Auntgramma

What fun to follow the varied faces of this garden in such a surprising spot. I think the plant with the huge leaves in the container is Astilboides tabularis. I planted one in my shade garden and it took several years to get this big. It is rated for Zones 5 - 7 but it survived in my Zone 4 garden and I loved the huge leaves for adding a different texture.

Please share with me the name of the Bergenia cultivar. I love it and the ball.

We sold our home with our prize-winning garden and have moved to a town home. At our house, we had reduced the grass to the point it took my husband only an hour to mow instead of the four hours it took him when we moved in. Now at the town home I am appalled that they water the grass several days a week and mow so low it scrapes some of the grass off. This has to change. I am now on the association board and hope to influence change. Some no mow grass would be a great start.

Tate85: The plant with blue blooms is Linum lewisii (Blue Flax) Zones 3-9. It likes lean well-drained soil and is short lived. The wind or perhaps a bird planted it in my garden. It survived about five years in no more than one-inch of soil.

Wittyone: Yes, this garden is right on the asphalt, no digging required. Consider this trick as a way to cover broken sidewalk or any unsightly area. Low growing sedum is amazing and needs very little soil. That's why I used it for the edging.

We moved last September from our prize-winning dream garden due to our bad backs. My resolution this year is to embrace the garden I inherited at our town home and keep it low maintenance and lovely.

Hydrogels placed in soil do hold water but they do not release it to the plants. Research on hydrogels was done by Jeff Gillman,Associate Professor, Department of Horticulture Science at the University of Minnesota. He reports his findings in "The Truth about Garden Remedies". This is a must read for gardeners.