Linda, this is just a thought. I have only just started experimenting myself but have you thought of potting that hydranga up to a large sized container. I have two 4' high varigated hydrangas in containers that I am experimenting with. I used a good peaty nursery soil and also added soil moist. I got the idea after going to an estate auction of a very old home in the area. The house had a terrace which the house kind of wrapped around. The owner had lovely old shrubs growing in large pots there that were being auctioned off. I suspect the soil there was sandy also. Hydrangas like moisture which I can't seem to be able to give them no matter what amendments I add to my sandy soil. Adele

A few years back my father actually ran over a newly planted cleveland pair tree. When I say topped it I mean he actually had totally topped it where all that was there was the main trunk just a few side branches that had began to grow. It looked horrible he trimmed it up to get it halfway decent looking. At a neighbors advice my dad left it. The neihbor has alot of trees and told my dad that about 20 years ago when they planted one of their trees that he had done the exact same thing. Well the tree the neighbor topped 20+ years ago is actually bigger and taller than the ones that he planted at the same time. The tree my dad topped a few years back has grown and now matches the other trees. You cant even tell that he did it. So with that said just give it time and it should recover nicely like it never happend. I still laugh when I visit and look at that tree.

I grow alot of roses. This is my favorite time to move them. I do try to do it when there is not a temperature drop to 22 or thereabouts at night. Dig them, put a bit of bone meal or superphosphate in the hole, mix the soil up well with compost or whatever good kind of soil you like, "mud" the rose in [soak it good after it is in the hole to get out air pockets, mulch it well - I like to hill up chopped leaves or whatever mulch you use as far up the canes as I can. When I plant bareroot roses, a good trick is to make a collar out of folded newspapers and staple it together, put it over the rose and fill that up with chopped leaves or mulch - leave til the rose start showing signs of grown and slowly let the mulch fall away. One of the biggest problems with newly planted roses in winter is the wind - it dries out the canes. Piling wet newspapers around the rose is helpful if you dont want to make the collar. Usually the rain will keep it watered after that. DONT prune at time of transplanting. Wait til your normal pruning time to do that - ours is Valentines Day, but you can do it later. When spring comes and its time to grow, they will be all set and ready. Transplanting when they are ready to start growing isnt good. Good luck!

Okay Kristy :). Here's my thoughts on caring for crepe myrtles. The first pic is of a crepe myrtle that has two branches that have been rubbing together for a long time: This next picture is where one of the branches should be pruned out at. Notice I am using my high-tech DIGITal pointer? That's my finger at the bottom of the pic. You can see up a bit higher on the branches where they are rubbing. This pic is on another CM where a branch was pruned out at ground level a long time ago: This pic is of the same shrub to show you what happens when you have to prune at ground level....suckering. This pic is of one that needed a LOT of trunks pruned out at ground level. The same suckering reaction will happen wherever you cut in the middle of a branch rather than flush with a trunk at a fork. You'll still get a little suckering, but not nearly as much. Basically when you top a CM, you end up with what looks like broom handles with about 20-30 suckers coming out of EACH one of them. Not attractive or natural looking at all. I hope this helps some, LOL it was fun using the high tech pointer too! Kristi