Well...I appreciate all your responses, and I'm going to assume it's a common garter snake...for my OWN peace of mind...LOL I believe he was so grumpy because of the flash from the camera...it probably scared the bejeezus out of'm. Plus...I'm wondering if it isn't the onset of hibernation time. I mean, afterall, he WAS way down under some pretty hard, clay covered by about 4" of mulch. He was probably sleeping...or getting his last full meal of night crawlers when I uncovered him. *I'm in SE PA, not Florida at the moment. He's gone now and I don't know where...hehehe...but I covered the hole back up with the mulch. BTW: When I let Picture it! automatically tweak the color and brightness levels, the colors of the snake were changed a bit. Here are two pics showing actual color...

Hi David 👋 Thank you for the id. I have been reading a lot and I guessed that my first photo was a pubicalyx, I'm happy for the confirmation. Could the second one be cummingiana? I have picked up a few more, photos below. Krimson queen? Krimson princess? I could use an id for this last one. I've found similar photos that are labeled finlaysonii and clemensiorum, but I'm not sure which (if either) precisely match mine. Any thoughts? Thank you again, it's a pleasure 'meeting' you 🤗

There are numerous Sempervivums but the webbing points to S arachnoideum.

Just found this forum, followed a link from the Hosta Library. I live in Quinte West, Ontario, Canada and the Canadian gardening zone has been amended to 6a. I have lots of hosta in the garden, some with names, some without names, and some so familiar to others. Here is one that I discovered growing under a container in May 2026. Naturally moved the container, and the hosta is growing well now. If more photos needed, let me know. Thanks very mcuh.