I bought a number of different named cultivars a few years back. I had the 'Highland Cream' but it didn't make it through the first winter for me either. I would have thought zone 6a would be fine. I do have clay soil and thymes prefer sandy soil, so I do grow mine in raised beds where ever possible. I tried the 'Elfin' but found it to be scraggly and the weeds came up through it. One of those I bought was a Golden thyme, but I lost the name tag... that has been very vigorous and in 2 years it has grown into a large mound that is about 6 inches tall. I just bought 'Annie Hall' last spring and planted around pavers with a lot of sand added and mulched with sand, because it is in a low area. It hasn't been through a winter yet. So far it has been slow to grow. I've grown wooly thyme for a long time and I love it, but I lost it one winter recently when we had hardly any snow cover all winter. Like mnwsgal, one of my more vigorous thymes was started from seed that someone sent me and it was not identified other than creeping thyme. It has grown into a nice 12" mat in one season, which seems very fast to me for a creeping thyme.

I was straight out all day deadheading the roses because the japanese beetles are destroying all the pretty blooms, so this is the first time I've had a chance to THANK YOU all for your comments. The forum is moving so fast these days that I want to comment on every post but it's hard to keep up. Just wanted to thank all of you who are posting photos also because I know how time-consuming it is to upload and post. Nat...yes I grow hostas too and have for years. I often overlook them because they are so low-maintenance but I have quite a few. And I haven't dared to count how many daylilies I have acquired in just 2 seasons, but it's enough to fill 7 raised beds that I had to make. Thanks for the nice comments about my 'boys' too....of course I think they are the most handsome guys on the planet...LOL. Celeste

WOW... active seismic zone, and there's FRAMING/strapping issues, in what I assume is a FRAMEd house? Surely, by now, someone has coined a catchy acronym to describe the now-proverbial "So-Cal-nightmare-hacked-together-during-boom-by-illegal-labor-with-no-meaningful-inspections-by-AHJ..." ;') In most states the current owner would have legal recourse against the builder for 10 YEARS, but it's 40:1 odds this shoddy builder has folded shop and vamoosed, circa 2005-07. It's not hard to imagine the FOUNDATION/soil preparation was done with similar "quality". If this dubious house is really a contender, it would be cheap insurance to hire a licensed Geotechnical Engineer, who specializes in foundations, to do "the kitchen sink" inspection, including drilling core samples, peeky-peek with a borescope, etc. Oh yeah. Knowledge is power, not to mention further negotiating leverage, buyer's market and all. At the very least, determine other homes in the 'hood built by the same hosers, and talk to the owners, especially original owners. OTOH, I do envy the apparently significant legal liability HIs work under in high-tax CA. Here in corrupt ol' low-tax FL, the HIs are on the hook ONLY for the price of the inspection--at most--I kid you not!

I'm so glad to hear you love your big trees. They are a treasure! I suggest a low wooden deck that fills most of the rectangle between your door landing, out to the edge of the planting bed. For cohesion and privacy, an "L" shaped fence replacing (or in front of) your low picket fence and your neighbor's trellis-topped fence. NOT a solid wood fence, instead a horizontal open board fence. It will let in air and light but give enough privacy that you'd feel comfortable sitting out there. You could even mimic the three-panels of fence at the end of your lot. That's your space for a couple lounge chairs, large flower pots, grill, whatever. In that existing planting bed and in the planting bed alongside your garage, I'd do hostas (if deer aren't a problem) or ferns. Include a few spring bulbs. For viewing interest, a boulder fountain and/or bird feeder would be wonderful. That was a good idea to paint the masonry blocks especially of your garage to match your siding. Oh and you could make another horizontal fence panel to hide the trash can area. Do you think you'd need more privacy than that? It doesn't look like you're right on top of your neighbors. If you can fit in a small tree, such as a crabapple, that might be a nice way to guide your sight lines.