Thanks flowerfan2 for the confirmation of PPE. The second one does look like 'Inspiration'. My plant is only two years old so has been pinched back and this spring was hail damaged to the ground so am not sure of mature height. I bought it from Rice Creek Gardens when they closed (due to hwy expansion) on the last day. They were known for having unusual varieties as well as the more common ones. The plant was not labeled. It is 4' tall and climbing on a trellis now. The blooms are 5" wide and more a reddish purple rather than pink. The low blooms in the photos are on a vine that was hanging down. I see 'Inspiration' is a semi-climber. This clematis does not act like my c. integrifolia 'Bushy Blue Bell'. The leaves are also wider on this clematis. It is herbaceous and appears to die back to the ground with the frost. I have about 30 different varieties of clematis. Most are P3 and the P2s have been treated the same as they are just 2 years old. This spring I will leave some old wood on the P2s for spring bloom. I guess time will tell if it will grow like a viticella or not next year.

I agree with everyone else. Baby black racer. Totally harmless. Yuliana, most vipers and other venomous snakes (but not ALL) do have vertical pupils, while non-venomous snakes have round ones. However, it isn't always easy to see the pupils of a snake's eyes. It's much better to be familiar with the 4 basic types of venomous snakes we have in Florida. If it's not one of them, you don't have to worry. And they are all 4 pretty EASY to ID. You'll notice I use the term "venomous" instead of "poisonous" when talking about snakes. That is because poison is something you ingest...you EAT a poisonous mushroom, for instance. Venom is something that is injected into you, via fangs or stingers, (like snakes and bees). So snakes aren't poisonous. At least none that I know of. You can eat rattlesnake meat all day long and it won't poison you. But some of them ARE venomous, and CAN inject you with a toxic venom. Voila...your biology lesson for the day, haha. Marcia

This appears to be a copperhead. Dont let the dull colors fool you as I have killed many that looked just like that and at first I was confused but it was confirmed. They are abundant in Brazoria county and when I lived at Demi John I had the misfortune of dealing with many of them. Rarely will you find one over 2' lg and if it had a triangular head then that would confirm it. Nasty little snake can crawl under short grass and you will never see them. Keep you yard mowed short as the shorter the grass the less they like it.

Thanks! That's what I thought, but they are both small and the first Corn Snakes I've seen since we moved here in '96. If they are mating now, and next to sheets of plywood on bricks I use for potted plants (bad vole problem here) --- could I expect eggs under there somewhere? I ask because it is just a few feet away from the chicken yard and the chickens will make mincemeat of the snake hatchlings if they happen to wander in there. If we can get a population of Corn Snakes established, our vole problems will be a thing of the past! Look out voles, the end is near! LISA