rouge21 - I like/prefer most of my perennials (other than butterfly bush & baptisia) closer to 2 ft. than 4 ft. since that enhances, rather than detracts, from my property/house aspect & general garden design. Curb appeal is secondary only to feeding the bees, butterflies & hummingbirds but it still weighs heavily in my garden design & execution plans. I especially like Caryopteris/blue mist shrub for it's fragrant foliage + shortness in addition to blooming very late in the season. The butterflies are generally very fond of it. I normally whack my platycodon/balloon flower plants back to about 12 inches this time of year so they don't flop later in the season. It hasn't bothered them over the past 8 years so I figure they'll still give me lots of flowers. I've read they have a taproot and can be very long-lived. I really don't like plants that flop so I tend to whack whatever grows too tall if they'll still bloom following said whacking. They then grow to what I consider an acceptable height of roughly 2 or 2 1/2 feet in height before blooming. This year, unfortunately, some critter is whacking things back for me--I'm guessing either rabbits, woodchucks or the giant turtle I found in my south bed last week. Though I may grit my teeth, I'm generally resolved to accept + enjoy the garden as it is each year and not regret when things don't follow the plan I had in mind. Overall I've achieved the curb appeal I envisioned while also attracting pollinators to the garden. What more could I ask for?

Well, I do not recognize your rose. It could be an older Hybrid Tea Rose, or could be a Tea Rose, but it sure is a winner. Do you know the history of the property? What was there BEFORE the house was built, for instance . . . It's not un-heard of for an older rose to survive the construction of a new home. I wish you were in Northern CA. The Celebration Of Old Roses will be held in El Cerrito, on the Sunday AFTER Mother's Day (May 19, this year). They always have a table for "un-known" roses, and one can often get an identification. If you live in a SoCal place where there is a local Rose Society, you might take blooms to a meeting. Jeri

The doors in the lighter stain are maple, the darker ones are knotty alder and I think the stair rails are beech or fir. This build is already a bit fuzzy. :) I'm sorry, but I don't remember what color stains we ended up with either. We went through tons of sample boards. Make sure you use the same wood for the samples because we ended up with lots of different stain colors depending upon the wood type. Sue - I am normally very funky about things needing to be symmetrical, but in this location I love the way it looks. The shorter doors off this room are to the toyroom, the bathroom and the utility room, whereas the taller cased opening is to the guest bedroom. I think the opening makes it special and because they are on different walls they work, but not for everyone.

Would a grass be suitable. Miscanthus is very pretty and comes in various sizes but there are a few that would be suitable-I have one in semi shade and it is doing well. How about ivy, is your bin a wooden one? Phormium is evergreen and comes in many colours-very eyecatching-quite common at garden centres nowadays-check the plant info for one of the right size. Any help? Good luck.