picture of parking strip - any add in ideas?

Heather sounds wonderful, it would smell so good. I'd like to see some low growing daisies, so cheerful!

Don, what kind of heather do you recommend? I have a bed at church I'd like to add heather to, the conditions sound similar!

Thank you Don - great minds think alike! I have several heather throughout the garden, but placed these guys in the strip calluna vulgar Dark Beauty - they are tiny (just planted) but so darn cute.

here's from the side - sorry for the bad pics, its really sunny right now and I shouldnt be snapping pics!

this is one just planted in the spring, it's really gotten larger (white flowers)

sorry for posting so many pictures ** but while I was out, I can't remember the name of this plant, I know it has "chocolate" in it, I put three next to my path, super cute and I love the current color - specially by the SmokeBush, otherwiseits evergreen.

**edited to say, Sorry - talking about the plant lower right, and now that I see the picture I think it's ' Winter Chocolate' ??

This message was edited Oct 5, 2007 1:29 PM

Don and Cathy, welcome. It's nice to see some new [um, er] faces here. :-)

I love heather and it does well here (dry summers, usually and wet winters). That's a good suggestion - inspired me to add a heather to my front parking "patch".

RTP - nice pictures and nice heather. You're getting some sun ?!? Oops, as I'm typing, I'm getting sun, too. Wonder how long it'll last. The clouds sure took their time burning off today. I think we're back to rain tomorrow.

I saw a couple of Strawberry Trees today while I was out running errands. So distinct with their red "strawberries", but I would never have known what they were if it hadn't been for you, RTP. They are a nice size and shape to complement the garden.

oh yeah ! How funny, I'm always the one to forget a plants name (or people); that one would be hard to forget !! I like when the leaves are pruned up the trunk a bit so you can see the red peeling bark.

We no longer have sun :( but it was shining for a few hours. I saw another cute little frog today while I was mowing, and alot of slugs, does sluggo hurt frogs ???

Good question. I love frogs. I'd hate to hurt them.

I'm also seeing lots of our native banana slugs out now. Earlier in the summer all I see are the European guys, that eat both living and dead stuff. Call me crazy, but I feel like I need to protect th banana slugs.

I thought I'd perfected the "grab a slug by the back so you don't get gooey technique", but the banana slugs seem gooey all over. Their goo is easier to get off, though. When I rub it back and forth between my fingers, add a little dirt, it forms a little round mass that I can generally wipe off.

Let me know if you find out about Sluggo and frogs.

RTP: Found this on "the other" site about Sluggo and slugs and other bugs:

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/okgard/msg0512242717034.html

thank you Katie .... you know I'm not finding anything saying Sluggo is "positively safe" around aquatic life...the package does say to keep it away from ponds and such.... We just started getting these little green frogs after I started a small water container pond - so I'd rather be safe than sorry. I haven't seen any banana slugs in our yard, just when we go walking in the woods. We have those generic grey/brown ones.

Well, I know the frogs are eating bugs (and maybe slugs) so I will just keep my scissors handy to cut the slugs in two, you are awesome saying you roll up the slime in your fingers -lol I can't touch them unless I have gloves on, just too slimey. My son picks them up and puts them in the sewer. He was the first one to find a frog, it was sitting on our hose, later it hopped on his arm and quickly jumped off. My oldest daughter told him not to touch, as the oils from our skin can really hurt the frog.

Bless your kids - what little naturalists.

Yes, I'm kinda weird about all creatures. I have my phobias, but slugs (other than the inconvenience of the gooeyness) don't appear to bother me. I put all but the banana slugs in with the dog poop when I clean it up weekly. Mid-week, I put them in a container and toss it over the fence onto the neighbor's back 40. Intersting about frogs eating slugs - I hadn't heard that. It's a good thing.

You know, having had so many nieces and nephews and now great-nieces and nephews, and, of course, living with all these animals, all sorts of things don't bother me anymore. I have to check myself once in awhile to make sure I'm not grossing anybody else out. LOL

nah, I'm not grossed out at all - just wish I could do the same, I'm impressed! and can I ask why the banana slugs go in with the dog poop?

I don't know if the frogs eat the slugs, I was just hoping - lol, they probably stick to the little bugs. I'm happy to share my yard with the little tree frogs, tho - they are darlings.

Cathy:
I have about 10 varieties planted in groups of three, but the only ones I remember offhand are Erica Springwood White (low,white blossoms), Calluna Blazeaway (lavender blossoms, gold leaves), and Erica Rosabella (magenta blossoms). It's fun to mix and match, but be careful not to put very low ones and high varieties side by side.

From sidewalk/parking strip to Ceanothus to Slugs - fun read.
Yes Ceanothus need full sun. Question: do we really have full sun here in the PNW, west of the cascades? =:0) Sometimes i wonder...

Sluggo - i have had great results with this, but tend to err on the side of caution, so i use it sparingly - mostly in the spring.
I have MANY frogs. Don't know if using this has hurt them, and hoping it hasn't. I was always more concerned with my dogs, but since they both seem to be more interested in whatever i eat...

Salamanders eat slugs and other bugs and they lay eggs in ponds in November. They're really sensitive to all the systemic stuff too, I think. They live in the soil most of the time.

Kayte - lol at your dogs! Since we're just starting a little frog population here, I think I'll skip the Sluggo this year, I'll probably regret it come Spring - I can always send the 3 kids out with their safety scissors!

Don, your heathers sound beautiful, I'm going to look up the ones you listed.

Susy - do you have salamanders lurking around? That would be so cool.

RTP, I know they're around, but I don't think I have any. I found two in a plant I bought at the WSU plant sale this spring but I don't know what happened to them. I hope they're still here and enjoying slugs, but I don't know if my yard is moist enough for them to have survived. They were really cute, too.

Loen Nursery is having a big sale, with their wholesale area open to the public as well, it's only 10 minutes from here - I may have to check it out today.

Ooohhh......sale, wholesale area open to public too....ooohhhh.....

No, I won't do it! If I'm seriously considering driving all the way to North Redmond to go to a plant swap to get rid of extras, the last thing I should do is go to a big plant sale.....

but oohh......if you go, you'll have to tell us all about it!

ha ha ha Susybell !!! You are funny, I am trying to work this in today, or tomorrow for sure!

Susy - sounds like me!
the never-ending battle between the practical & the dreamer....

ok, I went LOEN NURSERY IS HUGE-ANTIC! lol seriously, it's like drive around nursery. I ran out of time, but will try to visit tomorrow. I took some pictures, I'll post later - I could've spent all day walking around. There was a gorgeous coral bark jm that caught my eye, but still $95. (I usually buy little plants, easier on the wallet and easier to dig)

They had some gorgeous echinacea that I would like to put in my parking strip for $5 each, so I'll prob pick up some. Big Sky Summer Sky I think was the name.

Aaaagh!
lalalalalalalala (hands over ears) I can't hear you....... oh,wait, that won't work......;)

Summer Sky for $5 is a fabulous price-the best I've seen locally is $12.

Katye, lol, oh yeah, constant battle here...even worse when terrible people [ ;) ] tell you about great prices on plants you're trying to forget you really wanted to add...

RTP - Somebody said on the frog site that they do eat slugs. Wonder if that's all frogs and all slugs or what. Maybe I misspoke - I'm too impatient to go look at what I originally wrote (LOL) - I don't put the banana slugs in with the poop. I just put the European ones in there. Half the time they've already found it and are doing their thing, so I figure they don't mind. :-) I love frogs, too; always have been fascinated by them. When I was 5-ish, my big brother had his first job as a surveyor. He would always bring me home a frog in his lunchpail. What a sweetie. And in Alaska - don't have any idea what they do in the winter there.

I have seen one salamander-looking thing since I moved here 4 years ago. Probably the cats didn't do them any favors. And I've only seen one snake. Probably too many cats. Since I've kept them in, though, I've noticed that the rabbits are coming in under the fence. Argh. I really hate to see the dogs catch them, even though that's what the dogs do well. So much for the Disney version of living where I live.

I'd wait on the JM. If you're willing to start small, I'll bet you can get a better price. One nursery we have out here, Flower World has a JM section and has small maples that are reasonably priced. I love sneaking around there are looking for deals. Its plant selection is very nice and they generally are lower priced than the more well-known nurseries. Or they used to be. I'm on restriction from nursery visitation until I get a job. Thank goodness for plant exchanges.

Flower World does still exist! I'd wondered if it was still around. I used to drive out there for annuals before I moved down here.

You know, I used to go years ago when it was still a well-kept secret. I went back there last summer and was shocked. It's expanded a bunch. They've created a big park in front - very fancy. You might want to make a plan to visit there while you're up.

That having been said: My place isn't fancy and I have a lot of dogs and cats and the disorganization and hair that goes with them, but I'd love to have you stay here if you're planning to stay overnight when you come up for the Green Elephant Swap. You can decide any time; just keep it open as an option. D-mail me if you want my phone number. My address is in the exchange.

Hi Kathy,
Wow, how sweet of you to offer to let me stay with you! Thank you for offering! I'm not too hung up about fur on things-I can't bear to live without the fur generators, myself! I don't know how my time is going to work out yet, but I'll definitely keep this in mind as I work on the details.

fur on things, lol !! and a terrible person has convinced me that $5 is too great a price to not take advantage of .

You are right on about the coral bark, I really don't mind putting in a baby.

Thanks for the frog info - frog in the lunchpail is so darn cute. I've never had a rabbit in the yard, but we do have ALOT of skunks around here, I saw 3 yesterday - not in the yard thank goodness. * I actually think they're cute.

Well we are off to watch some of the Portland Marathon this am - my dh is running in the NYC marathon in a month. The kids are excited to go to the Big Apple.

Skunks in the yard. My goodness. They are cute, but well, you know . . . I've never seen a skunk around here.

Have fun at the marathon. And good luck to your DH. What a challenge. He must be getting psyched.

"On restriction from nurseries until I get a job"... LOL.. oh ya! I love it. My husband asked me if I would like to go pick out something special at the nursery yesterday. I looked at him like he was CRAZY. He said "well, I know you love your garden and I figured something for the garden is how we should celebrate you LPC licensure". I laughed, "honey, YOU should not let me NEAR a nursery, a craft store, a fabric store or anywhere else right now." We did go... we did shop... I have not made up my mind yet what ONE THING I want!!! The trouble is, I do the bills, and he is WAY more generous with me than what I know we can afford. Therefore, it falls to me to rein me in... *sigh*.

reining oneself in...lol - doesn't work for me!
same bill situation here: My upcoming nursury adventure was cut short by a $2000 auto repair bill. I'd rather plant the car...

AAAAAAAaccccccccckkkkkkkk $2,000!!! Oh man....

The trouble is my husband loves me and likes to spoil me. He won't spend money on himself but has NO trouble telling me to get something he thinks I WANT and don't need!! Trust me, for our financial well being I have to rein myself in! But what a trouble to have, huh? A husband who is sweet and generous.

My response exactly.

So I got over it about an hour later. Time to move on. The next thing I know, I got hit by the "gotta rearrange-itis", and I'm not speaking about furniture!
Rocks, shrubs, grasses (&#%%@*), perennials and a valiant attempt at dividing daylilies: all moved to finish areas that would have housed NEW plants.
Next year, I am going to start a rainy day fund for the purpose of nursery shopping. Can't afford to miss the fall sales.

Love the sweet and generous husband, but so frustrating to have to rein yourself in (ask me how I know :-)).

Katye, so sorry about the !?#?$ bill for the car. I'm thinking that maybe you should spend the plant money on a greenhouse and then you can trade for starts and such. Whaddya think?

Well Katye maybe the move-itis was in response to the car stress. It certainly was a healthier and more financially response way to handle it than "retail therapy!"

This message was edited Oct 7, 2007 11:27 AM

Ditto!!

RTP, Lol, I'm good at that kind of terrible....;)

Pat, Congratulations on your license! And you are lucky about the sweet and generous hubby. Maybe you can find a way he can spoil you for cheap, lol-that way he gets to feel good about treating you special and you can still buy groceries....

I am so there about the greenhouse, but, then I would just want to fill that up.
Oh well, the official gardeners' end-of-the-season mantra: "there's always next year".

I knew it was going to rain today, I had been warned. But i attacked the Wisteria anyway, knowing full well that once I committed to doing it, the rain would arrive. Yes - in buckets!
But I did make a dent in it, which is better than no dent at all. My poor apple trees were getting sucked into the Wisteria Vortex, so they were pruned, too.

Move-itis is what I do when I go full-tilt on getting something accomplished. And it is fabulously therapeutic, especially if i finish. The rain just gets in my way, though. Rain is ok to be in if its light, but this downpour type doesn't work for me. I do not like wearing raingear in order to garden, & I sure don't like working the soil when it's this wet.
Ok - I have finished complaining, and can get down to some serious planning for things remaining like where the heck am I going to plant the Bulbs???
And - how much can I divide for the green elephant swap?