silly,
It is still too soon for me to see most of your list so I assume the same would be true for you as well. Keep in mind Platycodon - Balloon Flower comes up very late, it will look like little spears of asparagus poking up through the ground. The poem below might offer you a few excuses...ahh...reasons your plants might die.

Why Did My Plant Die?
Geoffrey B. Charlesworth

You walked too close. You trod on it.
You dropped a piece of sod on it.
You hoed it down. You weeded it.
You planted it the wrong way up.
You grew it in a yogurt cup
But you forgot to make a hole;
The soggy compost took its toll.
September storm. November drought.
It heaved in March, the roots popped out.
You watered it with herbicide.
You scattered bonemeal far and wide.
Attracting local omnivores,
Who ate your plant and stayed for more.
You left it baking in the sun
While you departed at a run
To find a spade, perhaps a trowel,
Meanwhile the plant threw in the towel.
You planted it with crown too high;
The soil washed off, that explains why.
Too high pH. It hated lime.
Alas it needs a gentler clime.
You left the root ball wrapped in plastic.
You broke the roots. TheyÂre not elastic.
You walked too close. You trod on it.
You dropped a piece of sod on it.
You splashed the plant with mower oil.
You should do something to your soil.
Too rich. Too poor. Such wretched tilth.
Your soil is clay. Your soil is filth.
Your plant was eaten by a slug.
The growing point contained a bug.
These aphids are controlled by ants,
Who milk the juice, it kills the plants.
In early spring your gardenÂs mud.
You walked around! ThatÂs not much good.
With heat and light you hurried it.
You worried it. You buried it.
The poor plant missed the mountain air:
No heat, no summer muggs up there.
You overfed it 10-10-10.
Forgot to water it again.
You hit it sharply with the hose.
You used a can without a rose.
Perhaps you sprinkled from above.
You should have talked to it with love.
The nursery mailed it without roots.
You killed it with those gardening boots.
You walked too close. You trod on it.
You dropped a piece of sod on it

Excellent poem!! Thank you runktrun and for your input. I did see a pic that confirmed it is my Bleeding heart that is sprouting - that is good news.
I'm glad to know it is still too early for the rest, I would hate to lose all of them.

Just wanted to agree that the bleeding heart should be peeping out -- mine are. I haven't poked around thoroughly but would be surprised to see the others showing their faces quite yet. So you're probably in great shape --- I'm always surprised at how tough some of these plants are, and one of the joys of gardening with perennials is watching them awake from their winter slumber year after year -- like a faithful friend, they come back even if you hurt their feelings (or their roots!) the year before.

Usually ;)

(And for what it's worth, my experience with lily of the valley is that it is almost impossible to kill it off ... more likely, you'll be reeling in those runners from all kinds of places in a few years because it will take over your beds!)

Loved the poem!

Great poem!

Ohsillyme, my euro ginger is pretty ratty-looking, but it's very nearly evergreen here. If the old leaves are gone, and the plants are still alive, look for new leaves in a bright, glossy green; small and arrow shaped - they come out folded in half. It can be tricky to get this plant established, but once it's happy it's extremely tough.

Some of my BES is up - seedlings everywhere, a weedy variety. If you want a couple hundred of them, let me know.

If you planted any of these in the late summer or fall, they may emerge a couple of weeks later than established perennials. If you stand in front of a plant that is late, stare at it for ten minutes, click your heels together three times, and repeat the mantra of the "Little Engine That Could" "I think you can, I think you can, I think you can"

Wow - you all are so nice! :)
So,,,I clicked my heels three times while thinking "I Know you can! I know you can!"
And sure enough, on my hands and knees and almost touching my nose to the ground,
I can see evidence of the LOV, European ginger, and Astilbe!!
WooHoo!! Now only if I *owned* this place! ugh.
You really get attached to these plants, dont you?

I also see that my Echinacea made it! This will be its second season so I am Eager to see the blooms!!

I'm not seeing any signs of life on my butterfly weed - asclepias tuberosa - I thought they were toughies?

silly,
In general the later a perennial is to flower the later it is to wake up in the spring. It is still too early for Asclepias.

great! Thanks for that piece of info runktrun - I appreciate it!

Love that poem--am going to read it to my garden club. Thanks for taking the time to post it.

>You really get attached to these plants, dont you?

The beauty of it is that you recover really fast when you lose one (or a dozen) of them, unlike the loss of pets or friends and relatives. After about 30 seconds of mourning, you think ... Wow! An empty space! What can I plant here?