Completely out of space so no newbies for me this year----previous ones are establishing nicely, although I think I may have lost some of the (luckily cheaper) ones that I tried in the ground due to our unusually cold winter. Mainly I grow in very large pots as the ground where I live is VERY poor---dry and stony and only a few inches deep on top of a stone shelf so only especially hardy ones go in the ground for lanscaping alongside hardy geraniums. I have LAKE EFFECT, the first year I was not impressed at all, I thought the colour was FOUL, but last year it was really nice and is coping well with British weather (much better than I am) so it is one worth keeping for a few year even if you don't like it initially.

BC, if you like that slick melted patent leather look of a shiny dark green, then there is another one for you. Check out Lederhosen. I also got Get Nekkid this year, and it is about as shiny as they get. I don't have Cranberry Wine, but it sounds delicious, will take a look at it later today. Making a note of it. For a comparison, I'll put my old photo of Candy Dish beside Irish Luck. While Irish Luck is shown as fragrant, I don't think Candy Dish is on Don Rawson's Fragrant Flowered list, so it is not an Invincible hosta. Other slick shiny dark green leaves are on a list too. Check them out. Lederhosen (the REAL one) which I got in 2010 Braveheart Obsession There is one more shiny oily leaf but I don't remember it right now. However, here is Get Nekkid, just arrived this year. The hot sun got to it before it hardened off, and I removed the masking tape too soon. It is doing fine though. Not heavy substance, however, but better than thin.

Melissa, Have you read Square Foot Gardening? I can't remember the author's last name for sure right now, but I think he's Mel Bartholomew or something like that. Very nice way to look at space and spacing issues. I'm thinking on my cuke wall I'm going to have two rows, staggered, with a foot spacing in between each plant. On a fifteen foot "row" that'll be 30 plants! MIGHT be too much weight for the netting, but I'm going to give it a shot. Worst case scenario, I can pull plants if needed. That netting has got me thinking of other spots I can go vertically too... for pole beans. My breaded okra is still a work in progress... LOL! When I first did it, I just breaded it like regular and froze it on a sheet of wax paper in the freezer. Worked, but the okra was fairly hard when cooked. Last summer I blanched the okra, THEN breaded it and froze it. This turned out better, but still not what I'm looking for. (I figured out it's better to thaw the okra a little bit before frying it on both ways.) NEXT YEAR, I'm going to pre-fry it in a tempura type batter, cool completely THEN freeze. I like cooking projects... LOL! NOW, on the loofah/loufa/dishcloth/vining okra gourd thing... LOL! Honestly, I have no idea what the "real" name is for these dang things I've been growing. A friend gave me the seed and I just love growing them. When they're young, you cook them like regular ol' okra. Mid size to a bit bigger, I took a steak knife and cut it straight down the length of it and pulled the outer "husk" from the inner fibers. Then I de-seeded it and laid the fiborous part out to dry, and LOW AND BEHOLD, a loofah! This is what I'm calling "dishcloth". I did try to use half as a body scrubber, but it's way too scratchy for me. Works great on dishes tho! It becomes soft when wet, but still scratchy to a point... then dries out nicely and rebounds to it's shape! I loved it, next year I will have many more. I also let a couple get as large as possible and dry out on the vine, with seeds still in them. My little boy uses them as musical "shakers"! I'll try to take a pic of them here today and post it so you can see what I mean. All that from just one plant, I LOVE it. I had them planted along the edge of my carport in a "wall", and the beautiful yellow flowers were a joy to see everyday! The vines were so healthy, they grew all up on the top of the carport. I had a few dried gourds on the top of the carport at the end of the season. THIS will be a regular plant for me, it's just easy and fun to grow! Dawn, I honestly do not think I've run into a cucumber beetle... YET. Watch this year be the year for them... LOL! My wall of cukes might just be too inviting for them not to show up. Yes, I hear of most people around here having either hybrid or wild blackberries growing, so I thought that'd be the way to go for me. Of course, strawberries are also very big around here too, but I don't have the space to devote to a huge bed of just ONE thing (in my mind). If I did, I'd do asparagus first, then strawberries. MIGHT try one of those hanging strawberry bags, but that's another project. :) The trees around my area are pecan and cedar... LOL! I've never heard of ANYONE having luck with apple trees around here. Well, we're having a rainy day here. The St. Francis river is up and we're under flash flood warnings too. I live in a higher part of town, so I'm not too worried about us. The farmers that farm along the river might have problems tho. Just been a wet, sloggy year for Northeastern Arkansas! Planting was late due to the wet spring, and harvesting was hard due to a wet fall! I really need to see what our rainfall averages are for the year, I'm betting we've set a record. But, of course, snow would be nice... but rain is better than ice! LOL! We're off to spend the rest of the day at my parent's house... ya'll stay safe, warm and dry! :) Beth p.s. My DARLING husband gave me an early Christmas present! It's a Veggie Tales t-shirt! On the front, it's got Bob the Tomato and it says "If you like to talk to tomatoes..."! LOL! I laughed so hard! I love that show... the theme song goes like this. If you like to talk to tomatoes... If a squash can make you smile... If you like to waltz with potatoes, up and down the produce aisle... have we got a show for you! Too cute, huh?

Actually, I believe that flower is a lady slipper....a type of orchid. All of them are custom made so you can select any flower or other thing you might want. I really wanted a urinal in our bath, but they were all so ugly....had I seen these, I might have made room. This would look fab in my wild a$$ PR! In order to keep the potty cleaner, I've often thought of getting a funnel and a hose attached to the wall.....I'm always amazed at how he misses such a large target that is so close...and he was on the varsity rifle team! I remember a sign over a potty somewhere many moon ago: We try to keep The bathroom neat We wish you would aim To do the same!