FlowerLady here, and a bit freaked as several have said I would know what to do here. YIKES! I've been gardening on a shoe string for years. I grow natives, shrubs, annuals,perennials, roses, herbs. I live in the s.e. part of the state though. I have not been able to grow lavender here, except as an annual. It does not like the humidity. I love my roses, jasmine, cat's whiskers, moses in the bullrushes, basket plants, snake plants, ferns, plumeria, bougainvillea, crotons,plumbago, hibiscus, palms, succulents, Mexican heather, Mexican bush sage, Mexican petunias, chicory, elephant ears, aloe, flame vines, other flowering vines, orchids and many others. I grow from seeds and cuttings. I just mingle everything together for my own kind of tropical cottage garden. Visit the Florida Gardening forum here at GW. I'll leave a link at the bottom and you will get lots of great ideas for your part of the state. Check out what people are growing in your area also and look in garden centers. I love your house and think you will have lovely gardens once you are moved in and playing in the dirt. What are the little shrubs in your circular garden surrounding the palm tree? Whatever you do, don't stress, just have fun as your garden comes together. It's an ongoing process, something to enjoy every day. FlowerLady Here is a link that might be useful: Florida Gardening

"In the window boxes the purple heliotrope used to have very full blooms. There is also an apricot verbena that is practically non-existent now. The alyssum is also more seedy and less full than before. In the hanging container, you see the purple supertunia doing well, but the ?lobularia? in front has practically all gone to seed and looks awful. Then the ground container is bad. There are very few flowers on the white plant, and the yellows are mostly seedy. It just looks all tired and worn out now." Your heliotrope is leggy and not blooming well because it needs to be pinched back and deadheaded to bloom well. The alyssum looks typical of alyssum at this time of year, unless it has been cut back for new growth after it's first full bloom and successive ones after that. I will cut mine back at least twice during the season so that it it doesn't get leggy and seedy, then after it's third full bloom let it go so that I can collect seeds for next year. Your apricot verbena is doing poorly and may or may not be on it's last legs because you "gave it too much love." From past experience and calling several local nurseries including Russell's in Wayland, I was given the following info on verbena. 1. They need to be deadheaded or they quit blooming, You need to cut the blooms off the stem as the blooms finish. 2. Fertilize once in spring only 3. use well draining soil in a pot or in the ground. 4. If using miracle grow potting mix, use only the regular kind, not the one with moisture retention and use 1 part miracle grow to 4 parts of unfertilized potting mix. 5. Plant where the plant will get the most sun, at least 8-10 hours of sun, if possible 6. Water only when the plant is dry. Over feeding, over watering, not dead heading will kill the plant, allow powdery mildew to take hold and destroy the plant. All the above explains why my neighbors didn't survive last summers deluges of rain for 2 months. "In the hanging container, you see the purple supertunia doing well, but the ?lobularia? in front has practically all gone to seed and looks awful" supertunias do well in all weather, even cool damp and deluges of rain that we had last summer. lobularia is a cool weather plant that will do well in spring till the temps heat up and the humid air arrives. It will probably pick up again and look well in the fall when the temps cool down again. "Then the ground container is bad. There are very few flowers on the white plant, and the yellows are mostly seedy. It just looks all tired and worn out now." Try cutting back the white plant and the yellow one and see if that brings on new growth and then new blooms. you didn't say what those flowers where. In the window box, try cutting back on the watering to see if it will help the verbena. Fran

thanks cait,I also kept coming up w pineapple & i dont think that the sender knows ,its a beautiful plant about 12 or more in high w dark green leaves that smell strongly like lemon pledge,my mom wants lemon sage chicken when it grows,but I dont want anyone eating it if its poisionus or something,Im new to the GW & figured maybe someone knows this plant

I also did these last night to show a lighter, oak colored floor. It's hard to change the wood color, so maybe these are a bit darker (and greener :) than yours. But maybe that would be an option. Maybe there are other things you like about the kitchen that would make it still work for you. Maybe a few warmer ceramic pieces around or a little more color on the chairs, as in maybe you like that punch of chartreuse on the kitchen flowers. Simple clean lines, texture, and use of color. As far as materials go, I see lots of smooth and sleek and shine -- lots of smooth reflective surfaces and glass (vs much of a mix of textures). Lots of hard edges and geometric shapes. The vintage feel of the cabinetry would be important, too, with hardware and furniture feet. Of course, white, white, white, bright white. Except for a very few punches of warm color (and softer lines), it's all very cool. Also, it actually looks like the paint color is only used in the adjoining area. The kitchen looks like white beadboard and small areas of white paint, aside from the ceiling. I tried some solid black rugs in there too, if you don't mind vacumming a few times a day -- although the dark floors would be the same. They show lots of crumbs and stuff even when much lighter than those. Oak floor: With a few other saturated, warm punches of color: With black rugs: Black rugs and a few other soft, warm punches of color: