Welcome Ming. Yes, moving to Tucson from the NW will be a garden shocker for you. That said, if you are going to be living downtown near the university, I'd suggest looking for a house with a walled yard, mature trees, and patio coverings. These all help to protect plants from the blazing sun and sometimes fierce winds and will make your gardening experience less frustrating. The reason you see so many sparse, flat yards around here is because it requires a bit more time and effort to keep things alive and many people aren't into that. Regarding tomatoes... You can keep a tomato plant alive year round in Tucson if you protect it from the sun in the summer and the frost in winter. I had a cherry tomato plant on my patio last year that I planted in October and it bore fruit all winter long and up until April of this year. During very hot days (over 100 degrees), the flowers will not set fruit, but if you just keep it alive until September, it will start to bear fruit again when the days cool down. I live west of Tucson on acreage and grow my tomatoes in a garden hutte that protects them from bugs, quail, rabbits, and other creatures. This year I've had great success with a Roma and husky cherry, less success with golden jubilee. There are a few varieties of tomatoes sold by Native Seed Search here in Tucson that are especially suited for this area. I planted a few seeds of the Punta Banda a month ago and the little plants are doing great. We'll have to wait and see what they produce in the Fall. You can see pics of my enclosed garden at the link below. For landscaping ideas... check the gallery section of this forum... several people have posted pics of their beautifully landscaped yards. Good luck! Di Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Hutte

Here is another option - - if you have the space. I have not tried it myself, but I have heard it from others. If you have an area that will be fixed later or even a concrete pad that you can leave blocked for the time you need, dump a load of top soil on that area, then dig and transport the daylilies to it, set them on it and cover the roots with more top soil. You can use planter mix or any kind of dirt or even mulch. Keep them moist until you are ready to plant them where you want them. You can then use the remaining soil to mix into other beds, etc. Again, it would be best if you had a place with afternoon shade since you will be disturbing the root systems. I remember seeing pictures of someone doing this on their driveway. They did not have a garage, so they just parked a little farther back. I'm sure they had to pressure wash their driveway after they were done! Larry

Mulberry & Emma & Tiger, thanks for the responses! I didn't have a spot for my house plants outside for the last 2 years & we just moved to a new house with a lovely covered eastern front porch & a covered southern carport area. I'm excited to move them out. The years before we lived at our last house, I always put them out on our covered front porch & they always did really well. I just repotted my collection & they're enjoying some wind & sun (not direct sun!) underneath my carport. I'll be bringing them in tonight, & probably putting them back out again permanently on next Thursday after our (dare I say?) last cold snap. I'm attempting now to build my own moss-covered pole support for my monstera that has gotten very unruly in its growing (I had no idea that it needed support, my fault!) so that it will have something to climb on with its aerial roots this summer. I'm sure that they're all going to just explode with new growth once they get outside into the brighter light & warmth. I agree, Tiger, this spring has been very frustrating. Even for someone who only has planted flower seeds. I'm actually a smidgen relieved that I didn't go crazy with all the space in our new yard & plant a veggie garden. I'd be beside myself with stress & aggravation with this crazy weather. We were 85 degrees one day & 30 degrees the next night. :-/ One thing about Oklahoma weather, there is never a dull moment, is there? LOL.

Congrats! You must be very patient to be able to wait that long for your house to be done! I'm going nuts and it's only been 7.5 months! Take lots of pics when the cabinets arrive! Patti