DebbieP, I know exactly how you feel. When I was brand new, I got a really nasty cursing me out, telling me I existed in my own little bubble, etc email from someone who took offense to a general and not negative in any way post that I made. The original comment that I made had absolutely nothing to do with the individual who sent me the 2 and a 1/2 page rant. It really upset me and I emailed her back apologizing that she thought my comment somehow had something to do with her. She never even responded again. Later I learned that she "rants" on a regular basis and had previously been "suspended" because of it. But she does post every couple of months begging for this or that thing that she desperately needs for the poor dying & helpless people that seem to surround her. Butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. I know I have to get over it, but everything I see a post from her, it raises my blood pressure! I really have to work at taking a deep breathe and moving on but sometimes it takes a lot of effort! :)

SHERRY � Your garden is simply beautiful and is the garden of my dreams. Mine will never look that finished because gardening on four levels with glacier slurry on the house pad level that is deer fenced for the roses is incredibly hard work. My garden is a "young" garden and I think I have dug my last rose hole in rock. I was given over 100 bands as a housewarming gift and had to buy a pallet of soil (and hauled it up from the street level to the house pad level) and find over a hundred large containers and plant them before I could concentrate on putting things away from the move from Socal to Nocal. LAVENDER_LASS � I agree about taking more breaks. I also fix my lunch in the morning so that I will take a lunch break and not be starved for energy. LINDAWISCONSIN � the only reason I mentioned my exercise program was because nothing I had done in my previous life, including all of the gardening chores prepared me to garden on four levels. When I saw what my friend had accomplished on her property, which was purchased at the same time as mine, I decided to make a life-style change. It has made the gardening work easier, but it is still hard work. Yes, I have to split wood and shot put it up from the street level to the house pad level and stack it in the woodshed, but a lot of physical activity stops for months when winter hits. SHERRY � all retirement gave me was more garden projects ! I had more time, sooooooooo, but I also have a young garden. There�s still a lot of hard work to get it even close to what you have accomplished and I am 63. I think I am going to shorten my garden project list for this year. JERI � I am looking for cold hardy succulents for one bed, but I haven�t had time to research them. I have planted lower care plants in the beds around the house so that they are no longer filled with weeds, but you are right, they still need maintenance. HARMONYP � We had three days of rain last week which saved me from worrying about things all being deep watered on all levels .. but I had a fire fuel reduction crew working out here this spring. I spent one whole day working in the drizzle pruning back everything that could possibly go into their last burn pile which was scheduled for Wednesday. I spent half of the last day in pure rain hacking back the ivy hedge that hides the propane tank for the burn pile and came in soaking wet. No joy. BUT the burn crew hauled all of the waste down to the street level and pruned back three large shrubs that I just couldn�t get to before that last burn day while I pruned the one large rose I have on the street level. MENDOCINO_ROSE � I don�t have automatic watering, so that�s what creates my time conflicts on all of the levels. Hauling hoses can be hard work, too. SHERRY � today is my last full day in the garden this spring. After I water in all of the plant food I put down yesterday, mulch and water the street rose and re-build it�s deer cage, I am going to spend some time cleaning house because I have ignored it for the last several weeks. Yes, there is a lot of work I should do before the real heat hits, but I need a break. I am sorry this post is so long, but the most important lessons I have learned about gardening this spring came from my rose friends from another rose group who suggested that I not aim for perfection, take time to take care of myself and especially take time to enjoy what I have accomplished. You have created a beautiful garden that deserves to be enjoyed. Smiles, Lyn

merrybookwyrm, I wait until the last possible moment. We usually have a few nights of 30's then it warms back up.. then some more really chilly nights then it warms up again. I feel when we have several 30's nights in a row its time to drag them in. Sometimes mine get drug in, only to be drug back out for several more days then drug back in again. At the old house it wasn't too hard to do that. I had a nice space along side the driveway I could put them in. At this house I don't have that space. All the plants have to be drug in so we can get the cars in & out the garage so I'll only drag them out on nice days to water and drain before dragging them back in so hubby and I can get in and out of the garage. Most of mine can survive a few nights in the upper 30's. Its the hard freeze that will kill them or damage the limbs. for me its usually around Thanksgiving into early Dec if the weather holds out that long. There have been some Halloweens with freezing rain, and ice storms on Thanksgiving. But we've also had nice Halloweens and Thanksgivings. So its a wait and see kind of thing. My peace lilies are already inside only because I've been too busy to drag them back out yet. They sit on the front porch facing North where its much cooler than if they were on the back porch facing south. :) I think I'll just leave them inside now, except for watering day. (Which reminds me, I need to go bring in the fern) So when you bring the plants in all depends on what's going on and what kind of plant it is that you are bringing in.

Jessica, so many people have taken over my duties as the official "stuff in a box" sender that I've almost felt I had to have an alternative theme. LOL Really, I have a theme, plus one item that doesn't fit, but still, it resembles a theme. Kind of..... Annie