In 7b, Iris reticulata will also have bloomed and died back. They are some of the earliest of the spring bloomers. It looks like Dutch iris, Iris x hollandica, which looks similar in flower structure to reticulata but is taller and blooms later in the spring.

Hostared...Thanks for the ID. I looked up Lysimachia Ciliata and it is the purple leaf variety - the invasive Loosestrife. The nice thing is that it blooms for a long time, but is definitely invasive. The second one is definitely a weed and it was there last year, but I had pulled them all and thought they were "history." I was wrong and now they have taken over alot of space in one garden. There is no scent to the leaves. Guess it's time to get out and dig. Thanks for ID's. Duluthinbloom - I checked on White Campion, and the flowers are too tiny on my plant/weeds.

It seems far easier just to spread seed. With basil, after frost, I clear a place for basil, then plant a little seed (not the whole pack). Two weeks later, I start some more next to the first spot. Two weeks later, some more - and so on through the summer. I may only buy a pack or two of seeds (though several kinds, like sweet, purple, lemon, etc.), but I continue to plant it. When I can no longer keep it under control from flowering and going to seed, I pull it up. This is not a perennial, saving cuttings is not the point. Even in a climate where it is warm all year, it will force itself to go to seed and then die. Seeds of basil are far too easy to bother with trying to keep cuttings alive through the winter. As well, toward the end of season, every branch and stem is forcing up flower heads, not the best condition for viable cuttings.

They won't be ready for getting by on natural rainfall until after at least the first fall after planting. Mulch shades the soil and makes it easier to keep the root balls moist until the plants root out well. At this time of the year there will be minimal root growth until after the tops stop growing in fall. The basic common schedule for hardy woody plants in general is Spring: new roots are made but do not grow very far Summer: minimal root growth Fall: existing roots extend considerably (60% of annual total) Winter: little, if any root growth The reason for the concentration of root elongation in fall after the tops have stopped growing (this physiological fall can be as early as July, where conditions do not support active top growth later into the season) is that the rest of the time the plant's energy budget is either directed toward foliage production, flowering or fruiting - or the plant is hibernating.