They day bugs I so hate them too last year I lost all my squash and cucumbers to them it was painful my melons were on a huge ant pile and they never got SVB up guessing ants got the eggs .This year I Planted nasturtium around squash and cucumbers also marigolds in hopes it will keep them at bay but I also was reading there is a garlic tea that works too ganna do my best but remeber sevin dust kills ant and ant are great friend when it comes to SVB they keep eggs off squash and last year they saved my melons how funny ant can be good Ha Ha Ha I still hate them ....

prairiegal, I too have the bunny blues, I should buy stock in a fencing company! Some hard lessons have been learned along the way in regards to this. But at least the fence method gives one hope. That, along with the plastic spiraled trunk protectant sleeves that are available, and highly recommended for other reasons as well. These silly creatures seem to prefer thorns even. Their winter favorites for me seem to be raspberries and barberries. So did those wascally wabbits do in your peach trees also? Bummer, ifso. Plums are absolutely worth the effort, especially if you have a bit of a sweet tooth. But if the only option one has ever had is via retail grocery outlets, then a person might never really know. If space is a problem for you, possibly consider some dwarf options. I am eyeballing/considering one I found in the Jung Catalogue called 'Black Ice', that also supposedly claims a "about 2 to 4 weeks earlier than other plums" ripening period. So am considering mixing in a few of them as well. They (Jung), also recommend 'Toka' as a pollinator. I , too, am basically considered in the N.W. part of Iowa, with some North Central designation probable in there as well. So yes, some continued dialogue could well be beneficial for the both of us. Cold winds you say? Is yet another stay indoors if at all possible type of day, as I type this. Great "cataloguing" weather indeed! I will attempt to list my email address here on my "My Page", should you want to try me with that. P.S. I am considering doing my own zone upgrade (or should I say downgrade!) to z3, as per the way this winter is going for us---wishing for better days to come.....q3-Mike

- Regarding water- there is a water way behind our property ~ 20 feet from the area I want to plant natives. I also have a concrete basin/bowl/birdbath filled with rocks that I can move into the garden. - The water way is weedy and overgrown and is only mowed on its banks. - I have added a few small to medium sized dead branches to a pile nearby (also about 20’ away) ikfor shelter and there is bare ground for bees that nest in the ground. As for the plants, I’m starting small with an area about 15’x5.5’. I started by purchasing plants that I liked and cosidered using in other areas of the yard, but I decided to make a pollinator garden instead. You’ll notice no milkweed. (No milkweed in a pollinator garden, what?!) Now, I’m worried that I didn’t put enough thought into it. This is the list of plants I ended up with: 1 - grayheaded coneflower, Ratibida pinnata 1 - prairie dropseed, Sporobolus heterolepis 2 - Wild Bergamot, Monarda fistulosa 3 - Rose Verbena, Glandularia canadensis 2 - Purple poppy mallow, Callirhoe involucrata 4 - Echinacea purpurea ’White Swan’ I grew the echinacea from seed this spring before I knew that the pollinators don’t love some varieties as much, but they’re better than nothing. There are violets in the lawn and the rose verbena is supposed to bloom early, but I probably need to add an aster for fall. If I have the water and habitat, assuming they’re close enough to the pollinator garden, does the plant selction matter much? What if I have a nectar plant for a certain type of butterfly, but no host plant? Am I over thinking it and underestimating our pollinator friends? (I know the answer to that is probably yes.)

Hi L Clark, Yes I have had it only two months or little more and I still haven't found a plan for underground planting yet. I think it looks a lot worse than the sister trees it has at the nursery, and was hoping the sunburn symptoms would have stopped by now (toughened up?). I will keep an eye on it. The fine roots do surface to the top of the soil and fortunately they are still white and healthy looking. Thanks.