Just enjoying my morning coffee and it has finally stopped raining and the sun is out, here in Barrie. Some good morning reading here I find our Canadian Tire stores locally do not carry as much selection of plants as they used to They did use to have lots of those little potted perenial plants and then mark them down even 75% off But this year and last there are not really any interesting perenicals in the smaller pots I think you are quite correct about the plant department of Canadian Tire That mostly the staff taking care of it do not know much about plants and that having a garden centre for them is really not a money maker, at least not the plants but just something that all the stores have. Maybe in some stores there is better care, but I expect plants themselves are not that much of a money maker for Canadian Tire.

Hi George and yellowgirl! I also agree that I need something between my property and my neighbors'. What my photo did not show you though, was how this area in question looked from the driveway. It's actually directly looking at the end of bed on the left. In fact, it is not such a wide area. This area needs something pretty and not so big. A conifer like Picea orientalis will be too tall for this area as it is too close to the house, and the base of the mature tree will be even wider than the width of the entire bed. That's why it will not work. I am choosing something like the Sugar Tyme Crabapple because it has a good size and upright habit for this area, and it's so gorgeous in spring! It is actually going to look spectacular from the driveway. Also, the persistent and very bright red fruit during winter will look absolutely stunning with the snow during winter. Another thing is, since there is no other evergreen tree in this woodland setting in my backyard, would it not look odd to have one single evergreen there in this island? In any case, you have given me a lot more to think about, which is great! Thank you. I will certainly take a look at some evergreens at the nursery this weekend before I decide on the crabapple or something else. BTW, I have a Prairifire Crabapple in my front yard, so having this white flower crabapple in this backyard area visible from the front is going to look very nice.

Check this website - it may help in your search for answers: http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/identify.html Go down to the description of arborescens (Annabelle) and see the paragraph that says: "It is very difficult in pictures, to show differences between the leaves of 'Annabelle' and those of the common mophead. But they are not alike. (I hope to get better close-up pictures of the leaves this year.) The leaves of arborescens ('Annabelle') are generally heart shaped, thin, and floppier than the mopheads (macrophylla). They have a matt surface and a courser texture than the smooth leaf of the mophead. The leaf stems (petiole) are long and hold the leaf away from the main stem."Your description sounds like some kind of macrophylla.

Can you show a photo of the ones you bought as Annabelles? I ask because a few years ago I purchased five Annabelles from a local nursery. It was pre-season, so I called and had them brought in from the farm, and then picked them up. They were not in bloom. Turns out they sold me three Annabelles and two of something else--also white, but not the ball-shaped clusters of flowers that Annabelles have, and they are much taller and stiffer-stemmed than the Annabelles. For where I have them planted, it doesn't matter. But if I had wanted five matching shrubs in a row, it would have been a disaster. Long story short--those look like Annabelles so maybe the new ones are mislabeled?