Hi from Oz, Here in Oz rabbits are a pest. Landholders have a requirement to keep numbers down. For instance one doe in a year can produce over 800 offspring. Have you any idea how much plant material 800 rabbits can eat? 1 DSE or dry sheep eqivalent is the food needed per hectare per sheep ,well 8-10 rabbits equals 1 sheep. Not to mention the destruction caused by the warrens. I personally would not endorse the use of a slingshot- what happens if you only maim the animal? and it dies a slow lingering death. No here in Oz the options would be Snare, Gun, Ferret, hunting dog, netting, CO (exhaust fumes hosed down a warren with all openings sealed), or traps. In USA i expect that shooting is not possible neither ferreting, dogs ,netting nor C0. So that leaves snaring , which is an excellent way of capturing & disposing of troublesome pests. A well placed snare that is checked 2-3 times a day ,maybe in a hole in a fence could just be the go. Failing that a live catch trap would be more humane if not as tasty. Remember relocate if thats what you do with bugsy at least 5 miles away to prevent him hopping back. Incidentally to keep rabbit numbers low you need to remove 85% of offspring. A slow cooked stew with wild rabbit is excellent- very little fat and plenty of protein. Also rabbit droppings make excellent manure or compost (at a cost to your plants)

'... I think that these trees @ Nat'l Arboretum and the one @ UDEL, Newark are the northernmost Live Oak in eastern N. America....' Well, Newark Delaware is pretty far north, but certainly there are live oaks growing further north than the Nat'l Arboretum. I know of several in Sterling, VA, for example. That's quite a ways west too. Lots of acorns in my trees this year. Quickly becoming squirrel food. I don't mind. At least they're not bothering persimmons this year. And what am I going to do with hundreds of acorns?

Actually the soil pH can be changed quickly and easily if it is sandy. For example, if you're growing rhododendrons and azaleas, you can lower the pH easily by a couple applications of Miracid and watering it in well. Heavy soils are more difficult to work with. Rhododendrons, hollies, mountain laurel, dogwoods,ferns (most), and wildflowers are excellent companion plants for your hosta garden. All I'm saying is don't mix lime into your compost pile if you plan to use it around these plants. As far as removing the mulch that you have on during the winter, my suggestion is to wait at least until you are fairly sure the last freeze, and any hard frosts, are done. You'll have to make that call, as each zone and particular situation is different. Don

I've been digging up suckers of a couple of different viburnums, grey dogwood, and serviceberry to fill in the gaps. Also easy wildflowers like columbine, wood asters, tiarella. And more elderberry--I've got one elderbuerry shrub that's a sucker factory--it's on the border between the woodland and the lawn, and I swear I dig up one sucker from the lawn every other day--I take one, the bush produces another one in the same spot. Have to take advantage of its productive capacity before we start to mow the lawn there. Things seem to be taking well--lots of rain, fewer rabbits. The V. trilobum I put in last year especially is taking off. I do have a BIG woodchuck once again, but it seems to be sticking to prairie plants for its gourmet feasts. I have a shrub order coming this week and will be extending this hedgerow across the front of the yard, far from the big norway maple that I think it impeding growth right smack in the center of the hedgerow.