My Maypops (Passiflora incarnata) never show up before the end of June and by now already have buds forming. I"ve had them for 5+ years and can tell you they are pretty permanent in the garden (just try and remove them) Ken.... You've got to come by sometime. You can see the calla lily, the pomegranites, the passionflowers, the pineapple lily, figs and an acuba that looks way too tropical> Nothing I've just mentioned has been in the ground for less than 3 years, either. Chills

I have a soft spot for Yazoo Elsie Hintson. She/it was one of the very first extra large daylilies I collected. I can remember taking a picture of my hubs holding a quarter up against a bloom to show just how large it was...and then racing inside to post it here on gardenweb, lol. *fond memories* I'm rescuing YEH from the backyard because those large blooms still did their thing this year, even when trying to grow amongst the monster weeds and running dogs. I never tire of looking at your Catastrophe Waitress, so pretty. It also makes me laugh a bit because I continually picture a table full of people receiving mixed up meals or worse yet, plates sliding off a huge tray to disaster. Of course, that's kind of sick humor on my part, lol...because neither one is particularly funny if it actually happens. Need I say more about HAI? Ha. Ruby Lipstick continues to appeal to me but I refuse to hunt for it until I determine if there will actually be a space here. Besides I console myself with the thought that it would not be as beautiful here where so many things I see that look white to me are actually more yellowish. Darn orange clay. And, all the others are looking mighty fine, too. Yay for cool weather!

Kaylee: I will concur with the response so far and again emphasize that (1) it will be very helpful to note what zone you're gardening in; (2) I will second the suggestion to obtain and/or read the Michigan Gardener's Guide; (3) contact the folks at MSU or your local county extension service; and (4) visit some of the public gardens within the state, such as the Dow Gardens in Midland, the Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids; and a few others. In addition to the books noted in one response, I would also highly recommend the reading and/or purchase of both "The Fragrant Year"by Helen van Pelt Wilson & Leonie Bell and "Green Thoughts: A Writer in the Garden" by Eleanor Perenyi. The former is a little dated, but still one of the best books on fragrant plants in the garden and it is the only book that I've found to date that sensibly discusses the making of both the dry and moist form of pot-pourri. The later book is a gardening treasure and should be in every gardener's library. The chapter on "Failure" in a real gem and is a must read. The former book, "The Fragrant Year" is, unfortunately, out of print, but copies in excellent condition can be found at either abe.com or alibris.com - both excellent sources for books; the later book, "Green Thoughts" is still available in paperback, but hardbound copies can be found at either or the bookseller sites previously noted. In addition to these sources, I would highly recommend that you make use of the "PlantFinder" section of one of the most beautiful gardens in the Midwest - the Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis, MO. The Meijer Garden pales in comparison! You can access their home web site at this address: http://www.mobot.org. and then search for their PlantFinder section. However, if you wish to have a direct link, I listed the PlantFinder link below. Once you arrive at this gem of a site, you can search by botanical names; by common names; you can search for plants in a particular zone and then for height, width, bloom time, foliage, suitable for butterflies, hummingbirds, etc. and so on and so forth. So that you and other reading this post will have an idea of what's there and what information can be obtain, I'll provide you with a few example below. One of the more interesting plants that I "discovered" while meandering through a rural, small, but exceptionally wonderful garden place north of Manistee was Geranium sanguineum 'Max Frei' What caught my eye was the color of the fall foliage on this plant. During my late spring through mid summers to this unique garden center, my eye's didn't note much of anything - mostly because, I suspect that the flower wasn't in bloom during my visits and/or had been deadheaded to produce additional bloom. Since this Geranium is hardy throughout all of Michigan, I decided to add it to our garden. Of course, this prompted a search for other varieties that had interesting fall colors and I found another variety and also added it to our garden. So for you and others reading this post, here's the link to Max Frei http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=B466 And here is the link to the other Geranium that I found, which also had a nice fall color, but is only hard to zone 4. Geranium sanguineum 'Album' http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=C880 The unique features of the "PlantFinder" section of the Missouri Botanical Garden came to fore a few weekends ago when Sue and I stayed at one of the most wonderful B & B we've "discovered" not to far from our neck of the woods. It the "Hoods in the Woods" B & B in the general Gaylord, MI area. Here's the link for those so interested. http://www.hoodsinthewoods.com/ In our visit/stay with this most interesting couple, we found out that they were originally from the State of Ohio where they grew a variety of roses and have been rather disappointed in not being able to grow roses in their neck of the woods due to the fact that they are essentially in zone 3/4 - confirm by the "fact" that when we arrived they still have a nice pile of snow that was about 4/5 or more feet tall and the lake/large pond on which they reside was still largely frozen over with only the edges having open water. So I introduced Jan to the PlantFinder section at the Missouri Botanical Garden, bookmarked it for her and briefly showed her how to search for plants suitable for a zone 3 area. She was amazed at what was available. Well, I do hope that this small dissertation is most useful in your gardening endeavors. Best wishes! Bill & Sue Here is a link that might be useful: PlantFinder Search page at the MBO

Yes, those are the seeds. Most lily seeds are pretty much like that. You might try using tweezers to hold each seed up to the light. If you see a little line in them they are probably fertile. If they are really thin and papery and you don't see the line (the line is actually the embryo), they are most likely chaff but plant them anyway just in case they might be good.