A friend grows mahonia very successfully in Moorestown, but I'm not sure what kind, and currently she's out of town. She's on the border of 6b and 7a, so her climate can't be that different.

Last Wednesday, the NYT addresed Mahonia in its gardening Q&A section:

"Q. Can you suggest a broadleaf evergreen to plant for an informal hedge? Something besides rhododendrons, please. We already have lots of those.

A. If your place is rhododendron-friendly, with partial shade and moist, acid soil, you should do well with mahonias. Their intricately cut spiny leaves stay on the plants year-round. Big clusters of yellow flowers, highly fragrant in some varieties, appear in very early spring. Drooping clumps of beautiful berries follow, slowly turning from green to turquoise to deep blue or near black.

Mahonia aquifolium, Oregon grape holly or holly grape, is probably the most widely adaptable shrub species, hardy at least to Zone 6. The berries are edible, but grape, in this case, refers to looks not taste. Birds adore the sour seedy fruit, so you might as well leave it for them.

As long as grape hollies are sheltered from drying winds and winter sun, they can grow to six or eight feet tall and about five feet wide. Shape tends to be more open than bushy, making "informal" a good description of any grape holly hedge. If you live in Zone 7 or warmer, you can also choose mahonias with larger or earlier flowers, on taller or shorter plants. Several of those types are offered by Heronswood Nursery, (360) 297-4172 or www.heronswood.com. M. aquifolium is sold by Wayside Gardens, www.waysidegardens.com or (800) 213-0379."

Thank you, Mprats. I have 3. M. beali, M.'Winter Sun' and M. repens. All new. I was only concerned with the creeping sort because of it's northern native sites. There is a creeping dogwood, Cornus of some sort,(bunchberry) that I have seen in Maine but I know it would not do too well here and I thought M. repens might have the same problem. I have planted it in a bright but shady place in the woods and hope it will live and spread. Most gardeners concern themselves with northern limits of hardiness, but I see that some plants cannot be grown in the Southern states.

I planted a mahonia aquifolium here in Pitman. It did too well. I wound up pulling it out because it was taking over the bed where I had it. I still have lots of "suckers" coming up within 10 feet of where it was! Want any? Guy