Hi Pam, thanks. I changed my preferences to show my addy to members. It had alread been set up to allow the emails to be sent through this site, and then if I (or any given member) reply a person gets the email address, and I get theirs if they reply. Not sure if you knew that -- just click on the My Page for anyone (or their screen name), and click Send Me An Email right next to See My Trade List. Actually I was surprised that you posted a response here rather than doing it that way (I chanced on it, it doesn't notify anyone other than the person who started the thread). I went with this way to reduce email address "robot harvesting" since they display the email addy as text not an image. So We'll if there's an increase in spam with this new setting. I may have to change it back later. anyway :) ...Thanks so much!!! --Tina

I particularly like the idea of the dramatic color combination, like the dark violet/deep red/orange combo that was suggested. The french lavender + artichoke already have pastel purple flowers and the silvery leaves there, and with the white rose in the back I'm worried the colors will be too "pastelly". I saw some California poppies "Mikado" seeds in the store today, so I'm thinking that dark flame orange color will do well if I place it in front of the light orange rose (there should be enough contrast between the two colors right?). Or does Echinacea have similar shades of dark orange/red? I like Agastaches as well, but would the scent conflict with the scents of the 2 David Austin roses I'll be planting? or do they have separate bloom seasons so it wouldn't matter? So many wonderful ideas, thank you! I'm going to have to compile a list of the plants everyone suggested and their respective pictures because I'm not familiar with a lot of the plants that were suggested (relatively newbie gardener here). Really excited to see what all the suggested plants might look like! :) This post was edited by technoduckling on Mon, Mar 4, 13 at 2:53

OK, I finally took pics of my "UT Wallflower"! It was very beautiful in April when it was shorter - as time has gone on the stems have gotten longer and longer, leading to it getting "gangly", but that plant is STILL blooming. Amazing. I imagine if I'd cut the stems back it would have stayed nicer longer, but I really want seed this year so I'm leaving it alone. If you're interested in seed from this plant let me know. It appears to have LOVED getting planted in great soil. Its siblings were raised in unimproved clay, and they were sad, scrawny things in comparison, long since finished blooming. I did my best to adjust the color on these pics to be more accurate, but it still is TOO orange. It's much paler, true UT orange. Erysimum in April: Eryisimum in May:

I am in a very different climate zone from you, since I am less than three miles from the beach, but I do know that blood oranges will do well in your area - better than in mine, as they like more heat than I get. They make the sweetest oranges I have ever tasted, and I got them mostly from a coworker who lives further from the beach than I do, and he gets hot summers. They do not have a very long producing season, which is the main drawback that I see. When I lived in Venice, I had a Valencia orange tree, and after it had been in the ground for two or three years, it had oranges on it pretty much year round. They weren't the best oranges IMO, but they were great for juicing, and the tree was very prolific. I did eat most of the oranges, as I would take them with me when I would go hiking. If you have room, get more than one tree, of different varieties. Also, see what your neighbors are growing, as soil conditions vary from one region to another. My soil in Venice was great, but my soil in Westchester is terrible, and I grow all my citrus in wine or whiskey barrel planters and have to grow only dwarfs. You should also get a Meyer lemon tree - they are prolific and make the best lemons - they are almost sweet. When I get too many lemons on my tree, I freeze the excess and then defrost them in the microwave for 10 seconds (or 20 seconds, if 10 seconds is not enough). I also recommend getting a Bearss lime tree, and the limes are even better for freezing.