I'm so glad everyone is enjoying the photos. We had such a great time. I just loved Paris and I found the Pariseans to be quite nice and helpful. We even had a driver on the metro hold the train for us! Ianna, I'm not sure if they were yews. You weren't allowed down a lot of the walkways at Monet's garden so I sucked in the iris photos. I'm not sure if it was campanula, but it would be a good guess. OK, now that I've whet your appetites...here's more!! This was the garden behind the Musee Rodin And now more from Monet's garden. Field trip anyone? The kids were so cute. There were many school classes and the kids all had booklets of all the plants currently in bloom. Their task was to explore the gardens and find each of the blooms. The famous bridge. Most of the wisteria was going out of bloom but it was still beautiful. I can't believe I scored a picture with no one on the bridge! Back in Paris..... How would you like to have this rooftop garden? And how about this greenhouse? (Paris Botanical Garden) And you can't go to Paris without a visit to the Eiffel Tower.

Vicky, Eradication can occur, but it takes time, and you must be persistent. Do not dig it out. That only multiplies it. Do not till the soil. That only multiplies it. Every time you see a goutweed sprout, cut it back at ground level and discard in the trash. Do not dig it out. Be careful handling it, wear gloves that can be washed afterward. Do not compost it or toss it into the woods or over a hill side. Wash your cutting tools, too. This is actually a very easy method of eradication. It doesn't much energy, or long, dirty, weeding/digging sessions, just regular diligence. It takes regular walks around your garden cutting shoots at ground level. It does take a certain amount of time every week, and maybe for a couple of years, maybe more. What you are doing is destroying goutweed's capacity to feed itself by removing its leaves, killing it by starvation. What's nice about this method is the psychological victory you experience, and uplifted spirit restored, knowing that you are winning, albeit slowly, but in the end you win, goutweed looses! You will look forward to making your extermination rounds in your garden, knowing every shoot you cut back to the ground is one step closer to victory. If you lapse in your diligence, don't beat yourself up. Just recover your determination and pick up where you left off. Goutweed can come up so close to the stems or in the middle of clumps of choice plants and hide from you. Sneaky devils! Carefully cut them trying hard to leave your choice plants uninjured. DO NOT DISTURB THE SOIL. Just know goutweed shoots will try hard to pop up again, but each time they do they are weaker and weaker until they disappear. This is my solution to your dilemma. One that works. There are cases of gardeners who have been combating goutweed by digging it out religiously for thirty years and have made no headway. Moses

I had commented earlier in the tread that I am leaning towards cutting down that birch. It's sort of a shame, because of the 5 birches in the yard, this one is my favorite shape (and I really like birch). But it makes such a mess on the front steps and walk. Also, if I'm to have any symmetry between the two beds, I will need some sun on the right side. It's in dense shade once the trees leaf out. For the time being, I will keep the other trees. I really dislike the elm and the walnut tree (I think that's what they are) and I wish the maple had been planted more towards the property line, but I also do not want to be too hasty. If the tree guy ever answers his phone, I will have him over for a major trim session. There are at least 40, if not closer to 60 trees on this lot, and the yard was neglected for quite some time before I moved in.

Ohh Kristine all three :). What lovely colors. Those would just really look great with every rose color. My only irises were a gift from a neighbor and they are white with yellow. I would love to have something like those you are getting.