ah clems - well I have had them (many) and finally, I am just fed up with the fragile dead-looking stems which must not be cut back (all pruning group2), am fed upwith either rampant bindweed like behaviour (and the horrible untangling of a Polish Spirit for example) at the end of the year. I have been known to lose my rag and go for the vicious pulling method but frequently end up dragging my roses off the wall too. Then there are C.montanas - eat a church in 2 weeks. The ongoing attempt with smaller integrifolias (to scramble gently through the perennials - they don't, they all rush in the same direction and it is always in the hardest place to get to. For a while, I thought viticellas were going to be my saviour, I dunno, I just got bored really, They fade, they get wilt, they are stingy bloomers (texensis). Anyway, I am down to just a couple - a rampant V.purpurea plena elegans which scrambles through New Dawn - I definately do the brutal tugging and shearing...but I do it with both of them or ND would take over my minute garden. Also, I have 1 really garish Fireworks (my daughter gave it me) which is exiled to the lurid corner and does sterling duty on a chainlink so in an ugliness contest between galvanised wire or dead wood, the dead wood becomes pleasantly rustic (as opposed to industrial nihilist style (my allotment looks out on a factory and a building site) I guess it is clear that I have plant obsessions, regardless of their utility or suitability for my climate or conditions - it has taken me YEARS to break this habit although all that has changed is having a bit more nous about what is likely to work, given the limitations on soil, climate, space and time - the obsessions still remain....in fact, I feel a post coming on about my latest..... (sometimes these things are very fleeting (dieramas, geums), sometimes last for years(tulips, amazingly, they have turned about to be something which loves my crappy sandy soil, dry east anglian winds), sometimes come and go (roses) So many plants, so many epic fails!

Gee thanks everyone for your efforts in identifying my tree snake. And yep! - that's him alright - so he's the Green Tree Snake. Was a bit worried about the rear-fanged warning Bambi John, as I'd always thought him harmless - but I did suspect he was after the frogs in my broms, the greedy thing. Leave my frogs alone! However, sorry frogs, I'd rather he bite the frogs than me, so I'll be wary with my close-up photography in future John. Tomas, I'd swap your pidgeons for our crows (and lethal brown snakes and funnelweb spiders) any day! Geckos are dear creatures. Sander - you win the bet, we don't have 150 buses going past each day LOL Hope you do really like them! Actually we do have 1 school bus go by each week day (with about 5 kids on it), and about once a week we get a small busload of tourists, mostly Japanese, or European hippies, go by on their way to a nearby waterfall and rainforest national park. Our joke on them is a life-like-but-concrete kangaroo, complete with joey in pouch, positioned on a grassy hill in our front paddock. The tourist bus driver enjoys and shares the joke, so when a passenger calls out "There's a kangaroo!!!", he squeals on the brakes, they all pile out, and snap away with their cameras, then excitedly pile back into the bus, and off they go again. We watch this from our front verandah with great amusement. To this day, our concrete kangaroo probably features in many photo albums, believed to be the real thing! LOL Bambi John, that's certainly an interesting passion and job you have with all those birds, animals, and reptiles. Thanks for sharing that with us. I really enjoyed reading about it. And lovely to hear of such a happy long-term union with your understanding wife. Most people remember the length of their marriage by the age of their kids, not their Amazonian parrots! The platypus is not as timid as generally believed, and I'm sure they are of no threat to humans. But sadly the occasional fox is a threat to the platypus. And no blue-ringed octopus here either as you'd realise. We are inland, and our creek is fresh water. I hope your dream comes true one day of coming to our huge and diverse land - there is always a bed here for any gardenwebbers. And Gonzer, yes our land (and sea) is full of deadly creatures, so gardening is certainly an adventure - especially here in "the bush". But I reckon there are heaps more deaths and injuries from traffic accidents in the urban-jungle, don't you? Cheers, Kerry

Delina, We our elevation is ~3000'. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your perspective) this year we didn't get any snow -- lots of hail, but no snow. Last year we got about a foot in late January/early Febrluary which stuck for about a month. Our winter temperatures are normally mid 20s, which is quite a contrast from our summer temps of 90 degrees plus. Additionally, we get quite a lot of rain 60"-70" per season mostly in the late winter/early spring. The soil is in large part decomposing granite; so it drains well. I am able to grow Nerines, crinum, Amaryllis Belladonna, Kniphofia, and Melianthus -- the melianthus, when in bloom, attracts the hummers from miles around :-) I planted watsonia last year, which seems to be doing quite well, but with this being an atypical winter season, they really haven't been tested for hardiness yet. I've ordered (but have not yet received) ixia, Sparaxis, Babiana, Watsonia, and Homerus collinia -- great minds think alike! Thanx for your suggestions. George, I'll have to whip out my high country gardens catalog. For some reason, I didn't think of looking through their catalog (even though I know they specialize in xeriscape plants). Excellent suggestion! You've made suggestions of plants (and nurseries) that I haven't considered -- thank you. It's been a blast surfing the net to try to find plants from around the world that will beautify my garden. For anyone who may be following this thread for plant ideas in their own gardens, the plants that I grow (and do well in my garden) from George's suggested list of plants are: lavender, rosemary thyme, sage, ceanothus and bottle brush plants. Thanx to all for your wonderful suggestions!

Day 33 Wall tile went up yesterday....and my beautiful blue paint...does not work with it. The blue wall looks like an orphan, unwanted and unrelated to anything. As my mother would have said "damn blast and thunderation". The blue in the accent tile is quite dark, and I don't think I want to have a dark navy bathroom. Sigh. Back to the sludge palette. So off to my local Home Hardware to the resident paint guru. Of course when I got there I only had a sample of the wall tile, so home I trudged again to get the wall and accent tiles, and back into town. Mme guru short listed 3 tones for me as that is the range of choice I can cope with. " How much to you need" " Undoubtedly one quart plus a tablespoon so I had better get a gallon". Handyman Dave (HD) was hard at work when I got back, so I didn't have a chance to paint before the floor started to go in. Good thing last night I had painted sealer on the travertine squares in the accent tile with an iddy biddy 10 hair brush, as the floor is down now so I can't do anything this evening. My the floor is a rich colour. Things are starting to pull together, and even without my blue I think I am really going to like it. The piles of tiles is diminished, although the piles of garbage and detritus are not. I can now manoeuver through the upstairs hallway, and only have to clamber over the piles of tile bits and cardboard boxes piled by the door. Tomorrow is grout time. The end is near, the end is near. and I can always stick in a few accessories to highlight the blue.