Dee, I like your idea of putting all the small tools in a five gallon bucket and bringing it with you. I think I am going to try my version of that with a two wheeler and a small beach umbrella. I like bringing shade with me and having a two wheeler to move something if I need it. I also have a way of using the 5 gallon bucket as a work surface while sitting on a riding seat. I had fun putting the whole thing together too. Had lots of places to put things like my water bottle, etc. I did that two summers ago and I forget what happened that I didn't last year. I could move into one of those sheds tomorrow too Dee. Might make a nice get away, right in the backyard. Bring out a cooler and a comfortable chair, a few gardening magazines...make a day of it. :-) Linda, the umbrella is a nice idea when you have to use a space that is too sunny and it helps when it rains to keep things dry if you haven't got any cover. I also made a decision to try using the garage for one season and clear out an area that would be the same size as a small shed and see how it works before I commit to having a shed. sooey, you sound pretty organized to me! pm2

I was thinking along the lines of some screen material, possibly the stuff you put down to block weeds on top and maybe some rocks on top although he might still play with the rocks, IDK. Cats usually don't like the smell of vinegar so a little cup of vinegar in there would likely keep him away. Even a vinegar dampened rag would still keep some smell there and not smell around the room. Another deterrent is a squirt gun, squirt bottle or a spray bottle set to stream and give a squirt when he goes near it. After a few times of getting wet, he probably will stay away from it, although if you leave for a while, he might just forget!

How so, Logan? Incrediball/Annabelle Looks pretty consistent and formal? Gold mound spirea and forsythia are Wal-Mart parking lot plants. Evergreens would look horrible between these, they will just blend in. Azalea only flowers in the spring. Concorde Barberry would look nice as say.

Carol, yes, the teas have an ineffable delicacy and refinement both in form and color. I want as many of them as I can fit in my now extremely limited sunny space. But Chinas will put up more with less than ideal conditions. I think my last frontier will be Chinas. I will be putting them in some very iffy spaces. I love Austins. I had not previously considered a comparison with Starbucks (I confess I have never entered a Starbucks willingly and on my own unless it was with a gift card that somebody gave me). But you do bring up an important point. It was Abraham Darby, 20 years ago, that started me on this trip. He was the one who led me to antiques. Without him, I am not sure if I would have ended up here! Although we have not one but three great OGR nurseries within a 90 minute drive, they do not advertise. You need to know a lot to even know that they exist. And how did I learn about Abraham Darby in the first place? I think it must have been an article in Vogue about a high end cosmetics company (Chantecaille) that was making a perfume based on his scent. How shameful! I used to read Vogue. I am not that person anymore. But the article made me drool, and I drove down to Apopka and bought him from Nelson's. I love Austins because they smell great, they look great, they are far more interesting than hybrid teas, and when grafted on R. fortuniana they start producing immediately, unlike my own-root antiques that will take 3 years to show me what they can really do. Patience has never been a forte with me. But I am not really a fan of the business practices. I guess if I had integrity I would vote with my pocketbook and boycott them. As of now I have 21 Austins. I have plans for more. I hope that at some point I will cancel those plans.