To top it all off... When we blow the leaves, we blow them across the road because there is a big field right across the road. Well, yesterday I decided to go grab some more leaves before they got taken up by the park manager or waste management. I would suck the leaves back up with my blower, dump them back out when it was full, suck them back up again (which shreds them even finer) and then fill the leaf bags. My neighbors all must have thought I was crazy! A lot of people around here don't understand the value of their fall leaves. They just blow them all out on the road and forget about them. I must have looked like a crazy woman yesterday as I stood there sucking back up the leaves from across the street that were just blown across the street, dumping them back out again and sucking them back up! lol I don't really care what they think, because next year when my garden is flourishing with the help of some leaves, they'll all wonder how I did it! lol

Yes deer eat dahlias; it may not be their choice for main course, but they got at least one of mine two weeks ago- topped it- but I believe it's still growing.

I had 2 consecutive nights that the NWS reported to be 29F in Joiet about 20 miles north of me. I didn't have time to retrieve data from my own weather station I was given for Christmas, so I don't know how cold it actually got here in Wilmington. I walked, very carefully, my gardens today. All of my hostas appear to be in good shape EXCEPT: H.plantaginea. I have two 2011 young transplants. A couple of weeks ago I had a freeze when both had unfurled and were frozen back to the ground. In the freeze a couple of nights ago the newest growth was not fully unfurled but show signs of severe stress. So I wlll just have to wait and see. Another near 80F day is forcast in 2 days. My 2011 seedling that I call Theresa's Glory was found today under the soon to wilt foliage of daffodils. I saw only one eye, but it appears really strong so there is good reason to hope for the best. This year I will see if it retains it's Old Glory or Paul's Glory variegation that it showed last year. How many times can an individual hosta take a freeze hit and still recover? I would hate to lose these. Les

Depending on the length of the "on-call" list ... ... maybe we should hope that there are no funerals today ... or tomorrow ... or for the next while. Or that they may be small ones. There - now you should feel better, Diane. Have a lovely last-week-of-the-old-year, O.K.? And may your New Year be one of the best yet! ole joyful