Bonjour, Yvette. Welcome back and congrats on your new home and a new garden. A clean slate to try something new. Tiffy gave wonderful suggestions. I would like to add these to the list: - Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle', my favorite Hydrangea, most reliable, easy to grow, can take sun or shade - Solomon's Seal & Variegated Solomon's Seal - Lamium maculatum of all types. I like the one with more white. I have Pink Nancy, I think. Most luminous in the shade. The yellow one is very pretty too. - Mertensia virginica  I love, love this perennial that takes full shade! ItÂs the sweetest sight in early spring next to a pink Bleeding Heart - Phlox paniculata - Heuchera of all sorts - Heucherella - Tiarella wherryi - Primula! - Trilium - Jack-in-the Pulpit - Bloodroot - Perennial Forget-Me-Not - Alchemilla mollis - I love this plant especially with dew drops or rain drops on the leaves - Japanese maples - Hydrangea quercifolia!! Most definitely! - Anemone hupehensis - Asarum europaeum and canadensis - Ferns - Phlox divaricata - Galium odoratum - Bergenia cordifoli - Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' - Chrysogonum virginianum - Convallaria majalis - Lily-of-the Valley - Pulmonaria saccharata - Digitalis grandiflora - Helleborus orentalis - Helleborus niger - Tricyrtis hirta - Uvularia grandiflora - Kirengeshoma palmate  Yellow Wax Bells - Rheum palmatum  Ornamental Rhubarb - Azalea & Rhododendron & Kalmia - Daffodils and other early spring bulbs. I love Fritillaria meleagris. The following can take partial shade: - Trollis x cullorum - Centaurea Montana - Centranthus rubber - Feverfew - Johnny-Jump-Up - Clematis - Phlox divaricata - Coreopsis verticillata - Euphorbia epithymoides - Filipendula rubra - Gentiana septemfida - Geum x borisii - Ajuga reptans - Iberis sempervirens - Incarvillea delavayi - Siberian Iris - Liriope muscari - Lobelia cardinalis - Lychnis chalcedonica - Tradescantia  Spiderworts - Phlomis russeliana - Pulsatilla vulgaris - Celandine Poppy The choices are endless. But please, please do not plant Gooseneck Loosestife, unless you have room for it spread to China. And please, please, please do not cut the trees. It would a crying shame if you do or even consider it. I just visited lindalana's garden. It's practically completely shaded with big trees. But it's the most beautiful shade garden I have ever, ever seen!!

Some sources say to chop the whole thing back to about 6 or 8 inches high. I would do that now, if I chose to go the more drastic haircut route, because to do so in the wintertime or even fall could run the risk of new shoots getting freezer burnt. Especially as you are in Z5. The other method for really old thick lilacs is to chop off one-third (or in your case, one or two) of the really thick old growth this year, then another one next year and so forth. This preseves more option of continuous bloom, if any. Personally I would use the former method. Also, lilacs like sweet soil, so a bit of lime or wood ash might be in order if your soil is acidy.

Wow Jane, I am tired just reading about what all you did! Sounds like a wonderful time and lots of work and effort on your part. What a large group to entertain! So nice that your DH helps you with the decorating. Mine does not help with the inside at all. I carry everything up from the basement including the trees, all the boxes, ladders, etc. The only thing he does outside is put a blow mold Santa on our mailbox, although this year, he did run an extension cord from the backyard for some of the lights as they kept tripping the breaker this year! Again, getting everything down out of the rafters, off of the shelves, and put up is up to me! Sorry, I just needed to vent a little. I get a bit envious when I hear of other DH's that help with decorating. Anyway, looking forward to your pix. TFS, Candy

"I been reading that if I have a over grown grape vine I could cut it down to nearly the ground and it would regrow." What variety is it? Where are you located? Regardless of the variety, if it's been grafted onto rootstock, cutting below the graft union will remove the wood that produces the fruit you enjoy. Nobody wantsberries from riparia x rupestris. Pruning during dormancy is optimal and I suggest waiting until late winter. Not only is it better for the vine, but pruning when there are no leaves makes it much easier to see what you're working with. Like FarmerBill said, "spare parts" training is a good idea, so keeping a single new shoot each spring will help offset the delay should the main trunk(s) not survive the winter. One or two main trunks and a spare is fine and will help keep the vine in better balance. Too much vegetation comes at the cost of lower fruit yield just as cropping to heavily is equally unbalanced. pruning-of-concord-grapes-cornell/