kimm - might want to check your State code - see Public Act 40 of 1956. Taken from one county Drain Commissioner website. (you'll see essentially the same in any MI county Drain Commissioner site): "Responsibilities of the Drain Commissioner The Drain Commissioner is responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of designated County Drains. The Drain Commissioner also serves on the County Parks and Recreation Board as well as on the Board of Public Works. Under the Inland Lake Improvement Act, Part 309 of Act 451 of 1994, the Drain Commissioner serves as a member of any Lake Improvement Board. The Drain Commissioner is also the County Enforcing Agent (CEA) under the Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Act, Part 91 of Act 451 of 1994. That is, soil erosion and sedimentation control permits are issued through the Drain Commissioner's Office" You may see the road guys may be doing the work, but the responsibility and authority rests with the Drain Commissioner. edit - note added: in MI not all ditches along county roads are county drains. Form the same county DC website: "There are many natural watercourses, private ditches, private pipelines, and roadside ditches that are not County Drains. The Drain Commissioner has virtually no jurisdiction on these systems." This post was edited by TXEB on Wed, Jun 26, 13 at 11:19

besides the fact they seem to be natural & well outside the "official" native range is that they are growing on bottomland soil as far as I can tell, possibly even in the Potomac floodplain! Not where you expect a "hard" maple to be! ==>>> exactly who is this 'official' who takes the time to draw up maps of of mother earths preferences???? when one relies on a government bureaucrat.. for anything... they soon find.. the bureaucrat.. has no real clue with reality ... one might suggest that the 'official' range is perhaps.. COMPLETELY WRONG ... ???? where does one go from there??? now.. as for your excitement.. and new knowledge.. all the power to ya.. i hope you do burn the gas.. to go the 35 miles.. and get some pix while you are there.. to share with us .... i dont understand why you are hesitating about the decision at all ..... GO FOR IT ... ken ps: i had the same thoughts in regard to your other post on those un-named.. OFFICIALS... changing zone maps .... if you take nothing else from these two post.... it should be.. to ALWAYS question the OFFICIAL ...

Congratulations! You did it. It takes time to figure out their system but once learned, you'll never forget. Alabama, I've been looking at photos and reading articles about the longleaf pine ecosystem. I'm sorry but one question always leads to another. These articles stress the importance of fire to reduce competition and maintain the ecosystem. Our forester said the forestry dept burned an area where they are growing longleaf seedlings last spring - they lost more than 20%. He wasn't sure why -- maybe the temperature was too hot or it was too late in the season and the seedlings were in active growth. Question #1: If I keep vegetation down until the seedlings are out of the grass stage, do I need to burn longleaf pine areas? I have no experience doing this. I've seen photos of the longleaf wiregrass ecosystem - the only vegetation beneath the trees is the grass so it creates a savannah. I've read that if hardwoods or other pines get started, they will eventually crowd out the longleaf pines. If that's the that case, it seems that fire will be necessary. Maybe by the time I need to do this and need advice, the foresters will have more experience. ;-) Question #2: Are you familiar with the Joseph Jones Ecological Research Center in Ichauway in SW GA? It looks like a big research center and an nteresting place to visit. They have a longleaf pine management and restoration project and several others. While they have "landowner field days" for private landowners and managers in the area, I didn't see any indication that they allow people in to look around. Happy New Year! Pam

I'm in Accomac. I grow Lilacs but have never tried Delphiniums here. We got this place for our "retirement" home. The weather is awsome IMO. There is about a month of pretty hot weather that I don't garden much. I start gardening sometimes in Feb always by March, with only a few days too chilly to be out there. I usually stop planting anything around mid to late July weather dependant and resume again first week or so of Sept. I do go out and weed etc but no heavy garden work through that time. It can get pretty humid, but we almost always have a nice breeze. It does stay warmer in winter and cooler in summer than our house in MD that is about 150 miles north of here. I didn't think that there were that many "local folk" on this forum :) For those of you that don't check the exchange page; I'm having a garden visit/plant swap here in Accomac June 7.