'... I think that these trees @ Nat'l Arboretum and the one @ UDEL, Newark are the northernmost Live Oak in eastern N. America....' Well, Newark Delaware is pretty far north, but certainly there are live oaks growing further north than the Nat'l Arboretum. I know of several in Sterling, VA, for example. That's quite a ways west too. Lots of acorns in my trees this year. Quickly becoming squirrel food. I don't mind. At least they're not bothering persimmons this year. And what am I going to do with hundreds of acorns?

Hey, Squishyplant! The important thing is to make sure that the nodes are in contact with the rooting medium. Otherwise, as Doug mentioned, it's purely an aesthetic choice. I rooted a 'Gollum' horizontal style for bonsai last summer, and it turned out pretty good. I wish I'd had Turface to use, and I wish I'd pinned the cutting more securely..... instead of propping it on a flat stone and simply tying it with twine. Doug's method looks much more solid. Here are some pics to add to the topic. Click for a larger view: Below, you can see new growth from the lower "trunk": Josh

Hello All, I do n't want to be the last to celebrate a wonderful weekend, but my internet connection has been fussy. I can't write much because I have to run out and plant a couple of things I got on the Vineyard. I have some wonderful souvenirs, a few of which were bought at the expense of peace of mind about getting to the ferry. But the best souvenir is the experience of gracious hosts, a48 hours of garden imersion, an excellent dinner, getting to see new and old friends, and a newfound appreciation of potential for relationships through the web. Of all the things computers mean to me, these gardening relationships are the most prized. In fact, since the computer is just a tool, it is really amazing that something so alive was discovered and nurtured through computer relationships. So, thank you Katie and Joe, Nan, Mindy and Debra, the weather gods, and whatever/whoever had a hand in this special gift./Idabean Marie

I built Oak Hill Lane four years ago with the help of this forum. I did not build the two story plan. We have a walk out basement with a south back. With the 3500 sq ft on the first floor and the app. 2500 sq ft finished in the lower level we have more room than we can use. We love our house. We bumped the family room out four feet and had a local architect make the kitchen larger and then redraw it ,which IMO improved it a lot. The original kitchen has very few cabinets. I took a little space out of the garage and made the 'Butler's Pantry' another walk in pantry. The garage is a little shallow overall. Should have had the local architect (yes, he was a real architect :-) tweek our plan and make the garage deeper, but I was afraid I would screw up the symmetry of the house. Have never been 100% sure that our truss co. got things absolutely right. The only thing I really dislike about the house that did not bother me at the time is the laundry room entrance. Despite the fact that I have a lovely circle drive that should invite people to use my front door, people end up coming to my side porch which takes them to my laundry room. Spent lots of time with architect at Spitzmiller & Norris on the phone (no charge) when I had questions. They were very helpful. Great house overall. Let me know if I can help. I'm having trouble posting a link from photobucket. Hope this works. [URL=http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v691/blsdgal/?action=view&current=OakHillLane.jpg][IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v691/blsdgal/th_OakHillLane.jpg[/IMG][/URL]