Hi, Jaemy. I just stumbled on this thread again. Glad I had forgotten I'd responded and read it again. Yes, the Mazus spread the length of my stone path in one growing season (March to November) though only about 4 or 5 inches away from the stones.) When I planted it, I had put a good mulch of pinestraw on the areas all around the stones, and just "plugged" the mazus in right at the edge of and between each pair of stones so that the plants would creep into the area between the stones first. That worked really well. As the season progressed and the straw began to break down, the Mazus grew into it and seemed to appreciate that composting straw. I would think you could put down an organic mulch over your plants over winter for protection. Though on second thought, the fact that it's evergreen makes me wonder if it would not like it. I really don't know. Don't cover it too heavily. Maybe some pine boughs? To experiment, you might leave some area unprotected and another area protected and compare them come spring. At any rate, I would try to move any winter mulch away from it as early in spring as possible. Daylily cuttings might work for mulch too, but I would recommend you chop them somehow so they'll be tidier and will break down more quickly. (Be sure they aren't diseased or you could spread disease to other parts of your garden.) Also, another note. This past spring, when I cut the mazus off the stepping stones, I took the "sheets" of plants I was removing and moved them to another area of the path that had not yet been reached by the mazus. I roughed up the soil a little and just laid the mazus "sheets" (which I cut into smaller pieces) right on top of the soil, watered, and it rooted right in and took off. Mazus reptans is a truly great plant. It's that rarest of ground covers that look nice all year long, spreads easy, and yet is not the least bit invasive. I cannot believe it's not grown more often. (There's a lavender bloomer as well as the white one.) Didi66, I believe it will grow in sand. I first read about it in one of Pamela Harper's books and she gardens on sand. Butterclem, I read somewhere once that it's not a good idea to add sand to clay because that's the recipe for concrete. What I do read is to add "grit" or buildings gravel, though I'm not sure what those are. I have dug pea gravel into soil before to loosen it and that worked pretty well, though you must be careful not to add so much that you make your soil too alkaline. Green sand is extremely fine (and expensive), so although it's a wonderful soil amendment, I wouldn't recommend using it just to loosen soil. The best and cheapest way to loosen clay is lots and lots and lots of organic material: chopped leaves, organic mulch, chipped bark, compost, etc.

Jodik says: The coir might look dry on top, but down in the center of the pot, it could be quite moisture-laden! I have found it helpful to insert little wooden skewers carefully into the soil to about root level, and leave them there... I take them out and press them against my cheek to test for dampness... if they feel at all damp, I wait to water... but if the skewer comes out dry, it's time to water. My coir is 4" deep in a closed pot. I put the skewer to the bottom of the pot. When I take it out how many inches of bone dry top "soil" should there be before it's time to water again? Is it 1", 2" or 4"? I just went 10 days without water and only 1" of the top was dry so am I supposed to water this direct sun pot once every two weeks or so to avoid over watering, really? And how much water for my 6" closed pot? I had been watering 1 1/2 cup or so once a week and my plant was fine but I'm now worried that was too much so I'm re-evaluating. I know what conventional wisdom says (water deep, not shallow) but that advice doesn't seem to apply to my situation. Also how long should it be before I see new leaf growth in the summer time (first season outside)? My 18 month old Red Lion so far has only grown new leaves once a year. At potting and at dormancy end.

Susan, Very interesting about your experience. FYI, the Florida Rosarian, John A Starnes recommends that one adds a bag of plain cat litter to a 10 X 10 bed to help keep the soil moist. I found some at WM this last year for about $2. Jerry, that is interesting, too. I have plans to build large containers for several of my roses. (I garden in a VERY shady lot that is built on limestone rock landfill and toxic rubble landfill. Hence, very little decent soil that also has sun.) I thought I would try making the first one out of pressure treated, about 4 X 6 X 2, with 4x4s for the corners and with two of those being about 8 feet high for trellising. And, to save labor and materials and because I know that roots are amazing things, I thought I would leave the bottoms open. Maybe just a little anchoring at the tall posts. So, I had been thinking of a way to keep the soil in rather then seeping through all the cracks and I had thought of stapling fiberglass window screen to the inside sides only, not the bottom. (Those roots again, don't ya know.) I am also probably going to extend a low wall that goes over our ditch culvert with several pieces of concrete chunks and natural stones. This is so that I will have sort of an in ground planter for another rose. I had planned to lay a piece of the same screen over the inside of the wall before I back fill with soil. I don't think that either of these plans will be a permanent solution, but if I get 3-5 years out of each, I will be happy. Maybe by then I will have hit the lottery and I will be able to buy some real dirt. Lol... Karen, Maybe you could take one more panel, cut it in half and use that for the ends. I know that you would need SOME form of corner bracing. That is why I will probably use 4x4s in the corners of my "box". I see you are in 9. May I ask where? I am in Thonotosassa. Now, I thinking that a thick layer of that cat litter first might help the water stay a little longer. Been working really hard and haven't been able to check in much. Also, still awaiting that fall rose flush. There are buds all over the place, though. Veronica

My sister in law and I ended up stopping there and I really liked the guy. I would go back again as when I stopped I didn't buy. We rent right now and when we move everything comes with; I don't want to dig more than we already have. He had a decent amount of hostas there but yes it was different than what I was expecting. Hostalisa, I live near Wausau. I didn't get to experience Fox Fire but heard a lot about it. I'm always on the lookout for new places to go. Once we buy a house then I can do more buying. I did buy a Sagae earlier in the summer and it's taking right off. I did get a nice chunk though. Liz