Rules of thumb: Kill the grubs--by hand if there aren't too many. A handful of bonemeal is fine for a mini. Don't over-fertilize--a handful of organic fertilzer at planting time, another every few months until you get a feel for your soil. Don't plant invasive plants too close to the roses. Read the labels of all plants for size and sun/shade and believe them. Don't water rose leaves (unless you are hosing off aphids). Roses don't like to go to bed with their feet wet. Don't over water--no more than twice a week.

Not necessarly. Thought my Spring had arrive one April. 5 in So. Calif. and went on to my convention without a worry, well it hailed on April 6 and ruined every plant that I had left uncovered. It is not over until it is over. Listen to the weather news every night. It different iin every zone location also different every year. We have had a very rough Winter, nothing was the same as in the past years. We all got caught w/unexpected weather this past year. The plants also.

Hello Peter and Malin --- I've delayed responding (as I suspect others might, too) because I don't want to discourage you about the design of your gate. The torii gate is only used in Japan to mark the entrance to a Shinto shrine, or to a site or an object recognized as special or sacred. Also, the torii gate is always free-standing and doesn't incorporate side fences. I like to make rustic gates from cedar logs which have only one crosspiece at the top (torii gates have two crosspieces) to distinguish them from torii gates. Of course people are free to use whatever designs they choose and like in their gardens --- it's just that torii gates have a special meaning in Japan and using them decoratively in private gardens would look strange to a Japanese person. As for materials, my company often uses wild spirea and cedar for fences here. Using bamboo in northern climates tends to make fences that look exotic, which is not really in keeping with traditional Japanese garden aesthetics. Japanese gardens tend to make use of local materials. Lee

My yard is so new, first plantings December 05, that other yards around me are bursting forth more quickly. However, almost all my heather is now in bloom, and the first daffodil bloomed yesterday. Lots of swelling buds and feathering pink elongating twigs. The catkins on the salix smithiana have gone from downy silver fuzz to bright yellow pom-poms. The blueberries are leafing. The red horse chestnut buds are swelling huge. The red maple is red-flowering. Candy tuft blooming. Grass growing, clover re-shamrocking out. Miniature ivy thriving. Vinca blooming and going crazy with heavy new growth. Yippeee! Catmint coming up. Some willows getting little bright green leaves. Crocosmia shoots coming up. Ajuga quickly showing signs of life, going from flattened chocolate to green. Crocus already done. Thujas slowly turning from grey-brown to green. Weeds popping up everywhere. Slugs multiplying. Birds chasing each other. Frogs chorusing. Water running strong in creeklets. Air so fragrant with daphne flowering. Clematis armandii starting to bloom white. Birds starting to eat ripe Nellie Stevens holly berries. Magnolia buds swelling. Photinia fraseri bright red, new buds. Rhodies perking up, getting greener. Sun is beautiful when it comes out. Not too hot yet. Lots of luscious rain, lovely wet rain to nurture those roots, mist the evergreens and give me a break from watering :-) Hail Spring!