Well, I'll get to find out this year if fat, woody canes above a graft can produce new green stuff, because I have 4 grafted roses that have zero green. I did cover them with leaves (heavily), but that didn't cut it. This year we had bitter cold for us but only a spell or two of snow that came late. Over a foot! I wish it'd come sooner :( The ones that really worry me are the more unusual (or pretty rare) ownroots. But since they do have roots, they'll all sprout up again, right? Oh, they'd better! Those were still young from Vintage or RU, but they all looked great and big and thick enough going into winter. I protected those better and they still lost everything up top. None of my really established roses had a bit of problem, even the teas. It was the grafts (I don't bury) or the smaller ones that really took a beating. This year I'm taking insurance cuttings and rooting all my favorites, just in case! Oh, yeah, my main water pipe froze solid underground for nearly a week this winter, too. No bursting, though :) May that luck hold out, lol.

My brugmansia came back after the summer heat. Here it is right now and it's getting quite big. It does very well in the shade and it's been giving me quite a lot of flowers lately. Yes, elephant ears work here. I'd suggest getting some from the alocasia family, not colocasias. I've tried colocasias, they grow well in the spring and fall but they just cannot take the heat at all in the summer, in my experience. Here's one of my Borneo Giants in full shade They will die back when it hit below freezing for more than a couple hours, but if that happens, don't water them again for the rest of the winter or else the bulb will rot. Just wait for them to pop back up in spring. Same thing with Cannas. If you're going for tropical, get some Cannas, since they LOVE being in full sun here. another one I'd recommend is the Chinese Parasol Tree. Big foliage and can take some sun. I have mine in morning sun/full shade in the afternoon. The plant loses its leave in the winter and goes dormant. Here's mine now after a week from coming back from dormancy. It's already grown about 6+ inches! Birds of paradise are great as well here in Phoenix. They're frost hardy down to 25-26f I believe. Split-leaf Philodendron are great as well. Just plant them in the shade. Plus you can find these easily at HD or Lowes. I wouldn't risk planting a castor bean though since you have pets. They drop a lot of those red spiny bean pods all over, and from what I've read are very poisonous. I'm not sure about the brug's toxicity though. Their flowers might be poisonous?

Don't forget to add BRUNFELSIA right next to No# 1, next to Bouvardia! The best thing about Brunfelsia is that it is much more hardier than the Bouvardia. Great job with this list considering I am well on my way to having them all:-) Mike

Here in SW Qld, gardeners who are passionate will have anything in their garden that will grow and survive the summer heat, and the winter frost. Many gardens look tropical although there are plenty that look like dustbowls. Tropical can be more the 'feel of tropical' rather than traditional tropical, and cottage-garden style gardening with the appearance of luxurient growth works well to create a tropical look. Many successful gardens here have local natives plants and shrubs, palms - dates, the dreaded cottontail (G) gums, agave, cactus, and yucca, pomegranates, and some of those annuals that keep coming back, and perenials that cannot be killed which provide the important understory. These are all mixed up with no much regard for the tidy, ordered look which is promoted by the magazines and TV programes. I have an area in our 3/4 acre that is slowly being developed into a 'dry' rainforest, with easter/christmas cactus, and several other rainforest cactus in baskets, a few hardier bromilliads, a couple of staghorns, and crowsnest ferns, at the moment the area is under shade cloth, (and palm thatch for the summer) Eventually the couple of shade trees planted will grow tall enough to protect the area that used to be an old chook house. The bush poles making a structure for the hanging baskets, and the essential hammock. The 'rainforest' takes minimal precious rainwater, which mostly goes on the fruit trees, and vegetables. My cactus garden, with resident yucca and agave has a bougainvillea in one corner and is shaded slightly with a gum so that the cactus do not get burnt by the westering sun. Neither look out of place. Nearby is a trellis which by next year, I hope, will be a riot of bougainvillea, and hibiscus. These are still no more than rooted cuttings siting in the shadehouse at the moment. Hopefully they will be big enough by the next good rain to plant out. regards Dorothy