i wish my wife would show an interest in the garden period. i have so much fun all things plant related especially roses. i don`t buy her flowers; i just planted her a whole rose garden instead;) there is nothing like sitting back on a warm summer afternoon with a glass of terrific local wine, watching the birds and smelling the roses wafting in the breeze- somehow, she doesn`t get it... however, when company comes over, she will stop at nothing making sure the backyard is spotless and will even go as far as scrubbing the patio and making sure there are no traces of fallen petals , etc. if she ever saw the light it would thrill me to no end.

As I newbie I have no success stories but I can share what I have learned thus far.. 1. Newspaper is the best quick fix for a bed overgrown with weeds that is so far from the house that the notion of planting anything there is so far off the too do list that typing it onto my to do list hasn't reached the end of my fingers - not to mention the fact that is was an area I thought, for two years, was my neighbor's neglected mess! Much to my mortification it was really my mess - newspaper, mulch, forcythia and stella dora - beautiful, weedless, in a morning. And it still looks good nearly a year later! 2. I love sprouts! Period! They are growing!! I hope they live but right now I have my instant gratification. I seed green in those jugs! 3. A nice glass of wine, viewing my potential plants, is a lovely thing on a warm spring day. I know I look silly sitting with my feet up admiring a bunch of milk jugs but hey... I am over 30... well over 40.. who do I need to impress but myself! 4. I am so ready for planting! I bought 6 flats of flowers last weekend - I thought I wouldn't be buying any more 5. My design skills improve when I "pretend" to read a book while drinking a glass of wine and observing my gardens! With every glass of wine I have better and better plans! :) What I wish I'd learned.. 1. Why do I keep buying, buying, buying plants and seeds?! Why do they call my anem?? "Christy, Christy, Christy, we need you... you need us.... buy, buy , buy forget your husband... he loves you and doesn't really care if you keep buying!" Well... I am not so sure about that - at least my house isn't full of zip lock mini green houses... 2. When will my husband quit rearranging / adding to my gardens? I love gardens but last fall I split and replanted a bunch of border plants to edge a garden perfectly... they are now in the middle of the new and improved garden - which melded my perfect red and white garden with my emerging purple and yellow garden - what to do with that? (I net a pond in the production so I will quit whining!) 3. When will I figure out how to keep track of what I have planted, what it looks like, how tall it is, is it perennial....???? I plant, go and forget... I hate that I do this but cannot quit! buy, plant, buy, plant, buy, plant it is an addiction! Christy

Mosquitoes. We live by a lake but it's very rare to have mosquitoes where I live. But occasionally we do and last night was the occasion. There was one buzzing around my ears while I was in our spare bedroom working. I about went nuts. I hate them. They love me. :-( Praying Mantis. I love finding mantis. I think they are fascinating. Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. These are not native to our area but I used to raise them when I had a rain forest setup for my Chinese Waterdragons. The hissers grow to 3" and are very cool guys. Jodi-

How could I forget "Da View". On the topographic map of my area, I am right under the "H" of The "Shingle Hills" AND officially my The plot is called the Shingle Hills WLMP (or something like that) with the state. I was out planting 4 Lbs of seed in a wash in the back. I need to get back there and cut a bunch of cedar and place over the seed before the birds go crazy over it, And before the rain comes and washes it all out. My grandparents had a bunch of names that all conflicted. I think the nearby Hamlet was Morestein(named by my great grandfather" but they would call the place that too. The land was call Brookstein but it was rarely called that even though that was written on the stone gate. Well we never drove in that way anyway. We came in the back way which always seemed like the front way to me.. Mostly we called it "The Farm", which it wasn't, or said we were going out to Malvern, which was a town 5 miles away.. They were not people who kept it simple.They also had the "Mountain House" in the Sandwich mountains of New Hampshire. I wonder how many "Mountain Houses there are in New Hampshire. Probably as many Lake Houses up there. I guess, I could google it and see how many hits I get. Da View in winter fog Da View in winter sun Camp, Enjoy your envelope. . You need more seeds like a hole in the head.....