I'm excited to see that you've received so much wonderful advice, Greenhaven. When I mentioned a cottage garden I was thinking of my version of it, which includes much more than roses and other flowers. For instance, against a bare all of the house I planted four junipers, with each pair having a lavender crape myrtle between it. There's also a privacy fence that's a hedge of closely planted junipers. They do as well in the heat as they do in the cold. If I lived in your zone I would design the area a a "winter" garden first, i.e. plant it so that it looks beautiful for that long time of the year when many things are dormant. As mentioned above, the typical yews and junipers might just be the best way to go. When those things are in place, you can design around them with softer elements for spring and summer interest. I think evergreens would form a very pleasing backdrop given the color of your house. Different bulbs that would give interest for several months in the spring would be lovely, and I wouldn't grow only tulips. Irises and daffodils grown in groups would look beautiful against a backdrop of evergreens. The suggestion of Awakening instead of New Dawn is a good one. A climber will be there for a long time and this rose has a much more old-fashioned look to it, in my opinion, although I understand it does have vicious thorns. It will be fun to see what you decide to do and I hope you post pictures of the process and the final result. Ingrid

Which sideof N IL? Greenview in Peoria has it and so probably have it in their Chicagoland center. A couple others in Chicago area have it listed in their center stock. Google daylily "Ruby Stella" and you'll see some hits. It's a pretty color, very dark, and the blooms are small and and open lots at once, it increases fairly well very year here in Central IL.

Kristen - you contributed for me but I can include some data from previous years: 2006 Zone 7, Phila., PA (in the city but on the border line of Montco) Closest first on map = 4/9/06 My first = 4/29/06 (same as this year) Days diff = 20 -------------------------- 2005 Zone 7, Phila., PA (in the city but on the border line of Montco) Closest first on map = 4/7/05 My first = 6/5/05 Days diff = 59 My very first hummer experience was back in 2004 during fall migration season and I don't have the exact date handy of that (my very first hummer sighting ever), but it was some time in mid-August 2004. The first sighting in the area that year was 4/7/04. In general, the males tend to come earlier and in 2005, I only had a returning female, who showed up on 6/5/05. But once I got my first 2 juvie males of 2005 and they got a taste of my spot, one of them returned the next year on 4/29/06. The mom returned later on 5/10/06. There were 4 juvie males and at least 3 adult females that summer and one of the 2006 juvie males showed up this year on 4/29/07. One of the females appeared on 5/10/07.

Sweetleelee - You gave a great description and details of your growing situation. You certainly have put in a lot of work. I agree with those that suggested your main problem is the raised beds. If I understood you correctly they are 3 feet high? That is really high and would cause perennials to freeze-out, especially at the edges. Also, tall plants like peonies and delphiniums would be more subject to wind damage in the summer and very hot soil near the bed's edge. . A couple of other things. As gardeners, we all hate clay. It is a nightmare to work in. But.....clay is a very productive soil. It hold moisture and nutrients far better than any other soil. All gardeners hereabouts have clay and some do not do much to amend it except for the top six inches. Great gardens can be grown in clay! About your weather. From your descriptions of the temps, it sounds like you are in a zone 5? I suspect you should garden like you are in Zone 3 or 4. The list of plants hardy in Fairbanks applys to zone 1. You can certainly grow a much wider variety of plants in Zone 3. If you had the time and energy to make a new bed (even a small one) directly at soil level using one of the techniques in the following link...you might having some really good results. It might be worth trying as an experiment?? The link is a discussion on soil preparation from gardeners in Zone 3 and colder that deal with horrible alkaline clay. You may find some of their solutions interesting and worth trying. Here is a link that might be useful: Soil preparation for perennial beds