Thanks for the suggestion about coral honeysuckle. When I said trumpet vine I meant "cardinal climber" -- is that the same thing? I'll have to plant the cardinal climber away from the house then. Will it re-seed on its own and take over my garden in zone 6? Maybe it's cold enough up here that I don't have to worry about that. From what I can tell either of these will grow from seed direct sown outdoors. Is that right? Or is it better to buy a plant from the nursery? I'll be on the lookout for Salvia "Lady in Red" and "Coral Nymph." We've got a few nurseries around here with excellent selections (too much!). I'll look for 'Jacob's Cline' Monarda too. Most of my planting will be in containers. Mary Ann

The only motion sensor sprinkler that will spray the cats and not spray anything else is you holding a hose, sitting there on the porch keeping watch. I suppose a few communities might have a law about free roaming cats, but it is not common. You can call your local animal control officer and ask if there is such a law in your town. You can always set havahart traps on your own property and haul the loose cats off to the pound. Perhaps the owners will keep them inside after paying to bail kitty out of jail. More than likely, though, all they will do is to get another kitten when their cat doesn't come home. I've worked in an animal shelter and virtually no one ever came in to reclaim a lost cat. A very few had owners come for them. A few more got adopted, and a huge majority of them were put to sleep because nobody wanted them.

i had a male cardinal that did this. it won't last forever. he is trying to chase off the "other bird" he sees in the mirror (they don't call 'em "bird brain" for nuthin'!). does he have a mate and are they nesting? if so, when the eggs hatch, he will be too busy feeding babies to bother with that "other bird". at least, that has been my experience.

Moni, it worries me greatly when I know my daughter is riding her bike on public roads. In 2012 Pennsylvania passed a law that a vehicle cannot pass a bicyclist unless he can give 4 feet of space between him and the bicyclist. Ours is a heavily traveled road with a lot of bicycles. Bad enough when the driver ignores the law, but to be distracted, cell phone or whatever, along with ignoring the law is very scary. I even wait till there is no traffic in view before I ride my scooter to the mailbox at the end of the driveway. It is about 150 feet from an intersecting road. Many times daily I hear the screech of brakes as some inattentive driver suddenly becomes aware. I sit on my porch a lot watching traffic and know that many of them are obviously on a cell phone.