Below is a link to the squirrel trap. I did not mean to take credit for the trap, and I haven't even built one yet, but it seems like it would work rather effectively. I like it because it is the most inconspicuous one I have ever seen, which is a major selling point for me, living right next door to two families. trapping and drowning them seems like a quick way to get the ASPCA called on me, and relocating them seems like a major hassle, also seems safe for neighborhood cats. Yes, I meant PINE BARK. Thanks for the comment, I will edit accordingly. No, I water them with the hose. I had a drip line set up for about a day until I realized I put it on the blueberries to, and the way I coiled it around the plants, I had to remove the whole line to get it off the blueberries. Also, watering with the hose, by hand gives me an extra excuse to examine them without looking like a weirdo staring at his plants all day :) Brady, funny you posted that link, I saw that before and was planning on doing something similar to that but now that I need to keep the branchwork of the trees higher up, to allow sunlight/airflow to the bushes below, I am going with an elevated espalier form. This tree seems like a trouper though, so I think I can afford to experiment with it a bit. Here is a link that might be useful: squirrel trap

I dont know what its name is..I had some very nice people trade with me last year but didnt have a name on it...it was fun waiting to see exactly what it would look like when it bloomed..if anybody know what it is please email me....

They are supposed to be very hardy, so I'm guessing being dry may have been the cause. Anyways there is residual snow from christmas until usually the middle of March here so I really doubt dryness will be an issue. My plan is to use either leaf bags, dried leaves with a tarp over them or just dried leaves since the snow insulates pretty well. I am aware that with most plants, their first winter is their toughest, especially if they are growing in pots. Were the pots buried into the ground at all? If you left the pots simply sitting on top of the soil without burying them into the ground, that will cause the root balls to freeze which restricts the water to the plant. The only exceptions I've seen are fruit trees, blueberry plants or alliums which don't seem to mind getting their roots frozen solid.

I've just come back inspecting my garden the first time this spring and I've noticed that quite a few of my austins are cane hardy. We did have a mild winter however but they are more cane hardier than other roses. L.D. Braitwaite, Golden Celebration, Mary Rose, Heritage, Teasing Georgia and Evelyn have at least 2/3 of their canes still green and leafing out too. This will be the first year where I will be having tall austins in my garden. Teasing Georgia especially is going to be a big shrub for me. I honestly didn't anticipate this as I have my roses planted close together. My New Dawn is pretty much cane hardy with little damage as expected. I am a bit disappointed that Don Juan, Eden, Crown Princess Margarite, Graham Thomas, Lichtkoningin Lucia, Fourth of July, Westerland and Rosarium Uetersen don't have a cane that survived the mild winter. However, there are lots of new growth coming up. With the exception of two hybrid teas (whose names I don't remember), the rest are not cane hardy as expected. It looks like I may have lost a rose bush. I don't remember what it is but it could had been a transplanted rose from last year that I moved. I will give it a bit of time to see if it is really dead.