Now you have raised some MORE problems: if we ask GW members to rate the different "destinations", you are going to get a fairly skewed rating if only one or two GW folks have ever been there. Example: there may be the odd nursery or novel garden just off the NJ Turnpike that only one GW person (like me!) might ever have been to. . .does my 5-star rating make it a "must-see"? I'd be the first to admit that someone else might find it only a 2-star. . .after all, this is very subjective material. Perhaps a tight, concise commentary on each "destination" would serve us better, possibly even following a standardized format. . .that way, we could each "read between the lines" and apply our individual value judgements as to whether we deem it worthy of a visit. And certainly in my case, I'd be more than happy to elaborate further on a particular destination I was familiar with, if someone needed greater feedback. . .following in that vein, perhaps a listing (w/ permission, of course) of those GW folks who had visited and/or recommended each location? Too complex? As to your concern about eliminating "worthy" destinations if they are "too far" from I-95: providing mileage (at least) , and possibly estimated driving time from an exit, should be a given starting point. Would I recommend visiting Chanticleer as you're cruising down I-95 south of Philadelphia, even though it's 15 miles from Exit #7?. . . in a heartbeat! What if you're over on the NJ Turnpike, a distance of 26 miles from Exit #2 ? . . .still, in a heartbeat! Shouldn't people know that Longwood Gardens is just 11 miles from Exit #7 (I-95 in Delaware), or that Wintherthur is a mere 6 miles from the same exit? All these hypothetical destinations point up two more criteria that might be important: best time (season) to visit (Chanticleer = only open April to October, no bad time; Longwood Gardens = year-round interest because of the conservatory; Winterthur = Spring). . .and perhaps a minimum length of time for a visit, which in the case of all these three, at least, would be half a day! In other words, these three are examples of destinations that you would decidedly want to include on an otherwise mundane trip down I-95, but they are NOT hour-long breaks in an otherwise tedious journey. The ideal, to me, would be a core of "casual", near-by nursery/garden breaks along any given route, but making sure to point up I-95's proximity to major destinations as well, even if it means traveling an extra 25 miles (or up to an hour?). Of course, any listing would include a web address (if available) to inform folks of hours and/or fees. This whole subject seems to get more convoluted with every key stroke! Yet, it still fascinates me. . .years ago, there was a wonderful book listing healthy/ interesting off-the-beaten-path places to eat when you traveled the country. Sadly, given the flux inherent in the restaurant trade, the book was quickly out-of-date and I've never been aware of any similar replacement (anyone?). This project has a very similar feel to it, and especially if it included garden sites, might prove more lasting. . .and once I-95 in the NorthEast is nailed down, we can start radiating outward onto I-90, I-76, I-78, I-80, I-84, I-91, I-87, California, here we come ! Carl

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I used to leave my back yard gate in Venice unlocked because I never expected anyone to wander into my back yard. However, my neighbor told me that a couple of teenage boys (surfers) went into my yard and stole three or four mangoes from my tree. They told my neighbor (who saw them) that they knew me, and when he asked them what my name was, they ran off with the mangoes. I was pretty upset about that. The neighbor's somewhat feeble father-in-law (who lived in the garage apartment in back) once came into my back yard, knocked on my kitchen door and demanded that my housemate Bernard take him to the bank so that he could get some money to buy a steak. Bernard does not know how to drive or have a car or drivers' license, and so he told me that I needed to take this man to the bank. I told Bernard that that would be kidnapping and that I would do nothing of the kind. I told my neighbor about this, and he said that his FIL did escape from time to time and get lost, and they would have a difficult time trying to find him. I did start locking my back yard gate after that. These days I have to leave by gate unlocked when L.A. DWP comes to check my electric meter. I had a friend from New York who said that when he had a car, he always left it unlocked so that it would not get broken into.

So, here's the latest Oklahoma Drought Monitor Map, issued this morning. It shows continued advancement of drought conditions in portions of the state, especially in the southern tier of counties that lie closer to the Red River....and, of course, in southwestern OK, which never seems to catch a break. It is odd how OK look almost like a doughnut, with the lucky drought-free counties in white mostly in the center of the state (in the doughnut hole, so to speak), and with the rest of us in various colors surrounding that white hole. Oklahoma Drought Monitor Map And, for all the rest of our gardening friends in other states, here is today's U. S. Drought Monitor Map in its entirety. U. S. Drought Monitor Map If anyone else has advanced to a new drought category this week, you have my sympathy. I think all we can do at this point is water and mulch, water and mulch and water and mulch. Oh, and hope for rain to fall sometime again. Often, at least in my county, we will get a little rain around mid- to late-August even in a drought year, so I'm pinning my hopes on that! Usually Severe Drought is the point where I draw the line and stop watering, but y'all know I've already jumped the shark and decided to try to keep at least the flowering plants within the fenced garden alive for all the butterflies, bees and other pollinators because there's so little in the fields for them now. I don't know what if I do if we advance to Extreme Drought, because I doubt I can keep up this watering forever. Hopefully we get rainfall before we can advance to that point. There's a billion or so bees and butterflies in the garden this morning. I can't give up because they need those flowers.