What an amazing show! (And your garden looks great also.)

There are two gardens near me with banana trees, which always surprise me. I like the "spike monster" the best I think. I would have to do some serious soil amending to grow most of the cold hardy yuccas and agaves here, but they sure are interesting.

I'm looking forward to seeing how your garden develops, thanks for sharing the slide show.

Kent

I just moved to Herndon from NY a year ago, and it never ceases to amaze me the type of tropical vegetation my neighbors have going in their yards! I'm curious though, do you find your tropical garden more active in spring or summer? Also, I noticed one of the palms growing awfully close to your house, are their roots not-invasive enough to hurt your foundation? I keep finding yellow poplar trees and oaks growing next to my house and it worries me that it'll affect the foundation.

Hollyberri:

Thanks for the kudos and no, palm trees do not have invasive or strong enough roots to hurt your foundation. Hardwood trees on the other hand can be dangerous to the foundation in some cases. I find the garden looks best in the summer and early fall, but this year is the first year so it is hard to gauge.