Puglvr, Silvia, June, Susie, Mocropot, Tom, Sunworhipper, Hester, Keiki, Rhonda, Walli, Journey, Jane, Cocoa, Gary, SJN, Lorraine, thanks for the garden love! I’m getting braver with sharing my photos. Ya know, you gardeners set the bar pretty high. :) Sylvia, I can’t help the orderly bit. I think it comes from my years as an accountant. And I have a mother who organizes everything, even labels the shelves in the refrigerator. So I can’t help myself sometimes. June, you are right about the battiscombei. I started it last year from cuttings and then planted in them in the ground. This year, it really took off! I guess “year 2” for this plant is the year. It loves full, all-day sun, which is amazing. It blooms right through 90+ heat and sun. Great plant. Susie, you are welcome to steal combos and anything else. I don’t think that combos or design are my strengths but I am good at copying, too.  Sunworshipper, the rain lilies came from a seed swap with Tom, Tina and Keiki! I have them all over the yard and use them as borders. They form a nice clump and love full sun so they are easy-peasy. Hester, I have copied lots from you. I always drool over all of your photos for hours at a time. Rhonda, I do not protect the Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow from freezes. I posted a long post about it this morning. Please see the link below. SJN, I have three Red Abyssinian ‘Maurelii” bananas. I do not protect any of them on most nights but I did wrap blankets and towels around the bases (yes the BASES) on the coldest nights. (As I’m sure you know, but for the benefit of any newbies, it is more important to protect the roots and heart of any plant than the leaves in order for it to survive.) They are all in the ground and have been for about two-three seasons, so yes, they are out all winter. In late March, when I think (hope) we are done with freezes, I cut off all the mushy, dead leaves. The center trunks have always felt firm. None of them have died back to the ground. I will post a few more pictures of them today. I would love to see your new babies! (And we still need to plan to get together one of these days!…) I’m fully committed to shade gardening. I know that it eventually means I will have to take out some plants but there are so many great plants that grow in dappled light or shade. For those that commented on the amaryllis and pink polka dot combo, all of those pink polka dot plants came from volunteers all over the year. That plant (pink polka dot, hypoestes) is one of the staples of my yard. They are reliable, come back every year, require no protection in winter and reseed freely. They transplant soooo easily in March and early April. I just finished moving about 40-50 of them to the front yard oak circle bed. They will provide color when the caladium are finished. I can’t recommend pink polka dot (or white or red) highly enough. They are such a winner. By the way, that whole side bed is full of caladium. About the time the amaryllis stop blooming, the caladium come up. Here are a few photos from last year when the caladium were just coming up and the pink polkadot were newly transplanted (you can barely see them): JCTsai, yes, I do use some chemicals but not often. My favorite fertilizer is Milorganite and lately, what I call “fake Milorganite”. It is Green Edge. It has approximately the same P-K-N ratio as Milorganite (6-1-1) but a 40 lb bag costs the same $11.99 as Milorganite’s 30 lb bag. I broadcast it every other month from March to September. Here is a link: http://www.green-edge.com/ Thanks again, everyone, for all of the encouragement. I remember a few years ago standing in the middle of my back yard, after having taken out large sections of grass, thinking, “What I have I done?!?” Carol Here is a link that might be useful: Brunfelsia (Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow) This post was edited by love_the_yard on Sat, May 10, 14 at 10:36

Melissa, Yes,i also have a Greek-god,the one you are seeing(i think)is Neptune,in the front yard are my two Greek statues,names leave me at the moment,lol Go you have a picture of your"Thinker"? We really don't have soup weather,but it sounded so darn good, and it was. I have never made pumpkin soup, is it good? Seems like most of my hosta turned yellow over night,i just hate winter coming. I am planning on trying some hosta seed this winter,i may do the winter sowing thing with them,not sure yet, it is so easy that way. I'm happy you like my statues, hubby surprised me with them one day.I almost cryed when i saw them, they make my hosta bed look so nice. Carol

Helen, if you just have one clump, I would be tempted to toss a blanket over them! I love daffs.

Eileen--I know what you are saying. We just got back from a road trip to AZ, and the landscaping is very different. But at least you aren't constantly clipping, watering, feeding, mowing, pruning, raking, weeding, etc. Time to do other things you like. I spent an hour on my knees last night weeding, not done yet either. Jasdip--I was thinking ratatouille!! Some time ago you shared a fresh spagetti sauce recipe which has become a tried and true for me. I think of you every time I make it. Raven--I spent a while looking at glass totems as you suggested. That looks like a lot of fun to do, and the shopping fun as well. I'm just thinking of a cute teapot I saw in a thrift shop, almost bought it too. Maybe it's still there. How cute that would be in a garden! Thanks for the idea. Is your YTT inside or outside? I wonder if they would work as a houseplant. Steppy--I hear you about the pot size. They are actually 14" pots (7 gal.--took one big bag potting soil). This would be the minimum size for tomatoes IMHO, but last year I did have a great cherry crop from a potted tomato and the ones in the ground gave me nothing, so I'm hopeful I'll get some from the pots this year. Patti--I don't know your zone, but it might grow in FL. You could ask in a good nursery (not HD!). Lindalou--yep, I have 4 Christmas cactus which were just repotted in fresh soil. They are as beautiful as orchids when blooming, but it's so long between blooms, once a year. We have a lot of other yard to deal with as well--40 rose bushes, in particular. Trees, too much lawn, lots of hedges to be clipped too often. I only showed you the good stuff. Thank you everyone for your kind words. I'm so flattered you like my gardening efforts. Susan