Maryanne, I am finally here this morning, without the glass of wine. I apologize for not getting on last night to report my fantastic findings. I received the most WONDERFUL box! Maryanne's theme, "These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things"......... Each item was wrapped with a little note...so very nice! *A very nice card *Penzeys Spice catalogue *Penzeys Cinnammon *Iron Chef unseasoned Panko *Wonderful caramels...did you make???? *A box of Ball canning lids and bands *A vintage canning jar with powdered pectin........COOL! *Tags/metal holders to tag plants. Great idea using these for swap plants! * Several packages of cellophane holiday party gift bags...Halloween, Valentines, Christmas, anything goes.... *Zucchini Relish...I know you made this! I will be in to this tonight!! *A lovely canvas lunch tote *Tuscan style bread dipping herbs...(I love this stuff) with a dipping bowl!! *Fall note cards *Garden gloves *A little tote for whatever...have got my gloves and pruners tucked in here *Three books on CD...Fern Michaels "Pretty Woman" and "Hey, Good Looking", and Nora Roberts "Carolina Moon".....I have not read these!!!! i love books on tape/CD. *Little Pig Onion and Bacon Dip Mix....yum! *Paper coin envelopes for seeds *A book, "The 100 Best Small Towns in America".....oh my goodness!!! How did you know???? My husband and I have been on our quest to find the best place to live in America for years and years. Did I mention this in my OBF bio??? My husband saw this and laughed his tail off!! *Greenhouse with 36 peat pellets Maryanne, I can not thank you enough. These are a few of my favorite things as well. A perfect October party!! Happy Monday! Annie

Aaah, the eternal migration continues - those from cold climes seeking warmer, and those from hot climes seeking cooler :) I cant argue with any of the pro-cool climate thoughts put forward thus far, but I *would* argue with Richard's timing. If I could escape Rocky, it would be in October - right now, its as good as it gets in CQ. 25-28 deg C by day, somewhere in the mid-teens by night - sheer bliss ! No argument re the beauty of seasonal colour, either, but the bare branches and grey days which follow Autumn down south really get me down. Having lived in Adelaide and various parts of Victoria, even Toowoomba's wintry chill was a relief (the sun came out, and Spring arrived on time every September). Winter can actually be an enervating time of year, but not in a climate where the majority of rain comes down *horizontally*, straight out of the Great Southern Ocean and driven by gale force winds. I dont have direct experience of Tassie in Winter, but if its anything like NZ, I'm afraid I'll stay right here. Good luck, and keep the faith - I have no doubt that Spring will be absolutely magic :) Cheers, Artie Still wearing a t-shirt and shorts Tropic of Capricorn

Thanks Mistymorn. Misty I know the bauhinia. I have an orange one and the lady a couple of doors up has the pink one - it's leaves head my way at this time of the year - (must send the guy next door completely mad - he hates leaves). Goldhills, I think you are right about Noelene. Old fashioned plant I think. I have lots of mock orange already - have weedy tendencies I believe (not noticed in my garden), but the perfume is gorgeous. They don't seem to do too well on my soil. I'm going evergreen for the feature tree - though it will be in the north facing front yard - I hate the view of the road and other houses. I may go for a grevillea hedge (will pop over to the natives forum later). ... I may change my mind a hundred times, then plant something and change my mind again ... too much choice - that's the problem.

Hi Maddy, Your climate sounds something like ours. We have limited water supply from a dam, so I use drippers on all my plants, with thick straw mulch. I have access to a nursery that sells a large variety of plants in tubes for $2, so I buy lots of these. That way I can find out what is suitable for my area without it costing me heaps. Whatever dies is not a great loss, and whatever grows I buy more of or make my own cuttings and do repeat planting. My colour scheme is blue/mauve/pink so I can make a few suggestions: Roses - a remarkably tough plant, flowers repeatedly from October to May. You'll get the dark red here - lots to choose from and you must have Mr Lincoln (what a perfume). Check out the Roses in Oz forum. Salvias - come in red and blue/purple. Don't need a lot of water. Come as perennials and annuals. Cut back in winter for new growth in spring. Buddleias - tall, lanky shrubs, can be kept trimmed. will flower all summer with varying shades of blue, purple and magenta. Butterflies love them, and they have a lovely perfume. Verbenas - a low growing plant - probably 30-40cm high and spreads. Comes in blue, purple, pink, mauve and combinations; I've just discovered one called Hunter Red. These do well in my climate. There are many varieties, and the ones that do best for me have a broader leaf with a serrated edge. They flower all summer too. Lavenders - all sorts - french, italian etc. I have a tough, common one called Lavandula Vera, which has been flowering for a couple of months now. It doesn't mind being cut back well, whereas some of the others can be a bit finicky if you cut back into old wood. Daisies - my garden has been alive with colour since winter with daisies. The common white and pink daisy bushes which I refer to as marguerite daisies. I also have felicia amelloides - dainty blue and mauve flowers on a low shrub. And the African daisies - osteospermum and dimorpotheca, grow like a weed but are just a mass of colour at the moment. Native hibiscus - alogyne huegelii. This is my latest discovery. I planted one twelve months ago and it is now covered with large, deep purple, crepe paper flowers shaped like a hibiscus. I can't grow hibiscus because of the frost. this one is supposed to be slightly frost tender, so I planted it below a big tree. It has grown into a 1m x 1m bush and is a sight to behold. Chase this one up at your nursery. I am planting more of this one - all around my garden... And I nearly forgot Agapanthus - it seems you either love or hate this plant - I LOVE it, unashamedly. For colour at Christmas you can't go past it. And they thrive on neglect! Don't forget happy Wanderer if you want a purple climber to cover a fence. I also have good success with the potato vine Solanum Jasminoides - both the white and the Monet's Blue - evergreen climbers, don't mind the heat or the frost and "respond well to trimming" (in other words, grows so well...