Terry, here are some thoughts that come to mind... 1. If you can arrange a trip out to the Long Island nurseries you should find the junipers mentioned there. 2. If your purchasing has to be on-line then order only from www.lazyssfarm.com. A top notch nursery that babies its plants and customers. You can send them a e-mail explaining that you plan to train junipers on trellises and you need plants with a number of leaders and they will work with you. I just skimmed through their on-line catalog (drool) and note that they carry Juniperus chinenses 'Blue Alps'. Perfect for your needs. Retains its green color all winter. All container grown plants can be planted at any time of the year. 2. Because the junipers are not fast growers suggest that you intersperse them with pots in which you could grow deciduous shrubs that are attractive in the winter months. The following are available at the same nursery, Salix alba 'Flame', Viburnum carlesii (fantastic bloom fragrance) and Lonicera x Mandarin PP#11,083. The latter is a beautiful all summer blooming vine to be trellised and is considered invasive but you are growing in the concrete jungle so it should not be a problem. This assortment plus five junipers plus pots of annuals should be a good beginning for you. See how this works out. 3. Take some time to study the Winter Sowing Forum. It is an easy method which will allow you to grow annuals inexpensively. 4. Strongly suggest the following. You will need some method of securing branches and vines. The most permanent, easy to use type that I have found is a heavy duty, single-wrap Velcro. Strong, durable, attractive, almost unnoticed, sold in a green color, holds through hurricanes as I can attest. It will probably be easier for you to order it on-line from www.homesew.com. Another customer friendly company.

Yes. PT = Poncirus Trifoliata. I mixed some in with other dishes and some I ate by itself. It does have seeds, and it's a powerful taste. If you like bland fruit, I wouldn't recommend it. Part of it is that some friends have recommended PT as a rootstock, so PT is a "beach head" in the citrus area that may or may not develop by grafting on, say, yuzu, or Thomasville Citrangequat. We have had new record heat here each year for the last 3 years. I'm 52 and I've never seen something like this here, so it could develop that way too. John S PDX OR

I'm doing the same "hide a fence" thing presently. If you want really cheap, fast and evergreen, you can use any of the cold hardy English Ivies in zone 6. I recommend 'Thorndale.' It's the hardiest with larger leaves for coverage. It's not invasive here in Utah and shouldn't be in PA either (but double check). I'm only using it because I have a very narrow planting area (12-inches). Most everywhere else I'm using 'American Pillar' Arborvitae (narrow, fast, dense, hardy and evergreen). It's cheaper than a privacy fence if you purchase starters and it's very fast growing for an arborvitae (up to 3' per year). However, it maybe overkill for what you want because it grows tall quickly (20' - 30'). You can find a cheaper Arborvitae for use as a shorter hedge. If you have a lot of snow on the ground during the winter, then you may just find a privet hedge will suite you fine. It's not evergreen from Christmas through March, but it's branches are pretty dense and no one's usually outdoors during that time anyway to really worry about it. However, unlike the 'American Pillar' Arborvitae, it'll need lots of pruning on both sides of the fence to keep in check. (My neighbor around the corner has it bordering the front of his property and it's a true beauty to behold. It would be my first choice except I need full privacy in the winter months due to my next door neighbor's windows being only a few feet from my windows and currently I have to keep my blinds closed all the time because they never do). Privet is super fast and cheap, but make sure to get the cultivar 'Cheyenne' as it is the most cold hardy variety. Those are your main options for cheap and fast, but their are a lot more options available for your area if you can move up in price and/or don't mind the speed. (ie. Hollies, Yews, Boxwoods, Firethorns, etc.). Good luck.

Here are my thoughts on planning: while I agree that planning is important, I feel none of what I'm doing right now precludes any plants unless they are extremely acid-loving. My pH is 4.8 and the recommended ph ranges from 5.5 for acid loving to 6.5 for flowers. Changing the ph takes a long time and so far I've added 40lbs of limestone when I need 225 - 400 lbs! I also agree that using native plants is preferable, but that is limited by availability and cost. It's going to be hard to justify buying native if he cost difference is substantial. I have bought a few so far, listed below, from big box stores New plants: Gaura lindheimeri Salvia nemorosa Boneset chocolate eupatorium rugosum Salix integra brocade willow Pieris japonica If anyone has recommendations or websites to learn about native plants, please share. I feel like the far bigger limiting factor is the relatively small amount of sun I get, not my soil. Also, for any new subject, by definition my tastes are going to evolve, so I don't see much value in creating a plan upfront, when it's almost guaranteed that my tastes will change as I learn more about gardening. One example: I just learned about Swales and berms - something I'd never remotely heard of before. Now I want to learn how I can incorporate that in my garden!