Thanks darth_weeder. The progress is going very good. I also picked up Bill Whitman's book, "Five Decades with Tropical Fruit" http://www.amazon.com/Five-Decades-with-Tropical-Fruit/dp/0971140200/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1294245479&sr=8-1 He accomplished what many thought was impossible. I was reading his book last night and I am on the right track (thank God). That book is truly a diamond for anyone attempting to grow tropical or subtropical fruits. I actually drove to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens and picked up a brand new copy for $40! (Cheaper than amazon and they should have phone orders in case someone is looking for a copy) He, like Julia Morton, also mentions of replacing a big area with acidic soil and removing the lime rock for the Mangosteen. If the tree I plant can produce one single fruit in 10 years, I feel something has been accomplished, also I am hoping to contribute something to other people interested in planting Mangosteen trees in a subtropical climate (and maybe even in colder areas with a greenhouse). I am going to setup a blog soon to show the progress and will post a message on this thread when it is ready. Thanks, Adiel

Sheri, I wouldn't till in the pine needles. They are great on the surface of the soil, but they do not break down quickly in the soil so they will tie up your nitrogen for a long, long time. Till in the rabbit pellets. They are terrific. About the old tomato plants.....in general, it is best to avoid tilling them into the soil. Why? Because any bacterial, viral or systemic diseases they may have had can live in/on the old plants and infect the soil. That can cause major disease problems. However, research has shown that if you compost the plants in a hot pile (a hot pile is one that heats up enough to kill the pathogens in the compost ingredients) and then add them to the soil, the tomato plants grow exceptionally well in soil with the composted tomato plants. So, I always remove my garden debris in the fall, compost it and then add it back to the soil. I don't till it directly in though. If you have already tilled in the plants before you read this, don't panic. As long as you mulch the plants really well, you probably won't have a problem. Anything that may have been present in the plants will reside in the soil, but it generally would infect the plants (if at all) only through soil splash, and not through the roots. So, a heavy layer of mulch will reduce the chance of soil splash. And, how long have you had your plants from Keith? Did they have any sign of damping off or sickliness when they arrived? Have you been keeping them too damp, 'cause that will do it, you know. How big are they? I would have thought he would send plants large enough to be past the damping off stage? (sigh) If you happen to have any chamomile tea, you could mist the plants and soil with it to see if it helps. I think it is more of a preventive measure, though, than a cure. I hope you have a lovely day in the garden. I was out in my garden at 6:45 a.m. and it was 47 degrees, but this should have been our last really cold night, if you believe the 10-day forecast. If you have any more questions, post them and I'll check back every 2 or 3 hours during the day. (Whenever I come in for a short break.) Dawn

Hi Not sure how cold you get in Perth. The Brachychiton acerifolius will handle a fair amount of cold and frost, much more than a Pawpaw will. My Tamarillos have handles below 0C, but no frost and must be protected from strong wind. There are some beautiful Australia East Coast Rainforest trees that handle cold well and look Tropical. Target Warm Temperate ones or high altitude Sub Tropical. Ivory Curl Flower (Buckhinghamia celsissima), Blue Berry Ash (Elaeocarpis reticulatus), Black Bean (Castanospermum australe) and Riberry (Syzygium luehmannii) are excellent. They also attract birds to your garden (on the east coast at least). There are now a large number of species including a good range of lillypillies (Acmena, Syzygium and Waterhousia) in cultivation. If you can get Syzygium cv cascade grab it. It is a 1.8-2m weeping bush with stunning new growth and watermelon pink shaving brush flowers. The new foliage is very tropical and as the leaves mature they go through hot pinks, red white and then to green. If you have a frost free area, try Costus Barbados. It is an excellent tropical looking plant for places that get to a min of -1C and no frost. Looks fantastic with it's big head of deep red bracts and yellow dayflowers through summer. Also Zingibers can grow well down to Â1C or -2C if protected from strong winter wind. My Zingiber specible cv Champagne is currently in flower and has been through a few -2Cs. Protect when young and you will lose foliage for the first winter or so. The deciduous Zingibers are very hardy if grown with a dry winter. There is also all the Kaempferia, which grow well even in cold areas as long as the ground doesnÂt freeze and stays on the dry side during winter, but note snails love them. Hope this is helpful. By the way I enjoyed your web page. Very well done. Regards Rob H.

The idea of an 'American Prairie Garden' popping up in places like England reminds me of a few years back when 'The Santa Fe Style' became all the rage in the US. Books were published and home & garden ideas abounded. After the new wore off, stuff was showing up at places such as Dollar Saver and Walmart, items from towels to toothbrush holders to lamps. Furniture stores entirely devoted to the SF style sprang up around here. Then the Colorado style crept in and sort of overlapped it. Pines, the log cabin-look, rustic etc. The American Prairie Look craze, if thats what it is, offers the nice perk of letting people imagine they are being ecologically friendly for a change and they can feel good for planting 'a tiny butterfly garden' to save the planet (even if other critters are not welcome). I think thats part of the 'sell'-- the Feel Good aspect. When things like gardens are merely styles, they tend to come and go, get over done, then people get tired of them and want something new. At this point they are described as 'outdated'. Anyone still doing that is sorely behind the trend. That sounds like the situation you are describing in England. Its great to visit a region that has its own authenticity and ambience, a place that looks like what you expected and different than where you live. I guess what bothers me about these trends is the way they tend homogenize the whole country and even leak out into the UK. I've mentioned several times how glad I am to see Oklahoma City adopting the so called 'American Prairie Garden'. The thing is, it should not be considered a trend toward a style, rather its a long overdue appreciation of the surrounding countryside down here. Personally I'm so tired of the boring homogenized look that is made up almost entirely of non native plants. The concerns of conservation, invasive species, growing strictly native etc that gives some people the impression that Americans are over zealous is an entirely different matter than choices of plants for landscaping and gardening. People are passionate about both subjects but they are two distinct subjects. From what I can gather, impressions people have seems to be a result of confusion over who is talking about what. When I discuss selecting plants for my garden its a different matter than my concern over some of the horrors I've seen popping up (or disappearing) in the countryside. The two things only overlap in the sense that I would avoid activities such as intentionally adding invasive species just because I selfishly liked a plant or digging up, for example, cactus in the wild because I selfishly wanted it in my garden. It doesn't mean I am a slave to local native plants only in my own yard although that is exactly what I want to be able to keep seeing in the countryside, so I try to be careful and hope others are careful too.