Hi Tony, Beautiful pics. I see your photo of Snowqueen nectarine. Can I safely assume you grew that fruit & did not buy it at the grocery? Seems like a silly question, but... most reports I've seen say that Snowqueen is one the most highly-rated nects for flavor, but is NOT cold hardy beyond Zone-7, which is why I have not attempted growing it on my vacation property in Zone-6b. Are you growing Snowqueen in the ground in Zone-5A Nebraska? Did it survive this past winter? If you are successfully fruiting Snowqueen in Zone-5A, then all bets are off! How old is the tree? From where did you obtain it? Was the fruit richly flavored? Thanks in advance for whatever information you can share. Cheers, -Matt

Pixie Lou, I love those pond shots. You get such a range of critters visiting, and the green heron is especially nice. It has finally warmed up enough that Jane's least favorite critters are emerging in my garden, the snakes. I found a small (8") red-bellied snake that ended up in some grass clippings I moved to the compost after we hayed the lawn between rain showers. I was surprised to find him in the bottom of the garden cart, and tipped him out before I thought to photograph him. My reading tells me that they don't get much bigger than a big night crawler, so he was full grown. I was cleaning out the bed around the back patio where I so often see garter snakes, and had the company of this guy for a bit until he decided that I was interfering with his basking in the sun and left.

Elaine, Interesting observation. I personally believe that the birds are somehow driven to the berries around the middle to end of August. If I'm not mistaken that is when the dogwood berries ripen. I find that my bluebirds disappear around then only to return in the winter. Someone hypothesized that they need the sugar to bulk up for the winter. Not sure if that is true or not, but maybe that is why you notice the chokeberry eaten at the same time. I have some junkie trees that were growing when I bought the place 20 years ago. Someone told me they were chokecherry, but I've never been sure. From my research, they look like black cherry. I know that when we have taken a couple down and left the stump, shoots start coming out of the stump like crazy. They do grow quickly and the branches break easily in the wind. The birds love them, so we usually leave them up. They have small branch type things in the spring covered with lacy white flowers. Then the berries grow on the little branches. I know I'm not using proper terminology, so forgive me. Can anyone help with an id?

juliekcmo, I don't know if the kitchen is coming across very accurately in pictures. It is a very french country white in real life, not the light wood look that it appears in these pictures. With that, it reads a little more on the formal side to me. Either way, I just like more formal style. I agree, I need to think about the pool deck, pool and greenery. I"m not a fan of red so I'm trying to bring out the pinks I think... Thanks kswl and mtnrdredux. In defense of my tan, it is not really a peach. It was repainted some time between 2009 and now b/c I've seen pre-2009 listing pics from before the current owners had the house and the walls were different colors. If I have to repaint, I can do that... I guess... But I am really hoping I'll get the furniture in and it will look OK w/o repainting. I truly don't want to go through all that mess if there is any way to avoid! Old listing picture, as an example. This was before the new owners replaced the floor. The house was only built in 2005 and has already had a kitchen remodel, new floors and a fireplace remodel!