One thing I like to do is plant perennials that bloom later in the season when the OB OGRs are done. All by themselves they put on a pretty fine show, but that area can look dull once the show is over. So if you plant flowers that bloom starting in July until frost, you maximize the second show. I try not to waste space in that part of the garden on plants that bloom with the OB OGRs. This approach also gives you a shot at trying an entirely different color scheme, too, if you are tempted. The OB OGRs are all white, pink, dark red, and purple. Later you can switch over to a yellow and blue scheme or an orange, cream and apricot scheme, or whatever intrigues you. By doing this, you get double use of the space. Rosefolly

Carol, check out the bottle tree post and you will see the source of the bottle. I'm still debating what to do about the bottle trees...whether they go or stay. I think when the plants underneath them get larger they will look better; however, I only need one at the most.

Actually,Herb, my friend's is about 3 to 4 feet high..... the body granite stone is the size of a good watermelon.... the R-bar legs are realistically crooked while the web-feet are a triad of short delta-shaped 6 to 8 inch pieces of R-bar..... the neck and head are well-shaped pieces...a very strikingly beautiful 'sculpture'..... and I believe he purchased this about 10 years ago for less than 100 dollars somewhere on the island.... I need to press him further to try to remember just where he got it.... Yes, Nitobe is exquisite.... my family home is not far from it.... and my still gardening 90 year old mother loves to visit such gems....I took her out to Chilliwack recently to see Minter Gardens.... what a beautiful place.... have you been there? They have an exhibit in a pagoda=like structure that has astoundingly old hunks of jade or jade-like rock that are so evocative of craggy Chinese mountains....undoubtedly a very valuable collection....I particularly liked the little accompanying figurines...fish boats...temples...etc that were nestled well and appropriately in the jade mountain's orbit....I would like to have a small facsimile somewhere in my rockscape.... I need to find out what this exhibit is called so I can research a bit. Also I would like to have a NOT-so miniature 'tabled' Zen garden and its appropriate components somewhere out ..... so I could satisfy my inner RAKE and his need to pattern seas of readily-responsive sand! So much to do...lol.... sorry you had to be thwarted by 'proletarian philistines' on your horticultural pilgrimage..... alas we are never immune to the fly-works in our intended ointments.... ;o) Thanks,Ron

Basically I'm looking for a good quality cream quilt. Not made in china. As a sometimes quilt maker, I can tell you what the problem is with your desired price vs. good quality/not made in China. I recently made a queen duvet cover to match the colors in the room we were re-doing. I buy my fabric at a shop that has the best prices for quality cottons, meaning they run about $9/yard. You can get cheaper fabric at WalMart, but I wouldn't bother to put all the work into their substandard fabric. The cost of the fabric was around $180 and then I put many hours into construction-about 3 days worth. I used a simple white muslin on the back that I bought at JoAnn's on sale for about $5/yard. I didn't spend money on batting or time/money on true quilting. You can see the reason they make these things in China where people will do the work for a pittance. These are photos I took at the quilt show Road to California this past January. They are kind of what you're describing - in person, they were actually cream, not beige. These are "whole cloth quilts" meaning that that they aren't pieced, just quilted like crazy. I think they're both hand quilted, but I'm not positive. If they were for sale, I don't think you could touch either for less than $1000, and probably a lot more. So, Tuesday Morning, sounding better all the time!