Quite a lot! A great deal of deferred maintenance is under way. (Did you know that they actually had trellising that was installed in Henry Huntington's lifetime??? Some of that has been preserved and re-used.) Tom began months ago by cataloging all of the roses in the garden. That wasn't all that easy, because there were no few things that were mislabeled or not labeled. They've got by that stage now, for the most part, tho Gregg Lowery is going to come down to look at some of the things none of us could figure out from photos. That sort of thing should continue to improve, with more volunteers, and some actual MONEY available, now, for maintenance issues. All of those long arbors are going to be replaced, and some pathways have been made safer to walk on. The garden still includes some rather rare HTs from the first half of the 20th Century, which are mostly out of commerce. Material was sent to Burling Leong, so that new plants can be budded. (Surplus copies of some of those will eventually be sold.) The badly compressed soil in the Tea Rose area is being addressed, and the Teas are growing like mad (great news!). I look forward to seeing the work in progress next spring. I think, tho, that I'll trek out there in February, just to see how it's going. When we're there, you know, for Great Rosarians (Malcolm's speaking!). I haven't walked out to that garden for several years, and now, I look forward to it. Jeri

Thanks for the words of encouragement and photo ideas grannybj65, I have a really nice digital camera and plan to take LOTS of photos all along the way as I develop the garden. The photos linked here were taken by a good friend. I have an eye for good snapshots so once I'm down there I'll be taking dozens of photos from all angles and different weather conditions. The joy of digital photography - you never run out of film. LOL One of the things I like to do is take a series of photos from the same angle all day long on a sunny day to get a general idea of where the shady and sunny spots are. Doing that a few times throughout the year as the Earth changes kilter I'll perfect an image in my mind of where best to place different plants based on their light/shade tolerance. Looking at the photo of the front of the house dead-on, I just got a great idea. Facing the house, the living room is on the right side with the single window and the kitchen is on the left side with the double windows. In front of the double windows inside is the kitchen sink, so it is not a spot that will have tremendous "looking out the window" appeal. So, as the cogs turn in this hard head of mine, I'm visualizing lattice from the center pole on the porch going to the left corner, then around to where the porch meets the house. Then cutting a rectangular window out of the center of the front of the lattice and framing it a bit so there is a clear view out to the road from the kitchen window. And then I can visualize the lattice painted white (or more likely light gray as I'm not too fond of white outside) and covered in Scarlet Runner Bean and Clematis with maybe some "Joseph's Coat" (Amaranthus tricolor) in front and some dwarf Cannas with some "Love lies Bleeding" (Amaranthus sp.) along the side. The scarlet, violet, purple and deep reds and burgundys will all be in harmony with one another, at least until I decide on a totally different look down the road. I can have a nice metal frame rocking deck seat out on the porch hidden away behind the wall of vines where I can sit and enjoy the shade - and a good spray from the gardening hose on all the vines will create a nice cooling breeze. Well, it's a thought anyway. :) I saw on eBay this evening someone in San Diego California is selling several batches of Tillandsias (the common T. ionantha). They are offering them as a box of 50 child fist-sized clumps of them for around $20 if I recall - quite cheap. I immediately thought how neat it would be to buy 50 or 100 clumps and then carefully wire them to a wire-frame wreath for a living, blooming front door wreath, especially once the front porch is semi-latticed in and well shaded. A few sprigs of Spanish Moss draping down from the wreath here and there would further kick off the effect. It would live on the wet air, constantly regenerate itself with new growth, and bloom off and on throughout the year. During the colder months I could bring it inside and hang up it in the living room window where it can get plenty of bright indirect light. Ok, I'll shut up now.

Marti, my Shasta daisies look wilted too, but they're getting ready to die back for the winter anyway; just dig up the pitiful-looking plant, & the new owner will plant it, & the roots will send up a new crown in the spring. I have a few daisies that have given up the ghost, & the new crowns have emerged already! Remy, if you have enough of the lotion and/or shampoo if that's what it is (bad monitor, bad bad monitor!), I'd like to trade...something? anything? I did pot up another rose for you, looks like another, or maybe the same, China rose, but it's a freebie; it's a leetle feller & its leaves are yellow, don't know if something's wrong with it or if it's just going dormant early. I did find some red yucca seeds from this year & some bur oak acorns from 2012; I had hoped to grow a bur oak, but I can't keep the squirrels out of them!

Linda, Your box arrived! I LOVED everything! ;) Linda sent~ Cute scarecrow on a stick (for a potted plant) 4 placemats "Fall" theme, leaves, wheat, pumpkins Pilgrim (with a pumpkin scene) Bunch of seeds! Paper, plant marker sticks (orange) Adorable crow shelf sitter, with a pumpkin/gourd body! Very pretty orange glass votive- with pumpkin garland around the top rim. Japanese cedarwood candle (votive) LOVE the smell, so clean, almost spicy! Flowering herb candle (votive), another nice scent! Orange pumpkin votive English Hyacinth candle (votive) smells really nice too, very fresh! Thanks Linda, for such a nice box! I love Fall things! All the colors are so bright, rich, my Favorite season! Hugs, Deb