it does certainly depend on how much you want to be harvesting - and around here truth be told, i'm the one that likes kale, so maybe those six plants were really just for me. ;) and yes cooking it certainly reduces the volume. not quite as bad as spinach - i woul say you need quite a few spinach plants if you plan to steam it or saute it. floral_uk i'm jealous that you can grow it during more of the year! it's heating up around here and now i'm just trying to keep everything from croaking in the heat wave. also - when i yanked my big kale plants the main root was probably only 6 inches - you could certainly grow them in containers outside i would think - which might be easier if you don't normally plant directly in the ground terrafoe.

sadly, i lost two camellias that were planted this spring, a couple of established japanese maples, hydrangeas and various other woodies and perennials in an area where i am trying to develop a woodland garden. just could not keep dragging a hose or carry enough buckets of water to keep them alive. i've cut grass only 5 times this year and once since the fourth of july. i have been frustrated over my losses and critical of my own efforts but sometimes you just have to concede the fight as being too much of an exercise in futility. i am not giving up the area i'm working and will likely replace the losses this winter and next spring but it does get expensive and laborious! for now, i am thinking i should go with beds of prickly pear, lantana, and catharanthus, these being about the only ornamentals i see that are doing o.k. these days. *lol* hope you get some rain today from the tropical storm remains. news this morning said local flooding in some areas around atlanta. looks like most of it is headed north of me in auburn.

Ogrose, you have a good memory. Yes, I had my brief moment of fame when the DMN ran a story about my garden. I posted a link below. I get most of my plants from native plant sales. Many of the local chapters of the Native Plant Society of Texas have sales in the spring. The Heard Museum in McKinney also has a spring sale. Rohdes, Redentas, Shades of Green, Weston Gardens and several other independent nurseries also sell natives. I don't have great luck with seeds unless they are self seeded by the plants in my garden. Soxxx, it is all sort of planned randomness. I put thought into the general area for plants, especially the larger ones, but a lot of the plants in my garden grow where they want to grow. I step in and move or remove them when they grow where I don't want them to. I really don't know anything about design. Cactusgarden, I am glad you find the blog interesting. I started it almost four years ago when I decided to get rid of the front lawn. I thought I might need it as proof that my garden was intentional and that I was not just lazy and letting the weeds grow. It is unlikely that someone that was not maintaining their garden would post photos and write about it on the internet. Fortunately, I have not had any problems with Code Enforcement. Glad everything worked out for your sister. Are there any pictures of your yard or your sister's on the web? I always enjoy seeing what others have done and borrowing ideas. Here is a link that might be useful: Dallas Morning News Story

Artisticcheese, my plants are in zone 9 coastal, just off the bay. Mulch will keep the ground from freezing. I learned this from a master gardener in San Antonio named Manuel Flores in 1994, when I asked for help on how to keep my bouganvilla from freezing in San Antonio, where it does freeze on a regular basis. My tropical, are in Rockport, it has only gone below 32 degrees twice in the past 19 years there. I lost all my tropical plants in 2010, so I do not want to take a chance of loosing them again, so I protect the most expensive ones. Torch lilies, exotic hibiscus, plumeria, hong kong orchids, and desert roses. I do not protect datura, brugmansia, gingers, iochroma, ti plants, variegated rubber trees, bird of paradise, bouganvilla, and a lot of other tropical plants and vines. In the spring I give the rooted cuttings to my neighbors, family, and friends. Barbra