Hey Steve, There are a lot of people more knowledgeable than me but I'll try to help. I looked up your location and you are in USDA zone 8b which is good for cold hardy citrus. It really depends how much time you want to put into cold protection. I am in South Alabama in 8A and have Satsumas, Changsha, Meyer Lemon, Kumquats, Sanbokan Sweet Lemons, and a Limequat in the ground. This winter my lowest temperature so far was 19 last month. I protect the Satsumas, Lemons and Limequats by sprinklers. The Changshas do well on their on when they get some size on them. Check out some pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jbwindham/Dec2006Freeze As far as wet ground goes there you have a problem. Citrus do not like wet ground. They get foot rot. All is not lost though. I'll bet the LSU Ag Center or your local extension agent can tell you the best rootstock for damp soils. http://www.lsuagcenter.com/ Good luck with the citrus. Jack

nospice, I don't know if you got my e-mail. You are certainly welcome to visit. It's just hard to say when I'll be home. I'm home most weekends, but this is the summer and it seems that something is always coming up. I don't have anything to trade right now, but I could start some fig cuttings if you would like. I have Ventura, LSU Gold, Magnolia, and Celeste. I also have two unknown figs and I haven't eaten any figs from them yet. I have many different citrus and you could take buds for grafting.

Hi Dan, I think that's why the person over there suggested I post my inquiry over here and he mentioned you supecifically because of your work with the LSU fig varieties. :) I would like to be able to plant varieties of figs that are good in rainy weather and the heat and humidity, as well, which resist splitting and souring. I don't have much room and as it's going right now, the whole back yard will be taken up with fig trees! I told Mike that he should be happy about that because he'll only have to mow the front and side yards. :) I already have two Celestes, then got what I thought was a Smith and also got a Hunt baby this April. I got an older baby that is supposedly an LSU Purple and it's ripening two figs and the one that's riper is indeed purple and it's a bit older baby than the others. Not sure just when I should pick that fig, but I'm watching it. I also have a young IC, a young BT and a young TX Everbearing. The last three are not good in rainy weather, so I don't know why I got those, but the TX E came from Mark Simon and he said it does pretty well for him and he lives here in this area. I got the Smith from him, as well. I saw a post last night where it said there is more than one variety of Smith, so now I'm hoping that the Smith I think I have will be a good one. I was thinking of the Scott's Black because I was told they are good and ripen in August and that would stretch out the fig season for me and be a different fig, also. I would like to be able to just have a few trees, but a longer season and I really need the advice of someone like you and others who live here because y'all know the weather and I consider that very valuable. All input from people all over the country is very welcome. I'm not getting any younger, so it would be great if I didn't have to muddle around with fig varieties and could just go for the ones that do very well here. Does the Scott's Black drop its figs in hot, dry weather, here if its mother is a Celeste? Marty invited me to go visit him and taste the SB when the figs get ripe and I'm going to take him up on it, gratefully. He lives around here. I only wish I'd found GW and F4F years ago. The people on the sites are so kind and helpful. I appreciate all the input people share here and hate to be a pest, though. Thanks so much, Vivian

Privets produce branching terminal inflorescences - the resulting fruits are never located as they are on this plant. Its leaves are not privet-like either. All that came to mind for me was Ilex but as this is South Florida... Might be something they would know at a nearby independent garden center. Or have with a label or sign at a publicly accessible garden.