I like the garden scene at the end of "You've Got Mail." Just amazing. I also like "The Secret Garden" movies, since they make a big deal out of the flowers. And if you like to see 70s interiors, you should check out old "Columbo" episodes. To die for. There was an animated movie that came out around the early 70s, which featured a home with a garden, and there was a lady of the house, and I think there was a letter that featured in the plot. Does anyone have any idea what it might have been? I think there were insect characters too. I wish I could remember better.

Ehann, I was afraid someone would say that! But I think Ann is offering some encouragement. Believe me, there is plenty of sun and heat there even in summer from at least noon til 7PM. The trees have almost no overhang on the south side. It all goes to the north with a huge horizontal limb from which we hung a porch swing. This photo is from a couple of years ago - before roses. I'm wondering if it isn't needing a little relief from the sun and that's why it's growing to the north. I once laid a thermometer in the grass in Orlando when air temp was say 93. The thermometer read 130. I know we're not the Arizona desert, but our sun will fry you. It seems like it must be reaching for the cool shade that's only 93. I was shocked to see all that growth to the back today since I hadn't walked back there lately. To look at it from the front, it looks like no growth at all. Now I have a question about leaflessness (a big problem with my roses). What's the deal here? Summer dormancy? Should I be dumping large quantities of fertilizer (milorganite, RoseTone) on this bush? When I dug this garden (and I can truly claim ignorance at the time. I just didn't know this was a no-no, and now I have no place else to put this rose), the finer roots of these trees just filled the ground, and I'm sure they're back sucking up everything that comes their way. Like I said, I'm using MiracleGro now. BTW, if the bush has no leaves will the canes absorb the MG? OK, so I gather that this shape and growth is alright at this point. And I'll just stand back and watch the show. I'll keep you posted, Ann. I was told this rose could be 10x10 on fort - after I bought it, naturally. I think I feel better about it. Thanks a lot, Ann. Sherry

Just wanted to address the picture (my pics) issue really quickly. I have often been accused of over-sharing on the internet. I live on a corner lot, so anyone who frequents this forum could probably drive by and recognize my garden. If a pedophile is lurking here, they could see my kids and perhaps figure out where I live. That does concern me somewhat, but I watch my kids like a hawk, and I think that a true pedophile has many more extensive and disgusting sources of phtos than my baby butt garden pics. I can't help but share pics of my garden and my kids, they are my biggest sources of pride and I just love to share. I know I am naive but I feel in my heart that most if not all gardeners are good folks. I trust this forum and I feel safe here. As for my grow list: I am going to try to grow Nematode Resistant plants when possible. I am scaling back this year as far as varieties for this reason. I am currently on a seed hunt for: Pole Beans: Poamoho or Alabama No 1 Bush Beans Monoa Wonder or Harvester Lima Bean Nemagreen Bell pepper charleston belle or carolina wonder Wando Peas My herbs, lettuces, spinach etc don't seem affected by RKN so I will again grow tons of them. I hope to grow around 20 Nematode resistant tomatoes (assorted). I cannot find any nematode resistant cucs, squash, or soybeans, so I am unsure what I will do for those or if I will just skip them this year. I'd also love to grow carrots and beets but last year both were a complete failure (tiny stunted crop). Jo

Technically, we are in the subtropics, not a temperate zone. And we really don't get four distinct seasons... more like two: a long summer, and then what I like to call yo-yo weather the rest of the year. Summer weather starts up mid-to-late-May and runs till mid-to-late-September. We may have hot weather in October, but it isn't the stultifying heat of summer. We do get freezes each year; some years we get snow, but it is flat here in the coastal plain, so the danger of steep landscapes in snow isn't a worry here. Not-summer weather can range from upper-twenties (Fahrenheit) to temps in the seventies and eighties. It is rare for us to have freezing temps for more than a few hours, though, so the freeze-and-thaw cycle that can wreak havoc with areas in zones 6 & 7 aren't usually a problem here. We've had two freeze warnings in recent weeks, but still no freezes. I know, because I still have many coleus plants in the yard, and though they look pretty tatty at this point, they are still alive, and a few are still blooming and providing nectar to their biggest fans, the bees. That will end once we actually get temps below freezing. They will re-seed, though- I have little use for annuals that don't. Roses here don't actually need winter protection, but I have toyed with the idea of moving my two Hybrid Chinas to a colder part of the yard to see if that might encourage spring blooms, but it's hard to determine where those colder zones might be; the ground is quite flat, and we have trees providing wind protection throughout the yard. Last winter was unusually warm, so it remains to be seen if what passes for normal winter weather will provide sufficient winter chill for those two, and my other once-blooming roses. As for autumn color, there are a few Japanese Maples in the neighborhood, that look quite pretty with their yellow leaves. We don't have a hickory, but our pecan tree (related to hickory) does a dismal job of providing any color-the leaves turn brown and fall right off. We do have a couple of gumball trees (Liquidambar styraciflua) in the wilder area beyond the back fence, and they have yellow leaves in fall and early winter. I know folks like to complain about the spiky seeds, but they are such a benefit to wildlife, and the seedballs are not much of a nuisance out where our trees are. Also in the back area there are some wild grapes, at least two types of Smilax, Virginia Creeper and Peppervine that provide fruit in the fall and winter. I do try to keep those plants from seeding in the yard itself. In the same area, there are a few invasives that I try to do battle with despite lack of easy access: privet (we call it disgustrum), Japanese honeysuckle and Russian olive. These plants may be better-behaved elsewhere, but are not wanted here. Virginia