) Allium tricoccum (Wild Leek, Ramps) (multicycler) Anemonella (Thalictrum) thalictroides (Rue Anemone) Antennaria microphylla (rosea) (Pussytoes) Aruncus dioicus (Goatsbeard) Asclepias incarnata (Swamp Milkweed) Chelone glabra (White Turtlehead) Chelone lyonii (Pink Turtlehead) Cimicifuga (Actaea) racemosa (Black Cohosh) (warm cold warm) Claytonia virginica (Virginia Spring Beauty) Darmera peltata (Umbrella Plant) Dicentra eximia (Wild Bleeding Heart) (warm cold warm) Gentiana clausa (Closed Gentian) Geranium maculatum (Wild Geranium) Hydrastis canadensis (Goldenseal) Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower) Lobelia siphilitica (Great Lobelia) Mertensia virginica (Virginia Bluebells) Passiflora incarnata (passionflower) Rhexia virginica (Meadow Beauty) Sanguinaria canadensis (Bloodroot) (multi-cycler) Stylophorum diphyllum (Celandine Poppy) Thermopsis caroliniana (Carolina Lupine) Trillium cuneatum (Whippoorwill Flower) (multicycler) Trillium grandiflorum (Showy Trillium) (multicycler) Trollius laxus ssp. laxus (Spreading Globeflower) Viola labradorica ( Labrador Violet) Xerophyllum asphodeloides (Turkeybeard) oh also self gathered: Agrimonia eupatoria (agrimony) Aster (Symphyotrichum) cordifolius (Blue Wood Aster) (I think) solidago (?) - blue stemmed goldenrod Yellow flag Iris Helianthus giganteus (Swamp Sunflower) (again, not positive ID, wild gathered seed) Peony Phlox panticula Verbascum - "wild" (naturalized alien I think) moth mullein White snakeroot wild strain black eyed susans lots and lots of triploid daylilies (from a friend) The warm cold warm cycle plants got about six weeks warm and six weeks cold (should be three months of each) because the seeds were not available soon enough for full cycles-they are in biodegradable containers and will be sunk into the ground to recycle if no germination. The species marked "multicyclers" need two cycles of cold to germinate. They were planted this winter but will be sunk into the ground to overwinter next winter. Any seeds that were not stratified due to expert directions or that had disagreement (the cardinal flower, the Huechera, etc.) are split between winter sow and spring sow-most will just be sown outdoors when it is warm enough. so that makes about 58 species I guess. I'd say for container count multiply it by 3. I have monkshood, astilbe, assorted hostas and ligularia fall sown direct seeding, along with assorted second cycling seeds. I have tarragon and golden hibiscus and two varieties of watermelon under lights indoors, and more passionflower, rosemary, Clethra alnifolia (Summersweet), Hydrangea quercifolia (Oak-leaved Hydrangea),Kalmia latifolia (Mountain Laurel), Rhododendron maximum (Great Laurel) indoors under lights not yet germinated. Also a Mr. Kendall Clark Geranium that germinated too early and was picked out. Discpline is not my strong point. I had other Geranium pratense germinate in January and are big happy babies waiting to go out in the cool air ASAP. They do not appear to like the heat of the house. Thus summarizes my winter garden experience *grin*. I have like thirty tarragon and only want one-left them under lights for trades and something to stare at and harrass. Start looking for recipes that require tarragon. Laurette