Lee said:
@Francis
Love how nature just takes care of itself! Are you growing milkweed for the Monarchs?
Yes! I have a small patio with its own mini-ecosystem—spiders, lizards, mushrooms, you name it! Monarchs flock to the milkweed, and we get to watch them go through their whole life cycle, from tiny caterpillars to butterflies.
@Francis
Sounds like paradise on your patio 
Even better is what’s beyond the patio! There are these bushes with bright orange flowers that draw tons of bees and hummingbirds. The constant buzzing and chirping are so calming.
@Neo
Great job! That’s one plant I struggle to keep looking good.
Lee said:
@Neo
Great job! That’s one plant I struggle to keep looking good.
Thank you! They look a little rough now with the snow coming, but I’ll be lifting the tubers soon.
Lee said:
@Neo
Great job! That’s one plant I struggle to keep looking good.
Thank you! They look a little rough now with the snow coming, but I’ll be lifting the tubers soon.
My dahlias turned to mush with the frost last night. First year growing them, and I’m hooked!
Wallflower, chrysanthemum, and pansies here in zone 7a.
Lane said:
Wallflower, chrysanthemum, and pansies here in zone 7a.
Just planted some pansies too—big-faced ones and some Johnny jump-ups! Same zone here.
Lane said:
Wallflower, chrysanthemum, and pansies here in zone 7a.
Got any photos?
@Lane
Those are some of the healthiest pansies I’ve ever seen!
Lee said:
@Lane
Those are some of the healthiest pansies I’ve ever seen!
Thank you! I love them, especially mixed in with strawberries. Just a heads up, not all the foliage is pansies.
Pip said:
@Lane
Do you keep your pansies trimmed? Mine get leggy by winter and end up cut down.
I plant them in fall for cooler seasons. They bloom till December, go dormant, and come back in spring. They start to struggle by late spring, so I replace them with heat-loving annuals around May.
Pip said:
@Lane
Great idea! I always plant in spring, but fall pansies sound like they’d really brighten up winter here in the PNW!
Pip said:
@Lane
Do you keep your pansies trimmed? Mine get leggy by winter and end up cut down.
I sometimes deadhead mine, but I do a full trim right after the last freeze.
@Ellery
Clematis?
Peyton said:
@Ellery
Clematis?
Yes! Always forget the name, but there are 12 more blooms waiting to pop!
@Ellery
These are stunning! Never seen anything quite like it, thanks for sharing 
