Happy Birthday, Drema! Happy Birthday, Babs! Im running behind this am. I want to get crackin in the garden. So Ill catch up on the last couple posts later. Sue, thanks for the info on "Snow Fairy". I thot that was the case but didnt know. Hows the foster puppy doing? I cant imagine you being able to give him away after youve bonded and spent so much TLC on him. As for how I managed such unexpected plant combos, I moved almost everything in my garden last fall. Ive never divided or moved the bulbs in the back sine they were planted many yrs. ago. Many were so jam- packed that they had nowhere to grow but deeper in the soil. In some cases, some were as deep as 18-20" and I still missed some. As for the delphinium in the peony, I moved the delphinium and must have left a small piece and planted a peony on top of it. Deanne, youre my enabler, lol. Ive admired your Heliopsis Loraine Sunshine for years and never saw it at any of our nurseries here. I was going to get one by mail order this spring, so when I saw it at a nearby nursery, I just had to indulge. I cant wait to see how it does for me. And you know Ive been in love with Heuchera Peach Flambe since I saw a pic of it last year. It looks to be redder than Peach Melba so Im anxious to see how it does, too. Oh dear, that Ajuga is incredible! Yep, I have to have some of those, too! Re your question, Bullet has a hissy fit when Timmy visits. Timmy ignores Bullets "No other animals allowed" rule for our deck. So theres all manner of growling, hissing, spitting and batting the doorwall when Timmy visits. Timmy only wants to be friends. Marian, Im so glad youre feeling much better. I worry about you being so far out in the boonies. Do you have friends and neighbors to check on you? A gal from the senior center calls to check on my Mom every day. Do you have something similar thru your town or church. I hope so. Mary, hope your back is feeling better, too. Sheesh, back problems do seem to be the ailment of the season. Hi Cindy, Norma, Martie, Wendy, Eden and everyone else. And, Babs, I feel so badly for poor Ryan being afraid of storms. Honestly, Im a wreck during t-storms and tornado watches/warnings. Michelle, I cant imagine how bad that storm had to be to get hail thru the roof! OMG! We didnt have them where I grew up out east so they just terrify me. Its all I can do to keep from hiding under the bed with Bullet! Thanks for the encouragement re Toms job. I think this is going to be a long drawn out saga. Whats so scary is that so many folks are also looking for jobs now and there are fewer and fewer of them. About the deer, Ive decided not to let them dictate what I plant. Ruth and I spray monthly with Liquid Fence and the deer mostly leave us alone. Occasionally, one will take a bite or two and spit it out. Theyre pretty much trained now. And LF also deters wabbits and groundhogs. However, a the home show yesterday, we saw these really neat battery run unobtrusive posts that lure the deer in with a great smell and then shocks them when they touch it. See link below. Theyre powered by 2 AA batteries and are placed every 20 or so. I might try them. Later, friends. Honey

Completely out of space so no newbies for me this year----previous ones are establishing nicely, although I think I may have lost some of the (luckily cheaper) ones that I tried in the ground due to our unusually cold winter. Mainly I grow in very large pots as the ground where I live is VERY poor---dry and stony and only a few inches deep on top of a stone shelf so only especially hardy ones go in the ground for lanscaping alongside hardy geraniums. I have LAKE EFFECT, the first year I was not impressed at all, I thought the colour was FOUL, but last year it was really nice and is coping well with British weather (much better than I am) so it is one worth keeping for a few year even if you don't like it initially.

Red lava rock, or red-lava-sand, is a great source of iron and potassium. pH of red-lava-rock is 8.2. Red-lava rock is OK like 3 or 4 pieces, too much will UP the soil pH, plus prevent water from soaking through. I went to my neighbor when it was above 90 F one summer. She mulched her roses with THICK layer of black lava rock. I touched them, and they are the same temp. as our rock-hard-clay. She overkilled on the lava-rock: too much potassium drove down nitrogen, so her roses didn't have much leaves, lots of blooms. I would use no more than 3 pieces per rose .. too much and one gets iron-burnt (brown-spot). http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1539970/lava-rock-as-mulch ocdgardener(8) From what I understand about Lava Rocks is: Lava rock breaks down into Lava Sand. From all the sand in the bags I know it happens! Lava Sand is recommended as a soil amendment to HOLD MOISTURE. Now, the only thing I'm not sure about is temperature. I did notice though oddly enough last night when I got home from work the plants in the same bed mulched with cedar were wilting, the plants surrounded by lava were not. Here's the positives I've found thus far. On a slope where my bed is, compost, and every thing else added at the base of the plants washes down to the bottom and is replaced with bare soil. I have to add mulch over and over because it all slides away. The Lava Rocks are not only holding the compost in place but are keeping me from having bare soil. I know it does because we had a heavy rain this morning and I looked and everything was in place! --Not the usual bare soil I see after a rain! I think I should explain how I'm using the rock. I'm taking one rock at a time and pressing it into the soil. When you think of lava rocks as a mulch I think most people tend to imagine it piled up. ocdgardener(8) oh and btw you can't really see that much of the rock anyway - because the plants cover them. Example: This is what the yard looks like in the spring. ocdgardener(8) Update on the lava rock! I bought a soil thermoter and tested the temps. Although not lower, the temps were pretty close to the same by a degree. Also, I have calendulas blooming in the bed in the HEAT of summer. I've never had that before! mrwsm_yahoo_com Lava Rock has low thermal mass. It does not retain heat. Lava Rock keeps the soil soft like mulch, so if there is a weed, no problem, it pulls really easy. I prefer red lava rock, although I have both. Never put plastic underneath it! It keeps most weeds out as is. rickjones I don't know what happened to my original post, but here is a short repeat. LAVA ROCKS ARE WONDERFUL PLANTERS, ESPECIALLY IN THE EXTREME HEAT OF THE MOHAVE DESERT. Yup. I build and use cedar planters and window boxes all over my home, they are great, but do not compare with the flowers grown in the lava rocks that I hollow out and plant a variety of species in. Plants in these rocks see temps to 120 degress in our summers and do just fine! They retain moisture, cool with the air temps, and fertilize plants naturally. I don't use lava rock for bedding, I can see the problems with that. But as a planter? The best planter I have ever had. AND, no maintenance, and years of use looking great. jocoreed_yahoo_com Anyone who questions the ability of lava rock as a growing medium needs to come visit our islands out here in the Pacific. Our Hawaiian islands are completely volcanic is soil and sediment, covered in pure lava rock, and we have the most beautiful plants, trees, produce, and the like. Lava rock and volcanic soil is some of the most nutrient friendly planting medium on earth and is porous enough that it allows for good oxygenation and water flow. Come visit our islands and then come back and post how it's horrible to grow anything in volcanic rock or lava sand. Just my two cents : ) Aloooooha! http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1539970/lava-rock-as-mulch

Texas_Gem, the specifics of things like what the matron of honor's duties are vary all over the place. This isn't even regional or cultural, but what's current among the particular circle of friends. It sounds like you and the bride were on the same page, so don't worry about it. I've hosted a good number of bridal showers, but only for one was I maid of honor. That isn't an expectation in my circle. There might still be a shower as part of the wedding festivities even if the couple are older and more settled. Sometimes there's a theme, like if they'll be moving to their first house, it'll be gardening supplies. If they really have everything they need or the resources to procure anything, it might be a charity shower. Sometimes to support a specific cause, or in conjunction with a sponsored run, other times a gathering of food for the local pantry or items for a rummage sale, so there are "gifts" with bows to be made into the traditional ribbon bouquet, and other times, it might be a service project, like cleaning the beach, making sack lunches for the homeless or packing necessities for deployed soldiers. Something that I think gets lost in all the talk of etiquette and gifts is that these events are meant to be a time for expressing love and support for the ones entering a new phase of life. AAA, I don't know if your post following mine was meant for me, but I can tell you there's no way someone who wasn't a member of the extended family would tackle the guest list of "must be inviteds" in my family! Nor would we impose it upon them. It's never the mother or sister, but often is the aunts of the bride who host. Someone might say it's only supposed to be the near and dear, but that's what I'm talking about! The hundred near and dear who would feel hurt and slighted if there weren't a shower and if they weren't invited. But that's also why our brides' friends do separate showers, so they can have their fun together rather than being overwhelmed by the clan. Often the maid of honor, and the groom's immediate female relatives, will attend, but as they'll be at other showers, if they bring anything it's a memento rather than a dowering gift. But then it also seems like we're a much more gifting community than many who post here belong to. Some members here don't even do Christmas presents.