I think I got something from Rebecca - that I didn't see on her list so I am not sure, but it was with the HUGE strawberries she brought me (Grace says thank you, she loved them!). Anywho - it is a cactus looking thing of some type - very long and kinda soft prickles on it. Inside or outside plant - what does it need? I am planting out a strawberry jar with the little sedums from Heather - and I would like to put this on the top - if it will go there. And Heather - we had an accident this morning. A storm blew up rather quickly and knocked my planting table over...in the middle of planting my little sedum treasures from you. I lost my little cactus (small green button looking one with long prickles on it). Can you save me one for the fall swap...I was kinda getting attached to it, it was the smallest plant I brought home from the swap. Also - I got a birch from someone...in a blue? minivan with several children - hubby appeared to be packing up everything. Anyway - I don't know what kind of birch it is... Anyone have a clue? I will be starting my blog soon and filling it with pictures. If some of you can chime in with names on the ones that had no names, or the tape as faded and I can't see them...please, by all means, enlighten me. Pretty green things in my beds are wonderful - but I like having a name for them in my garden journal so I know where to look for them next spring. :D Happy planting to all of you! I have already started turning new ground on new beds since the swap - you have inspired my gardening creativity again. Tiffany PS - Connie I adopted one of your little plants that was orphaned when you left - a very cool little forsythia with varigated leaves - how quickly does it grow? I am worried about planting it in the beds now and think it may need to stay in the nursery bed this year. Help?

Yardvaark I understand your point, but it is incorrect. As a driver I can say with certainty it is always the drivers responsibility to make sure they have clearance regardless of what governmental regulations are in place. They differ from location to location. Common sense dictates that a commercial driver in a heavily treed residential area with low volume of traffic should check the route prior to proceeding. This is even more true with a flat bed hauling a piece of equipment with a moveable arm such as this back hoe. Because the arm could be extending higher then normal due to loading error by the operator. Generally the standardized height for a heavy truck class A or B would be 13'6" any thing over that would require a special permit and pre planned trip routing. Even telephone poles sag and bend causing the wires to droop lower then what they were set at when installed. The equipment owner could pursue a case against the homeowner if they were damaged because of a low hanging utility line or vegetation over a public street. They may or may not win. However if that was my driver and damaged the load because of his negligence of failing to scout the route in advance and was moving at a speed that pulled such a large branch down without slowly going under to see if they had clearance I would have to discipline that driver By your logic if my driver hit someone on a bike who wasn't obeying the law because they were riding the bike facing the wrong direction on that residential street it would be the fault of the bike rider for breaking the law instead of the driver being at fault. That could go either direction in court too. Those look like Live oaks. Great trees the thing about them is there branches are low on the trunk and spread back towards the earth. Thats how they evolved. Handles wind a lot better then a tree that grows up taller with narrower arching branches. The live oak has spreading wide canopy and can be difficult with clearance as they get older. Given a huge space the branches will touch the earth. Southport North Carolina http://www.sciway.net/sc-photos/beaufort-county/live-oak.html

This color is a nice neutral and I like the white trim that make the details of this room pop. Before deciding on the pieces, I would think more about the configuration of the room. I love that you are not putting a TV in here and will use it for reading instead. I suggest making a sitting area near the back windows because it lets in so much natural light. It will be a perfect place to read during the day without having to depend on lamps as much. And, it creates its own space that does not depend on the red or sea foam color influence. For a back of the room reading area, I would: 1. Define the space with a rug. I'd go for something neutral that blends more with the room instead of using the rugs you chose that are such an intense contrast. What about jute with a dark grey binding for texture, or a trellis pattern but not as contrasting as the navy and white you chose? 2. Get an upholstered cushion made for the built in bench under the window. Such a great reading nook, looks maybe big enough for two to snuggle and read! Nice soft window treatment, and maybe sconces or art hung on either side of the window. Toss your current sofa pillows over there to start to give you an idea of that as soft hang out space. 3. I like the idea of putting the sofa in front of the window with a coffee table in the middle and two grey Pottery Barn chairs across from it, facing the sofa. The only problem is that your sofa is pretty high in the back and I don't know how it would look to have it cutting off the bottom of the windows. It is free to move around furniture so give it a try! 4. Going with more neutral colors - tan, grey, beige, maybe a hint of navy and pops of rust means you should throw in some texture to the equation. That can come from a jute rug, fluffy blankets, and shiny objects. (Mercury glass objects?) Plus maybe a coffee table that has some texture of reflective quality. Here are some ideas for the back reading space: Rute rug, gray border Patterned rugs that have grey and other colors Examples of living room window seats: For the middle and front space, I have a few different ideas, but would like to hear more about what you need as a function of this room. Do you have any furniture you own and are looking for a different space to house it in? Do you need more storage for any particular kind of item? (Boots, purses, backpacks?) Do you have a home office or need space for that kind of work?

It looks to me like you could stand to have the driveway widened a little, creating better access to the front entrance and getting rid of the patio pavers in gravel. Whether it's a simple widening or a drive re-do, it your choice. The former would work as an interim solution. It would be good to reconfigure the walk to the stoop to make it more useful and attractive. It could be standalone or part of a drive widening project. The logical place to create seating for impromptu gatherings is under the overhang at the right of the stoop. Because of the overhang, it's not a good area for growing foundation plants. If you park or drive at left of driveway, it looks like you may need to extend the driveway with a permanent driveway material. That would solve the packed mud problem. In general, you need a landscape plan for the front yard that includes both hardscape and planting. The speed with which you implement it, and whether it was in pieces or in total, would be up to you. As far as giving you specific solutions, the pictures are too small, fuzzy, dark & partial.