Ditto the advice re: florida 'Sieboldii' - most sources recommend a frost-free environment for success with this selection, although there are those (very few) who have had success with this vine in colder climates. Why it is such an issue to grow well here in zone 8, where virtually any other clematis under the sun grows with wild abandon, I have no idea. Regardless, I would NOT recommend this for a newbie. 'Guernsey Cream' is also a very early blooming selection (over and done with here) although if lightly trimmed after initial bloom cycle you will get a light flush of rebloom in late summer/early fall, so plan accordingly if combining with other, later flowering clems.

I have no experience with Bee's Jubilee but many, if not most, clematis brown out in the summer sun. What I do in Petaluma is cut them all the way back after they bloom. With our long growing season I get two periods of bloom from them. I grow carnaby which has a color similar to Bee's Jubilee. When trying to decide where to plant it I read about it on clematis on the web. It said that it fades badly in the sun so I planted it under a spruce tree where it gets sun only in the very late afternoon. It has done well there and I get two nice flushes of bloom with minimal fading. Here's a link to Bee's Jubilee at clematis on the web: Clematis on the Web. It doesn't mention fading, but I find that most lighter colored clematis fade in the sun.

Thank you everyone for all your suggestions!!! Digginginthe dirt, there were a few plants that just haven't thrived in my garden - When it was initially installed, there was a clematis on each trellis and on the arbor. They were small 5" round mounds of chartreuse leaves that were close to the ground when they were put in. Of those, all three on the trellises were dead after the end of the 3rd year in the ground. I had Chris come back last year to mulch and fertilize, as well as put in a few plants - he brought 2 more clematis and put one on on the other side of the arbor and one on one of the trellises. The two he put in last year did better than the original ones-they actually grew a little bit haha. But the one that is remaining of the original bunch, which is on the arbor, is still only about 2 ft high. I am not going to remove the clematis on the arbor - it will live with the new rose (which by the way, will be a thornless variety - probably James Galway, because it is at the entrance.) So now I am left with the decision of what to do for the other trellises - should I buy two more and put them on the remaining trellises, and start over the wait of years for it to get established, or start from scratch? Part of the problem I guess is that hubby is over the clematis - he is tired of looking at the empty trellises and has said he doesn't care WHAT we put on them as long as it's vigorous. (of course he said ivy, but I refuse because of its invasiveness.) Perhaps the answer is to keep up with the clematis and find an annual vine that will live happily with it. NHbabs, the trellises really don't get any sun at all. The one all the way over to the right gets a *little* sun in he morning since it stands in front of a one-story addition - the other two are blocked by the two story house. I will start researching your links after I post here - thank you so much!! Mad Gallica did you mean that roses on the trellises are out? Because the arbor actually gets quite a bit of sun - it's in full sun for most of the day - the left side of it is slightly shaded in the morning until the sun gets up over that yellow house, but then it's sun all day after that. Diggerdee - you know, I agree with you that the trellises are nice to look at - I don't mind them naked. It's my darling husband who is so adamant about something on them. *sigh* I am definitely thinking hydrangea to replace the azalea. As for the trellises, I'm going to be making a trip to Farmer's Daughter when I'm ready to start planting and I'll see what they have that might work - if I don't end up getting more clematis from Avant. If nothing there will work, I'll look at ordering something online.

Well, good heavens, it is July, you know, and a hotter-than-usual one at that. It doesn't matter how good my garden looks in June, July is a garden-slayer. So, take comfort in the fact that you are not alone....and the fall planting dates are coming up! The heat makes cucumbers bitter, so you can plant another round of cukes for fall and have delicious cucumbers once again. Yellow leaves on a tomato are signs of many things. Often the oldest leaves near the bottom just turn yellow as they age, or it could be a sign of a disease or heat stress. Remove the yellow leaves. Water the tomato (at the ground level to keep water off the foliage) and feed it if you think it needs to be "boosted" at little, and you should see new growth soon. Bumpy bean leaves do indicate a plant virus but, if the plants are still producing beans, I wouldn't pull them yet but would pull them if production has stopped or almost stopped. I can't help you with the pooped-out garden helper, though, because I feel the same way....it is too hot "out there" in the garden to do much of anything. As far as $$$$ spent compared to the harvest received, it will get better as you gain experience AND in the years that the weather cooperates a bit more than it did this year. Remember, too, if you are gardening organically, to consider how much more expensive organic produce is at the grocery store. Finally, if gardening is fun and enjoyable, it is worth the $$$ spent. For me, gardening is a 'lifestyle' and I spend the money on the garden that other people spend on movies and amusement parks and vacations. Since I enjoy my time in the garden so much, it is worth the money to me. I always encourage veggie gardeners to 'try again' in the fall because often the fall gardening season is more productive than the spring/summer one. Of course, it is largely dependent on the late summer/fall weather as well as the timing of the first fall freeze. Still, the produce I get in the fall makes me forget how horrible July and August were. And there's one more "dirty little secret" in the gardening world that no one really talks about, and it is this: While it is nice to have lovely, deep green, lush, healthy-looking tomato plants in spring and early summer, it is normal for them to look yellowing, browning, sad, sick, pitiful, crispy and half-dead as the season wears on. Producing tomatoes, especially in very high heat and intense sunlight, is very, very, very hard on a plant. I just ignore how awful the plants look by mid- to late-July and keep them watered and fed, if needed, and keep on harvesting tomatoes. Am I proud of how the plants look in mid- to late-July? Definitely not. But, are they doing their 'job' of producing fruit? Yes. So, who cares what the plants look like. Hang in there. Cooler weather and the joy of fall gardening are just around the corner! Dawn