words mean things .... gardeners GROUP things according to the rules we have to abide by ... i mean gardening rules ... if i water and fertilizer shrubs like i do annuals .. a lot of shrubs will die ... they just dont need that much water nor fertilizer ... same with perennials ... if i prune a conifer like i would prune a shrub.. thru renovation pruning.. there is a good chance that i can kill the conifer ... especially if i cut it to the ground in spring.. like i might do to perennials ... yes.. anything that live more than 2 years .. is perennial ... but the QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE begins by defining what you are dealing with .. and then searching for information based on gleaned knowledge ... it is not about where the post is made .. but it might have a lot to do with who hangs out in which forum ... the tree peeps.. hang out in the conifer forum.. because both are trees ... and a lot of those folks also jump into the shrub forum once in a while ... but .. based on my observation .. not all the tree/shrub experts hang out in the perennial forum .. so my suggestion was simply that if you want more opinion.. there may be other places to look ... check out the link ... quote from this link: http://landscaping.about.com/od/shrubsbushes/p/daphne_plants.htm ken Here is a link that might be useful: Grow 'Carol Mackie' daphne plants in a well-drained soil with plenty of humus and a neutral pH. Partial sun is usually the recommended growing location for these daphnes.

I have one of these that's about 4 years old now. What a fabulous plant! It starts blooming before the last spring frost and blooms continuously all season - it is still blooming now after a hard frost two nights ago. It has a light scent that I don't much care for, but many folks like. The leaves, with their delicate white edge are lovely as well. Mine retains some of its foliage over winter, but it does look a bit ratty for a few weeks when it first emerges from snow. (I don't think that would be a problem for you in NC.) All in all, this isn't a show-stopper at any point of the year like a rose or clematis in full bloom or a sugar maple with fall foliage, but it adds texture and beauty to my garden for the entire season that my garden is above the snowline. I've had no disease issues or dieback, so although some daphnes have a reputation for being finicky, I think that this one is a bit less so. One winter (2009-2010) when the voles had been really bad, it emerged from the snow leaning over, but I propped it up, firmed the soil around its roots and hoped for the best. It didn't seem to mind at all, although I lost several other plants nearby. Here is part of it in June of last year, covered with buds and looking healthy despite the voles. I like how it contrasts with the tiny foliage of cranberry and the large blue hosta. From June 2010 Mine is growing in at least half shade in a slightly raised bed that's largely well-composted manure over fine sandy loam. It gets no attention other than mulch every 3 years or so and watering if it hasn't rained for more than three weeks. It's on the south side of the building, but there are a bunch a full-sized hemlocks and white pines only about 20 feet to the south as well as some deciduous trees and large shrubs to the southwest, so it only gets sun for a few hours in the middle of the day where there is a gap in the canopy and another bit late afternoon, probably less than an hour. The shade is relatively bright, but is for most of the day.

WendyB, Is the virgin soil deep and well draining,where your Carol Mackies are planted? If so and by now, yours most likely have developed deeper and more extensive roots than I discovered with my potted ones. It seems reasonable to conclude that by now and for sure next Spring your Carol Mackie's root system would be too extensive. Any one trying to dig up the shrub most likely would leave too much of that root system still in the ground, detached from the shrub. Or is your good virgin soil shallow with a hardpan clay base? either way it might be easier to just purchase another one in liner form early next spring. If you do not think their first year growth potential described in my orignal post will be good enough for it to survive transplanting and handling it's initial winter, then grow it in double pots for two seasons. Since double 5 gallon size pots stacked did well for one growing season, growing them in pots for two seasons likely would require for you to plant the liner in two stacked 10 gallon pots. At least I am certain that my Daphnes would have needed to be transplanted in that large and deep of potting soil if I had grown them in pots for another year. Just be certain to use the highest quality of potting soil you can find, or mix up your own using composted bark mulch along with other well draining potting soil elements and just a small amount of peat. Put the pot in a morning sun (full afternoon shade)environment. lightly water that pot every day or so just enough to keep the top of the soil appearing moist. In the hottest part of the summer watch the leaves closely. If they start to show stress from too much sun, immediatly move the pot to a location where it receives dappled or filtered morning shade, and almost total afternoon shade.

I have seen this recently at both Sky and Molbak's. Expect to be spending over 50 dollars for a specimen of moderate size. In both locations the plants are labeled simply as the species; but I've been told by someone involved in the process that Molbak's had gotten in 'Jacqueline Postill' in the past. Perhaps the supplier lists them under the cultivar name but is using only the species names on tags that go out with the plants to retail outlets. Or all the stock being offered in this area is the one cultivar but the name is not being used much here. 'Jacqueline Postill' is the preeminent cultivar in Britain and the one a body might hope to get here (it and 'Gurkha' are both on the current RHS Award of Garden Merit list). This splendid and very hardy form originated as a seedling of 'Gurkha' raised by our propagator Alan Postill in 1982. It is evergreen or semi-evergreen, flowering when in full leaf. The flowers are larger and more showy than those of 'Gurkha' with an equally powerful fragrance --The Hillier Manual of Trees & Shrubs (2002, Hillier Nurseries)