An impossible rose in my climate. But if I could grow it I would pair it with the clematis Luther Burbank which I do grow. It was raised in the Soviet Union in the middle of the cold war and I have always wondered how the breeders were allowed to honour an American hybridizer at that time. It is a very good dark violet late clematis with yellow anthers, one of my absolute favourites. Here is a link that might be useful: Luther Burbank clematis

Cat....I think I stick to tried and true entirely too much. I think I should be trying to find something a little different to grow like you and Bill. I've never heard of guinea hen flowers. I do like toad lilies but I tried one and it didn't make it through my winter. I hope you will post photos later. Bill...I never saw a slug in my yard until last year. We had a lot of rain that wouldn't let up and they started showing up. Where do they come from, out of nowhere? [g] You remind me of me... when I can't sleep in the summer, I will get up and go out in my pjs with the flashlight and a paper cup and look for earwigs, which I hate! They seem to love me for some reason. Just the same I enjoy being out there at that hour. You get to see all the night creatures and some of the fragrant plants make the trip worth it. And if there is a moon out, a warm breeze and it's very quiet, it's almost magical! And you can't see all your mistakes at night. [g]

A few years ago I decided to try to grow my own produce, having grown up on a farm where we grew all of our own food. Since I live on a small city lot, there wasn't a lot of space, so I cut out more than half of my driveway and re-landscaped that area to be a garden/orchard. I put in a fence with espaliered trees (apples and cherries) on one side, along with a fig tree, all of which are pollenated by my own mason bees. I then built raised beds in different configurations and use those along with barrels and bits of open spots for all of my summer veggies, herbs and tea plants. I was fortunate this year to be able to can beets, tomatoes, green beans, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries from my garden. I eat strictly from my pesticide and chemical free garden all summer long, and sometimes well into the fall. I do try to winter over some veggies, but thus far haven't mastered it! I buy fresh tuna from the coast and can that to last all year as well. For the rest of my produce that I can't grow, I shop the local farmer's markets and get my eggs from friends that have chickens. My roasting hens come from a local farmer that butchers only twice a year, and also supplies me with cheese making supplies and fresh non-pasturized milk that freezes wonderfully. As I've gotten older, it has become more important to me to eat organic, chemical free produce. It feels better to eat healthier, and I enjoy being able to taste real food. What I can't grow or find locally, or for those occasional snack foods, I just head to the local Whole Foods. I also try to eat by the season, only those foods that are normally grown in that season, which tends to eliminate buying produce from other countries which may be less controlled regarding pesticide use. It's not easy to eat healthy, and does take a lot more prep (which should be much easier with the new kitchen!), but it's worth it to feel good and healthy. I think a lot of our current health problems are related to the diet that most Americans eat and I am hoping to counteract my bad genetics with healthy (albeit expensive) eating habits!

Actually I tried this. Last year I had a decent stand of alfalfa--more as a cover crop and not specifically for fertilizer. The problem with this is that the rabbits chewed the alfalfa down to the ground at the end of the season. Even if I had harvested sooner, it wouldn't have been enough to make a difference. You need pretty good acreage to have enough to make it worthwhile. (I'm on a 0.2 acre lot) Honestly, I've had better luck harvesting my native grasses. (Little bluestem and side oats grama) During spring cleanup I end up with quite a bit of native grass 'hay' from my prairie garden and native plantings. I use my lawn mower to incorporate it into the lawn. This doesn't replace my normal fertilizer routine, but it breaks down quicker than composting.