Wow! So many great veggies are being planted this year! I only have a tiny husky tomato plant that I bought from HD, this is my first go at veggie(don't have much space) so hopefully I'll have some good tomatoes soon! Dcat, great idea using those empty buckets you had on hand. I really need to think about what I have that I can utilize. :) Wow chinamon! Those have grown quite a bit! I've been thinking about using hydroton but not sure if I should. Seeing your plants and how well they have done makes me think I should go get some now! haha :) When you began your plants, did you put the seed in the hydroton and wait for it to germinate? Could you explain the process either in this post or in a private message. I've been hesitant because I don't want to loose my plants by novice mistakes. Haha Josh, its a shame about the garlic and your friends house cleaner threw it away. Some people see dirt and thinks its bad haha...on the contrary its super fresh! ;) Desert, a vineyard in containers!? Great idea! I can't wait to see how it does. Are you doing grapes? Ashley :)

Hi MIchelle! (Sorry to be so slow in responding, but I just saw this) I'd love your Liatris punctata, Oenothera pallida, and Hibiscus moscheutos. If you find enough from my list that you'd like..I wouldn't mind double trades of all 3 species :-) Please email me directly at Thosedarnsqurls@aol.com

Growing them in a container is fine, but I don't think you will find any other California native evergreen plant that can go all summer/fall in the same container without some summer watering. Perhaps best to combine with Clarkia amoena to extend the season abit into summer, and then when this goes, move the pot into a spot where you won't be tempted to water it, and replace with another pot of other California natives like Diplacus or Zauschneria for summer into fall color, or some of the perennial grasses.

The "Florida Prince" variety of peach tree sets fruit, but my tree is still so small that the chickens jump up and eat all the fruit - usually the day before I want to pick it. It does go completely dormant and looks dead for about a month during the winter, so don't take it out while it is "dead". ( I almost did! ) One of my neighbors in the next camp over has a red apple tree that fruits every year. He doesn't know what type it is, but he gave me a seedling so in several years, we will know if it breeds true or not. I had several horseradish plants in a pot that just languished and did nothing for a year. I wanted to put something else in the pot and stuck the horseradish in the ground where it is now doing well. The asparagus is growing well, but it doesn't seem to want to make spears at the same time. If you want to eat one or two spears a week, then plant asparagus. I suppose I could freeze the spears, but now I just use the asparagus greens in my cut flower arrangements. Roses love it here, but the beetles eat the leaves terribly. I put Sevin dust in a shaker can and dust the roses whenever there's more holes than leaves. Same with the grapes. Iris (flags) don't seem to do well at all. I've tried wisteria and clemantis, but haven't gotten any to survive long enough to find out where they want to grow. Nasturiums thriving and reseeding all over the place. Green beans grow well but will die off after one "season" of harvest. Lima beans will last for several years of harvest. Indeterminate small fruited tomatoes (cherry, Roma, etc.) do real well and last for several seasons. Collard greens grow exceptionally well and will last for several years. Also other assorted greens do well. Sometimes the small green caterpillars attack the leaves, but the plant will usually survive.