I found the one I had back in the mid 1990s to be pretty hardy; the erstwhile management of Forestfarm said their seed came from one in some frost hollow of western WA that had seen very low temperatures by PNW standards. Current management of Forestfarm knows nothing about this...too bad they didn't keep better notes. And, I think this reflect a general thing going on with Forestfarm. They will still have rare plants but not someone - an owner-operator-plant-lover - going through the tedious steps to obtain the "best of all possible rare plants". (always time for a little Panglossian optimism!) I really don't think they are particularly susceptible to fungus for any reason other than having been pumped full of nitrogen to get them into fast growth...when sold as the decidedly odd looking 'mini Christmas trees'. They grow in Texas around the dry line, which certainly can be humid! Years ago someone posted a picture of some big ones in San Antonio. And also of course one grew in North Carolina. I think, south of say Richmond, VA, they are just under planted, and north of it, likely to die back in the coldest of winters.

Outsmarting the tree rats (squirrels) around my house is a full time job. This past spring I hit on a new idea. When I plant a container I invert an empty wire hanging basket over the container and the plant gets sun and can be watered but the squirrels can't dig in it. Another idea: I bring in a lot of plants to "over winter" under lights in my garage. I have so many that it is hard to reach my hand under the lights (4 shop lights) to the middle for watering. So I bought a pump sprayer with a long wand and it works great! In late winter I add a little liquid Dawn detergent, few drops, to each gallon of water and not only does the soil get wet easier but the worms that are waiting to hatch into distructive pets just don't hatch. Don't know what it costs me to run those four shop lights all winter but I don't care. It is a small price to pay to be able to "garden" every weekend in the garage. Many people have mentioned that they mark their outdoor plants with a "permanent Sharpie". In my experience there isn't a "permanent Sharpie", they all fade and quickly too. A grease pencil/china marker or expensive "no fade" garden center marker are the only markers I have found that won't disappoint you by fading. Eight years ago I decided to learn about gardening so I tapped into my local library. I checked out nearly every book they had on gardening and learned so much. The Gardenweb forums are also a wealth of information and entertainment. There is always something new to learn and I appreciate all of you who take the time to write in your ideas. One last idea from me...I keep a small notebook on my computer table and jot down any idea I find that's new and I will want to try. Little pieces of paper get lost but I always know where my notebook is and also use it when I order "on line" so I will remember the name of the company and the order date. Tina or Trowelgal

When I saw your tag line, I just had to respond. We moved to central Va 2 years ago from Southern California, so welcome to the neighborhood. Anyway, one of the things that is great about this area is the wonderful variety of trees, shrubs, and flowers. In spite of the clay soil, it is a great place to garden. Do you know if you will be in the area more than 5 years? If so, then it may be worth it to slow down on the planting - plant some now and some next year - just to see what you like and to avoid having to remove trees from a crowded area in the future. On the other hand, you spent good money on a landscape designer who I assume spent time listening to your needs. Usually, designers/architects have ties with local suppliers and installers - did he/she recommend anyone? Also you may want to consider a place that has some kind of a guarantee - ie they purchase and install plants and will replace anything that dies within 1-2 years, especially since trees are so expensive. Look at the ads in the Washington Post to get an idea of who offers these services, plus ask neighbors for their recommendations. I'm in Charlottesville, which is 2 hrs away, so unfortunately, I don't know places near you.

This is all so timely for me. After 15 months on the market and a 30% price reduction, I actually have an appointment at 3:30 today with the realtor to sign the contract to sell my beloved painted lady. She's going to a property investment company. They have close to a million dollars in property assets (they had to provide a balance sheet to us with their offer as proof of funds) so I'm guessing the chances of her becoming someone's beloved long term family home are slim. Her fate is more likely a rental, or worse, being chopped in to 3 or 4 studio type apartments. It makes me a little sad, but the dire financial situation this whole divorce/sale ect has put me overshadows all of that. I NEED it sold. I hadn't mentioned anything to my realtor about how I was feeling. Last night on the phone he said to me, you know, every Sunday I'm going to force myself to not look at the house when I got to church (his church is directly across the street). It'll make me too sad if it becomes apartments. He went on to say he doesn't get emotionally attached to properties - he's one of the highest grossing realtors in our metro - he can't afford too. This time he has. He's gone to that church for many years and always admired the house. When we bought it, it was covered in various colors of vinyl siding with half it's fishscale siding missing or covered. It had drop/grid ceiling tiles and 70's wallpaper everywhere, but you could still see how pretty she was underneath all of that. I'm very excited about my new little cottage. It's no where near as grand as the victorian, but it's very "me" and it fits my lifestyle as it is now quite well. I haven't even moved in yet and it already feels very much like home. I will probably, however, not drive down the street where the victorian is, again.