jman, very nice. I think anything functional does not detract from the whole. I think the white fence blends with the house and was a great choice. I bet the neighbors are envious! The only down side in my mind (and can't be helped when you have to follow code) is that a fence visually interrupts the flow of the garden into the surrounding property/area. I LOVE how you can look out your front window and enjoy your pond, and your plantings look great. Happy ponding!

Greenhouser2,thank you for responding, I have only read this term "snap fit connectors". I am not sure what it means or what to compare it to. Is it sturdy? When putting a greenhouse up what other options do I have if any? Is this snap and fit what you find in the legs of some gazebos?

I grew 3 Plumies in pots for about 6 years while living in NY. They grew well but did need large pots. I am not an expert and can share what I did which worked for me. Mine spent all summer outdoors gradually moved to the sunniest spot possible (on my deck). I say gradual because you will burn the plant if you put it in full sun after spending the winter indoors. So bump up the light gradually. I was not fussy about soil. I used a mix of Miracle Gro, cactus soil and small wood chips. I also added perlite. The idea is to keep the mix free draining but loamy enough to hold some moisture so you don't have to water every day. I would move my trees inside when there was danger of frost or the night temps dropped below 50 consistently. If there is just one night or two below 50 they are okay. But when the nights stay cold, bring them in or you can get rot. Indoors I tried two methods. The first 4 years I forced them into dormancy by removing the leaves and putting them in a crawl space in the basement. I stopped watering and left them until March. I would move them to a sunny window and they would start to leaf out. They stayed indoors until the weather settled above 60's. The years following this, I moved them inside and grew them under floor lamps. Most were budded and I didn't want to lose the flowers. They grew well under the lights and I got the flowers. Spider mites are their enemy and appear every winter. No matter what I did I got them. Even when they were leafless, they had webs all over. It sounds like you have them. If your tree is still outside, hit the plant with the hose and wash them off. They will return when you move the tree inside. You can try heavy duty insecticides, but I don't like using those inside the house. I did use an oil spray which seemed to keep them at bay until Spring. Once the trees go outside the spider mites go away. Good luck, Jane

Wow! Thanks for all the feedback. I have been leaning towards tightback (with no back cushions) all along. As matter of fact, I have a camelback sofa in my living room that I have had reupholstered twice, and it is 25 years old now. In our great room we have been using one that was my Mother in laws and it is probably at least 40 yrs. old or more. It is a classic Lawson with down-filled, loose back cushions that always need plumping. It is well made, I know she had it redone quite a few times. It is great to nap on, but not for sitting very long because of the low back. Anyhow, I want to make a wise decision and get quality and comfort, plus style of course. I need firm and not so deep a seat. What about leather colors? I just can't get excited about brown leather, and definitely not black. Thanks for the input!