I have just recently put down the lasagne layers in several different areas of my garden and out in a bigger open area (mainly there to control the weeds and help the clay soil) and so far I can really see a difference in the garden area AND the other area too...I think it's going to be a great garden spot this coming year!!! I was just in Toronto (in outlying suburban area) and was foaming at the mouth when driving through the neighborhood my cousin lives in...BAGS OF LEAVES EVERYWHERE....If I would have had a few extra suitcases, I might just have loaded em up.... and the best part, they were all in neat tidy Home Depot PAPER leaf bags...the extra big ones. What envy I had. If I lived there, I'd have the best compost pile ever, sigh...but soon enough, the leaves here will start falling and I'll be on the hunt for them. I'm like someone else on here who said they feel like a theif if they dont ask and I too feel like I should ASK to take the stuff at the curb....It's actually worked out nicely when I have spoken to someone, since they usually tell me to come on back anytime for more and take what I want when it's out there. I have also found a good amount of "green" from a local horse person....moldy hay they cant use...and it's great for the last layer (although that might not be lasagne correct layering) It actually works great to anchor everything else underneath...I did cardboard several layers thick..then grasss clippings, then more cardboard and then hay. I didn't have any food scraps of any volume...but it seems to be working...

I find blanket statements like don't shop there, only shop here very annoying. I prefer a centrist approach. Majority of my roses are in fact from nurseries like ARE/Chamblees/Vintage because I like to support them and fear that they may go under, and also because they sell own-root varieties I would never find elsewhere. But this whole dissing of HD/Lowes I simply do not get. They sell very nicely priced HTs and Austins that are great for me to try as experiments. I simply would never buy an HT from a pricey nursery in California because I don't know how high survival chances will be through a brutal Chicago winter. And yes, I've bought Mr Lincoln/Shreveport/Dbl Delight etc from Vintage in the past. Spindly own root bands that promptly croaked. Never again. I stick to OGR gallons with mail-order now. At HD, an HT is a $9 to $12 risk. If it makes it, good. If it dies, fine. Secondly, I am SICK and TIRED of 'reputable' rose nurseries sending me mislabeled roses which are often bands and I don't figure out it's the wrong variety until much later, often when rose shipping has ceased. At least with HD, if it's wrong (and I buy roses in BLOOM only from big box places) I can take it in and get my refund without jumping through hoops. Also, what's this about virused, dead plants from big box places? The nurseries I buy from in Chicago (HD/Gethsemane/Anton's) almost always sell Jackson and Perkins stock. Tons of people buy roses online from J&P. So that's ok and if someone buys it from a retailer here it's wrong? I got my start with rose growing because of HD. I bought a Charlotte and The Prince because they looked so delectable and didn't even know they were called Austins. They were healthy, gorgeous and sailed through the winter. I became confident and started buying more roses due to them. Today, I spend my money at rose nurseries but they are certainly not the ones who got me started with my hobby. Also, to the credit of big box stores, my local HD actually sells a few OGRs. I have seen Honorine de Brabant, Rose de Rescht and Mme Pierre Oger over there. Yes, a majority of their roses are the KnockOut varieties but they are trying to diversify a bit. And I certainly would not say that their employees are clueless. They may not know as much as hard-core rosarians do but they do know enough to do their job. Whatever. I'd rather be centrist and have a great garden than get all political and make sweeping statements. There are several advantages that those folks ignore.

What's in non-diary creamer? I'm not sure its heart healthy. The website says their claim to fame is not using powdered choclate. So you could use one of the above recipe's and maybe use a little actual chocolate, whizzed in a food processer to make it a little more decadent. It would be more expensive but you could do this off food network - or maybe do 2/3 or 3/4 powder choclate and the rest in real choclate (you would have to add sugar to the mix I think if using powder) to pump it up from Swiss Mix Ingredients * 3 pounds bittersweet chocolate * 1 pound 2 ounces whole dry milk powder * Cayenne pepper * 1 large stick cinnamon Finely grate the bittersweet chocolate. Place the milk powder, grated chocolate, and cayenne pepper, to taste, in a large mixing bowl and combine thoroughly. Spoon the mixture into attractive tins or jars and tie the cinnamon stick to the jar. Label the jar with the following instructions: Use 1/2-cup of chocolate mixture with each cup of hot milk or water. When making the hot chocolate, be sure to boil the chocolate milk for at least 15 seconds. Use the cinnamon stick to stir. Serving with marshmallows is optional.

Look for climbing roses, and the one in your photo likely has a rose obelisk under there providing support. No you cannot purchase one at this size. Gardening is a life lesson in patience, and most plants settle in better when smaller and within a few years surpass ones planted larger. Ask about disease resistant climbing roses for your area on the rose forum. https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/roses Edited to add that I am sure that floral is correct. At the very least, wait to plant until you have figured out what and where you want to plant. It will save money and the need to redo mistakes. Even as a very experienced gardener, I typically spend the first season preparing the beds, mulching them to prevent weeds, and planning. Then I plant in early autumn when the weather is cooler, days are shorter, plants are often on sale, and rain is more regular so that plants settle in well. Figure out things such as, would a small flowering tree near the house provide a better view or would shrubs closer to the road? How much work and time do I want to spend in the front garden? Where is there sun and shade at different times of the year as the sun changes position with the seasons? Where will I store the trash cans and the lawn mower? Many of these are questions that won’t be answered until you have lived here for a bit. (so we are back to gardening being a life lesson in patience.). For instant gratification, get a couple of big pots and stuff them full of bright flowering annuals or get some seeds for scarlet runner beans and grow them up a teepee of poles to attract humming birds. In the long run, for appeal as you come home I would plan on at the very least planting a flowering large shrub or small tree diagonally off both house corners. Look up the expected size of the tree or shrub (not just the plant tag which often gives a 5 year size) and then divide in half and add a couple of feet to find how far from the building to plant. You don’t want a plant rubbing against the building at maturity. So a plant that will reach 14’ wide should be planted 7+2=9 feet from the building. That gives it room to get a bit bigger than expected if happy and room to move in the wind without damaging roof or siding. It will look sparse at first, so fill in with short lived perennials or annuals. Growing from seed can be a budget friendly way to get more plants to fill in. When you plant along the foundation, a few things to note about the planting in the photo above. -The bed is reasonably spacious, and because your house is tall and with high windows, you will want a bed that is at least 8’ deep front to back to look good. As with the trees plan to place plants with some space between their ultimate size and the wall so siding can dry out, so depending on what you plant, you may need to make the bed wider for plants that will grow large or have a couple rows of plants which are smaller. Choose plant heights that won’t grow up in front of the windows for the best appearance from outside. -The bed in the photo isn’t edged, so grass will grow in and it looks a bit ragged. A crisp edge cut with a deep V or else a mowing strip of brick or patio block inset to ground level and held in place with metal or plastic edging, also set with the top at ground level, will keep grass out and look tidy. - The bed pictured has a single lonely line of plants in a sea of mulch. A garden bed may start out looking sparse, and can be filled in temporarily with annuals as I mentioned above, but your ultimate goal for an attractive bed should have mostly plants with little mulch needed. Just be sure when planting you allow room for your plants to grow to their expected size.