I have been cutting for years and my daughter and I love Japanese garden shears for cutting. They stay sharp for years and cut everything even hard woody stems. There are a couple different types we prefer the long ones with both handles white. I'm not sure what the color means but I bought an orange pair and the grip was not right, my mom uses the ones with one handle white and the other red and they seem to do well. I saw them in Peaceful Valley's catalog for $9.99. P.S. I just found this web site and I love reading all of your wonderful expertise, it really helps the spirit on these cold rainy days when I'd rather be gardening!

My whole goal after moving here to NC was to have 4 season bloom - and I do have my favorites for each season winter - violas, dianthus, hellbores spring - columbine, violas, dianthus, iris, daffodils, foxglove larkspur, clematis summer - gosh - anything that is blooming but I guess it would have to be all the rudbeckias, dahlias, hollyhocks, sunflowers, lilies, daylilies, clematis and the list goes on and on fall - mums, cleome, all the salvias, snaps I am starting collections of.... clematis - 15 so far daylilies - 12 so far with 4 dwarf re-blooming ones coming lilies - can't even begin to count - I just buy bags of them and plant but so far mostly asiatic and oriental. I am ordering collections of tiger and Turks cap I have a serious addiction - I know that but I figure that I don't smoke, drink very little, don't go on vacations or out to dinner - gardening is WHAT I do :):) - as long as bills are getting paid and food is on the table (DH takes care of that with his vegetable garden addiction) then my addiction can go on and on as long as there is green grass on our acre+ of paradise..... Lynne

Laurie, I mostly get the lemon or rose scented geraniums as they are two of my favorite fragrances. For me in zone 7/8 they are treated as annuals. I have yet to be able to winter one over in my garden no matter how much I protect them. I sometimes do pot them up and bring them inside for the winter. I hope to do that with the ones in my garden now. I will have to trim the root ball and entire plant because they have gotten huge. My favorites are; Attar of Rose, Lemon Crispum, Rober's Lemon Rose and Nutmeg. The flowers are usually small but pretty. The main reason most people grow them is for the fragrant leaves. You can put them into tea and other drinks, I like to add them to sugar to make a flavored sugar to roll cookies in before baking and sometime put the cleaned leaves into the bottom of the cake pan before pouring in the batter. Sort of like an upside down cake. I am adding a link here to a nursery that stocks quite an assortment. Hope this is helpful. Kat Here is a link that might be useful: Scented Geraniums

I have/had one. Well, it's still there, but I haven't posted on it in about a year and a half. Too many other life challenges/changes kind of took over and I didn't have time or the energy for it anymore. I'll post the link in case anyone wants to take a peek. I still love looking at some blogs, though. Between Naps on the Porch is one of my favorites. Also, I like Designs By Gollum. That's Michael Lee West, the author, and she used to post here as Hollygolightly. Another good one is Southern Hospitality. That lovely lady posted here as Georgiagal, I believe. Oh, and by the way, the house in my header is NOT my house. I so wish it was! All the other interior shots and backyard/back porch shots are of my actual house, though. Years ago, someone posted the picture of the house I used in my header, and I saved it as a "someday" dream house. I believe Flyingflower posted the pic originally. Here is a link that might be useful: MaMaison Blog