I couldn't agree more, polygonum. It was a wonderful day.

After talking to you today I do know finding live mint is a biggie for you! Nice going! I, too have noticed the swap plants I've gotten over the last couple of years are starting to take off. I'm thankful to have such a nice group of folks share their garden treasures. I can't wait to get planting in the morning!

Bonnie, I'm so grateful to you and your hard working hubby for hosting again. The food and company were just wonderful. You have the perfect spot! I love your place. Thank you so much!

It was great to see the regulars again and meet some new folks. Enjoy your new plants, everybody!

Barb

We had a great time too! Thank you so much Bonnie and Terry for beingsuch wonderful hosts. Thank you too Bonnie for sharing an autumn joy sedum. Treebarb, I picked the small fern leaf like plant you brought an I've forgotten what you said it was. What I remember you saying is that it came from a start of Skybird's and it had a little frost damage. Could you let me know what the name is please if you see this?

Gardenarts,

It's Larkspur. It's kind of like an annual delphinium. It will reseed itself which is what I'm hoping it'll do. This is my first planting of it so I can't tell you much about it's characteristics. I hope it does well for you!

Barb

I add my thanks to Bonnie and Terry for hosting, I had a great time! Wonderful to visit with so many gardeners! And Terry, thanks for the tip on the shortcut back, found it easily and it certainly was better than going back to I-25...

I don't think I mentioned--those of you who got the peonies I brought in bags--most of those grew from bits of root that were left after transplanting a Mother's Choice peony. When you open the bag you'll see a stub of root. Just plant that horizontally so that only 1/2 inch or slightly less of the stem is below dirt, not up to the top of the white on the stem. They were mulched heavily so it made the planting marks deceiving! Plant them anywhere they'll get at least plenty of morning sun to full sun in free-draining soil and they should grow great.

Looking forward to the fall trade already!

After a little research I think I solved the mystery of #2(Lucinda's?) groundcover. Check out the picture and see if you agree! I appreciate you letting me join your group, and I hope to see you all again in the future - maybe next years swap!
Botanical Name: Campanula poscharskyana
Common Name: Serbian Bellflower
Family: Campanulaceae (Lobeliaceae)
Classification: Ground Cover / Perennial
Description: Spreading, mounding, leaf clump to 8 in. high
Flower: Star shaped 1/2-1 in. wide blooms in blue lilac. Spring to summer
Ecology: Full Sun in cooler climates only, Partial Shade in others.
Water: Moderate to regular water
Zones: 1-12, 14-24

Welcome to the forum Shirley!

Looks right to me. I put mine in the front flowerbed and it should like it there. Hopefully all my fun finds from the swap will love it here.

Yep, leaves look right and the description sounds spot on. I put mine in a new bed I'd created for the stuff I wintersowed this year. So far I only have sprouts in around 1/3 of the containers but I'm still hoping! I planted out all of my spring swap goodies except the tomatoes and pepper, those will go in the ground next weekend if the weather cooperates, possibly with some of the soda bottle wall o' waters I saw at Bonnie's! I think that was a brilliant idea......Welcome to the forum, Shirley!

Thank you Bonnie and Terry for allowing us to take over your home. Melinda and I both had a great time and took home some great plants. Thank you to everyone for sharing. I have gotten almost everything in the ground. I plan on spending the next two days finishing up!

My strawberry patch is revitalized now with the new plants, and the weeds are gone! My husband built me a wood and chicken wire cage to keep the birds and squirrels out. I'm very excited. Maybe after years of trying and a couple replantings, I will finally get some berries!

A few of you may have read on an older thread that my husband and I are building a rustic pergola. I just wanted to say that we have gotten 8 posts cemented into the ground, and are moving on with the daydreams of what it will be. When we get further than dreaming, I will post some pics. I would love to see pictures of everyone's gardens once they start taking off. Now that it's a little easier to post pics here, don't be shy!

Happy gardening!
~Cat

Okay, I'm a little late posting my thanks, but that's because I've been BUSY! And to add insult to injury, I haven't planted a single thing that I brought home from the swap... Anyone want to come and have a planting party at my house sometime? ;-)

We're getting ready to sell our house, and since I do an all-container garden anyway, we'll be able to bring our garden with us... but I still have to get it planted. I can't believe how late it's getting, and I am still spending all my time trying to track down contractors to work on the house and getting things packed to go into storage so we can stage the house for viewing. Work has blown up, too, so it's literally been "no rest for the weary" since before the swap for this kid.

Anyway, back to the thanks! Bonnie and Terry, ALWAYS a lovely time, and a lovely setting, too!

Chris wanted to send a special thanks and let you guys in on what we did with the rhubarb that Terry gave him. We chopped it into small bits, and then I put it in a pan and sprinkled a little sugar on it to sweat out some of the juice. Then I put it on low, added a little water to keep the sugar from burning, and cooked it to a pulp, then added some chopped strawberries, then cooked a bit more. About 1 1/2-2 cups of chopped rhubarb, 1 quart of strawberries, and only a few tablespoons (maybe? didn't measure, but it really wasn't that much) of sugar, and man-oh-man, was that the hit when we served it over french toast casserole with lightly sweetened creme fraiche for Mother's Day brunch. So, again, THANK YOU! We have a new favorite!