I'm loving Dicentra 'Goldheart' And all the emerging hosta. Way to go guys! Spring's here. Heuchera. My heuchera is looking really good in all the gardens, particularily H. 'Encore' and 'Marmalade.' However, in my front garden is an old seeded variety called 'Oakleaf,' well over 15 years old, grown in direct sun. It has exceptionally ruffled, deep purple leaves and never scorches. It gets bigger and better every year. I replant it about every 10 years, when foliage becomes sparse. I have a lot of the new villosa hybrids, which I like very much indeed, but right now, I have to say that 'Oakleaf' is remarkably beautiful. Hellebores - all of them. Any of them. All the time. Mertensia virginiana- (Virginia Bluebells) is just opening, and remarkably late at that, but those soft blue-green leaves and true blue flowers make my heart beat stronger. Tulips and daffodils. Maybe the weather has been horrible, but like hellebores, these plants just look better and better when conditions are cold and wet. Trilliums. Our trilliums were at least two weeks late this year, but my goodness, what a proliferation. Their blossoms are huge and expanded, and the forest floor is a carpet of white. Even better, the much more rare (in my forest) red Trillium erectum has decided to spread. There are clumps of it all through the forest, and its bloom season has been prolonged. I also discovered a huge, showy patch of Dicentra cucullaria (Dutchman's Breeches) in the forest. I have never seen it before. The flowers are just fading now. It's a charming plant, and although I've been on the lookout for it for years, never found it before. Fritillaria. I have a good fritillaria collection, and the bulbs have spread and bloomed admirably, lasting a nice long time during the recent nasty weather. I'm enjoying them particularily this year because I know that the dreaded Lily Beetle is very close to my gardens, and I expect we will be infested sooner than later. Euphorbia 'Bonfire'. Just get this plant. It is beautiful all spring, summer and fall, but is at its most fetching right now with glowing chartreuse flower bracts and purple foliage. Glaucidium palmatum. Google this, if you don't know what it is. I have a pink one, with several flowers blooming now, but all of a sudden, a white one has emerged in my back shade garden. It just glows. Curiously, I planted the white one in that place about five years ago, and it promptly died, only to emerge now in all its triumphant splendour. There's more, but I have taken enough time. There is also less, with the depredations of the deer, rabbits and ants, but today, finally, the sun is shining, the rain has stopped, and it's bad karma to worry about the imperfections.

Honeybunny, Seriously? It seems like there are more than I can go to. I could go broke just buying a few things from each sale. We've got some of the more popular ones (that have already announced their dates) posted on the ETPS website (or you can see them in my post on this forum, linked below). Do you come to the UT Arboretum Spring and Fall sales, Bloomsday, the Friends of the Gardens sales, all the Racheff garden sales (one is this Saturday, BTW), the Franklin Square Plant Sale, the plant sales at Ijams Nature Center, and the Talahi Plant Sale (sometimes I'm not sure this one rates at the top of my list, but other times it has been good)? Here is a link that might be useful: East Tennessee Upcoming Plant Related Events

There isn't a mistake you've mentioned that we probably all haven't done too, so don't feel bad. I live in the burbs, so I ammended all my beds when we initially landscaped with adapteds and exotics that needed alot of TLC. Now that I've changed to WELL adapteds and natives, they got the benefit of ammended soil. I have clay too. You probably don't really need to ammend you soil - as your garden matures and you use leaves and mulch, and tend to your microherd and earthworm population, they will do that work for you over time. What I've done with areas that retain too much water or is poorly drained, is to plant things in those places that like, or can tolerate poorly drained soil. They are out there, you just have to research them and try them. When transplanting plants that are too close together, I usually wait until I see new growth in spring and dig as much of the root system as I can get and then replant. You'll need to water those regularly just as if you were planting new plants. Give them a soil drench at planting time with some liquid seaweed or Miracle Grow, or whatever you use as a liquid fertilizer. If they are a deciduous shrub, cut them back about a 3rd to compensate for lost roots. Not knowing what plants you've planted I can't say when you should start seeing new growth. I've got things popping up now in DFW, but I also have some that I know won't start showing growth till April or so. I would think at least some of your perennials should start showing some new growth now. Not ever grown a Texas Mountain Laurel, so can't help with that one. Part of the fun of gardening is trying things to see what works, and remembering the failures so you don't repeat. Just make it fun and don't fret over the failures - just carry on.

Californian (OP) said: "Black Cherry-OK, but not sweet enough for me" Funny how different tomato lovers have different taste. Frankly, I absolutey love the acidity of Black Cherry, and can't pass it w/o taking a handful when out hunting hornworms. Somehow they remind me of my boyhood in New Jersey in the Fifties stopping at the veggie stands for fresh tomatoes on the way home from the shore. Btw, veggies in New Jersey - you bet and I dare say they're terrific, but I digress ..... Our worst tasting diasppointment this year has been two Yellow Pear - mushy and tasteless. No, I didn't intentionally plant them, unfortunately, the nursery (or their supplier) had them mismarked as Lemon Boys. Aah you say, Lemon Boy isn't exactly a big winner in this forum either but it sure has been good to us over the years - prolific, disease resistant and on the acid side, too - yummmmm ..... Another surprise is Kentucky Beefsteak, not prolific but mighty tasty.