Marlene, you've going to love it. If you have to move to a new zone and be a 'newbie', it's going to be a helluva lot more easier to go to zone 9 from 5 than to do it like I did, which was the reverse. (Here I'm a total idiot and learning the hard way.) You're going to have a much bigger selection of flowers/plants in that zone than where you're from. You will find that some plants that you considered 'annuals' aren't really over there because the fall/winter doesn't get cold enough to kill them. You will find that certain plants that other parts of the US consider more 'exotic', arent' considered that there. Like here, if I want night blooming Jasmine, I have to buy a 40 dollar plant from a nursery and keep it indoors in the winter. There? I can get one for 7 bucks at Target or in the racks in front of Payless and it's a perennial. It will grow like a weed. If you do Bougenvilla, do it in a very bright exposure. If you plant it in the right place, it will be amazingly beautiful and will grow like a weed. If you do it and it takes off, buy yourself a chain saw. I'm not kidding. Those suckers have thorns and over time, the branches can get thick. Walnut Creek has very hot summer periods. No humidity. No bugs. And not much (if any) rain. That part of the Bay Area (East Bay on the other side of the Oakland Hills) also is far more likely to be concerned with water usage. I've been out of the area for about a year and a half, so I don't know what the deal is right now, but I do know that you're given a basic allotment and if you exceed it, you will have one helluva water bill. So take it slowly with big planting for a few months until you find out what that bill is. At the very least, call and find out the parameters for your location so that you don't get surprises. Oftentimes, water usage for a certain year is based upon the previous year. So if the person that owned your house last year wasn't a big gardener, be extra skippy careful. Using mulch is not optional. It helps to keep the plants from being stressed from the heat and holds water. Containers in the summer will have to be hand watered daily. (Mulch them too.) And even if you have sprinklers, you might be doing that in other areas too. There will be plants that require cold that you won't be able to grow. Peonies don't exist. Lilacs only bloom in certain microclimates. A good book to start with is Sunset's Western Garden Book. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0376038519/102-5973663-2617723?v=glance&n=283155 Winters are very different. You don't do things like blowing out your sprinklers. You don't say goodbye to your lawn mower. And depending upon the weather, you may have to water year around. You may see trees at the end of winter that drop most of their leaves just as the spring buds form. Spring comes much earlier. You'll be pruning roses at the end of January. Gardening is not something that you stop doing, you just slow down. Long rainy periods mean that you don't have to mow! LOL You don't have big fungal problems with lawns over there, but you might trade that for things like rust on the roses during excessively rainy years. And during that time, plan on buying ant stakes. When the weather is really wet (and it hasn't been for awhile), the ants like to come inside. But compared to Japanese beetles and God knows what else the Midwest has, it's a breeze in comparison. Btw, for entertainment purposes, if you're into produce, check out the Berkeley Bowl (a grocery store, obviously in Berkeley). Their meat is not fabulous, but damn, the produce section is to die for! Especially in spring. Andronico's is good too, but it's more expensive... Have fun! I'll shut up now, I'm getting homesick. You're going to do fine!

I had a sink tucked up against a corner in my first house. It was a tiny u-shaped kitchen and that setup worked great except for the rather bizarre decision to place the DW on the opposite corner instead of next to the sink. Very hard to load a DW when the door drops down across the front of the sink! Never could understand why they did that when there was plenty of room to the side of the sink. Anyway, the only issue that I had (besides the ridiculous placement of the DW) was that it made it difficult for more than one person to work at the sink. But the kitchen was tiny and really only a one butt kitchen anyway. Otherwise I found the corner counter was a great place to keep the dish rack. Found some pictures for you. Hope they help. Justrich Design [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/white-kitchen-traditional-kitchen-toronto-phvw-vp~31912) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Toronto Interior Designer Chris Kauffman [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/sage-green-inset-door-kitchen-traditional-kitchen-seattle-phvw-vp~114170) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Seattle Kitchen And Bath Kayron Brewer, CKD / Studio KB [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-beach-style-kitchen-portland-maine-phvw-vp~675885) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Portland Maine Architect Whitten Architects [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-traditional-kitchen-denver-phvw-vp~96938) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Seattle Design-build Elizabeth P. Lord - Neil Kelly Company [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-contemporary-kitchen-los-angeles-phvw-vp~692663) [Contemporary Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by Los Angeles Photographer Michael Kelley Photography [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/ft-worth-historical-residence-eclectic-kitchen-dallas-phvw-vp~322594) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Dallas Interior Designer Dona Rosene Interiors [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-remodel-contemporary-kitchen-san-francisco-phvw-vp~383119) [Contemporary Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by San Francisco Interior Designer Justrich Design [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-beach-style-kitchen-portland-maine-phvw-vp~675888) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Portland Maine Architect Whitten Architects [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/bay-village-renovation-contemporary-kitchen-boston-phvw-vp~86889) [Contemporary Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by Boston Architect Frank Valdes [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/lucy-mclintic-contemporary-kitchen-san-francisco-phvw-vp~514790) [Modern Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2105) by San Francisco Media And Blogs Lucy McLintic [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/amy-birdsong-eclectic-kitchen-phvw-vp~66448) [Eclectic Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/eclectic-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2104) by Other Metros Kitchen And Bath Amy Birdsong [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/west-philadelphia-kitchen-contemporary-kitchen-philadelphia-phvw-vp~474314) [Contemporary Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by Philadelphia General Contractor Hanson General Contracting, Inc. [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/coastal-retreat-beach-style-kitchen-raleigh-phvw-vp~238008) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Raleigh Interior Designer Southern Studio Interior Design [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-traditional-kitchen-boise-phvw-vp~101162) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Cincinnati Kitchen And Bath Formica Group [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/fully-furnished-traditional-kitchen-boston-phvw-vp~43523) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Boston Kitchen And Bath Rob Kane - Kitchen Interiors Inc. [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/sage-green-inset-door-kitchen-rustic-kitchen-seattle-phvw-vp~114166) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Seattle Kitchen And Bath Kayron Brewer, CKD / Studio KB [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/victorian-kitchen-renovations-and-alterations-traditional-kitchen-new-york-phvw-vp~833820) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Newark Architect Clawson Architects, LLC [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-southwestern-kitchen-tampa-phvw-vp~581291) [Eclectic Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/eclectic-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2104) by Tampa Architect Gritton & Associates Architects [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-traditional-kitchen-san-francisco-phvw-vp~619199) [Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by San Francisco Kitchen And Bath Precision Cabinets & Trim

Vesfl, I moved from Dallas, TX, to Minneapolis prior to moving to Portland. A shared experience of ours--swapping our often hot and always crazy TX climate for the arctic regions, yes? I also discovered once-blooming OGRs when I moved to the ice box of the north. (Loved the snow!) I wish I had known about Paul Barden roses at that time. In addition to Gallicas, Albas are a top class for cold zones. The pale pinks and whites are stunning with purple Gallicas! Easy care and healthy. VERY fragrant. Another favorite Barden of mine, as well as one of my favorite roses of all time, is Marianne. I recommend this Hybrid Gallica as one to grow if you must choose but a few! Her colors are the loveliest blend of apricot, butter and cream. She's an exceptional companion for purple Gallicas. Her fragrance is one of the best. Totally healthy, no suckering to speak of and around 6-7 feet or a bit more. A nice wall shrub, fence or trellis climber or back-of-the border plant. Destined to become a classic "new OGR"! She's listed as zone 6b hardy on HMF but zone 4 on Paul Barden's website. Mariannese, those two Gallicas were the main bugbears in my last garden, too. Gorgeous, wild things! Carol

Thank you all so much for your replies! It's wonderful to see so many of you slogging through the Houzz changes in order to remain in touch, sharing your words and your photos. I hope others continue to chime in as they check in with the forum in between scheduled summer activities and in spite of current technological difficulties. Titian, thank you for the information about Florence's last posting. I may have missed it since it was located on a thread which began with another topic. I wish there were some way to reach her just to say how much it meant to share the exchanges that we did. We even shared family history and photos and artwork. Mary, I have no idea if Houzz ambushed the Furniture Forum with my post after the fact or whether I neglected to deselect the FF as a suggested cross posting site. I THOUGHT I deselected everything but Antique Roses. Since we will never know, and I prefer to maintain the fantasy that I can manage my own affairs, I'm going to cry "Houzz ambush" in order to save face. :-) Carol