Obsessive plant collecting that sounds familiar. First obsession roses, the truly disease free roses of course. Very easy to grow and if mail ordered on their own roots. Well, even I couldn't kill them. Next obsession summer blooming clematis. So that whilst the japanese beetles are are eating the roses you'll have pretty blooms with little effort after suppling something for them to grow on. Third obsession daylilies, ones like Going Bananas which bloom a nice soft yellow and continuos bloom once they start. Healthy foliage as well. They grow petty much by them selves.Plant obsessions aaargh! Any way your right about some geraniums. I use geranium Rossanne in back with Clems they hide the bare stems. I see the flowers but the foliage isn't right up front where it might be annoying.

Chablees Roses in Tyler, TX carries around 40 different Austin roses, including some of the forgotten ones; they have Cottage Rose, The Prince, Sophy's Rose, and Tradescent, all of which have done well for me in my garden. They are own rooted and come in 1 gallon pots. Two out of three pots have more than one plant in them (Ambridge Rose had one with FIVE plants in a one gallon pots, so I have an entire bed of this one) and are a bargain at $12-shipping to CA is around $4 per pot, so its $16 out the door, still a good price. Another favorite vendor is Pickering Nurseries in Canada. Their roses are grafted on to seed-grown Rosa multiflora plants (almost a zero chance of rose mosaic virus). They carry around 80 or so Austins at $14 or less per plant (2009 price); they have some of the old forgotten gems, like Prospero. Shipping works out to be around $2-$3 per rose if you get a few. I have ordered some from the David Austin headquarters in Tyler, but the cost of the roses with the shipping and handling, was prohibitively high (unless you take advantage of some of their special group offers). I enjoyed the original William Shakespeare although it was declared to be inferior by the company and St. Cecilia, which is the most fragrant Austin of all in my garden. What are some of your favorite lesser known Austins?

Here you go. Haven't met anyone that didn't like these. Decadent Caramel Rice Krispies Squares Regular Rice Krispie Squares (thicker version) 1/2 cup butter 400 g Marshmallows Pinch of salt (optional) 1 tablespoon vanilla extra 9 to 10 cups Rice Krispies Melt butter and stir in marshmallows and pinch of salt. Stir until smooth. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and rice krispies. stir until well coated. Pour into buttered 9 X 13 inch . (I use a pyrex glass) cake pan. The idea for these squares comes from another blog - Pots and Pins. Nan, makes the rice krispies squares the normal thickness and pours her caramel over the top. Because her squares are not as thick, some of the caramel sits on top of the square forming a separate caramel layer. In my version, I used my caramel sauce which does not contain corn syrup and because my squares are thicker, the caramel funnels it way through the whole square. Caramel Rice Krispie Squares Prepare rice krispies squares. Set aside. Caramel Sauce 1 cup butter 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup white sugar pinch of salt vanilla Coarse Sea Salt ( I use Maldon Salt Flakes) Place butter, cream, sugars and pinch of salt in a heavy sauce pan. Simmer until caramel reaches the soft ball stage. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Pour caramel over rice krispies squares. Caramel sauce will slowly seep down through squares. Sprinkle with sea salt and refrigerate until cold.

les, first of all, i actually prefer bisque to any other appliance color....all the newer, funky primary color ones are fantastic (but i think they would irk me at some point.) and it makes no sense to me to get rid of appliances that are only a couple of years old. i'll be keeping my dw for that reason and getting new bisque fridge and stove to replace my old bisque. might sound boring to some, but it's not so bad being in the minority. stainless looks great in many kitchens i've seen here, but it's not for me. the corian/dupont site has some cool tools for deciding on countertops....i'm so dreading that decision....way way too hard for me. good luck!