tatwood

Nice article, and helpful, but the pink peony in the photo is an herbaceous specimen, not the double apricot tree peony cultivar 'Kinkaku.'

loischen: Excellent points. I would add:

Never prune when you're angry! (like after that fight with your spouse). Bad things happen.

Looks like Impatiens balfourii

See it here: http://www.anniesannuals.com/plt_lst/lists/general/lst.gen.asp?prodid=521

1000islandkathy - usually, yes, and early spring is the best time. However, if your lilac is very old, and of the type that is single-stemmed and tree-like, it could be a fatal error, since some old varieties don't have a lot of dormant buds to re-sprout. But most lilacs are very vigorous, with multiple stems of varying sizes. If this describes your lilacs, by all means cut them back to 8 to 12 inches. If you'd prefer a less aggressive approach, plan to remove a third of the oldest (thickest) stems over the next three years. After three years, your lilac will be completely rejuvenated and you won't have to look at a mound of ugly stubs in the meantime. Also, lilacs bear many dormant buds along their woody stems. You can cut them back to any height you'd like and you will get new growth from that point. Again, early spring, or right after flowering, is the best time for this. Lilacs flower on old growth, so if you prune before flowering you'll remove the flower buds. But if you don't mind losing this spring's blooms, go ahead and prune. When I want to clean up an older lilac, I start by removing the oldest stems at ground level. Then I remove any stem smaller than a pencil, then thin out and cut back the remaining growth. Any branch that's damaged or diseased should be removed as soon as noticed. I also remove branches growing toward the inside of the shrub. Lilacs are very forgiving, so go for it!

Here at the Smith College Botanic Garden in Northampton, Massachusetts, we've been putting on an annual chrysanthemum show since the early 1900s. Mums are trained to cascade down wire forms, and individual mums are grown as exhibition blooms. The show is on right now, in our gorgeous conservatory.
You can see pictures and a live cam at our website:

http://www.smith.edu/garden/home.html

Looks like Lychnis viscaria. If the stems and flowers are sticky, that's probably what it is. Closely related to Silene.

My favorite gardening myth is that the ants often found crawling on the buds of herbaceous peonies are there to help them open, and that without the ants the peonies won't bloom. Many gardeners insist this is true. Balderdash! The ants are attracted to a good-tasting substance secreted by the plants, and the buds, unless diseased or damaged by a late frost, will open with or without the insects.

Cannot possibly be a lilac 'tree,' although there *are* tree lilacs. Looks like a red maple.

Could be an echium. Very pretty!

Not Campanula glomerata 'Superba'

Eggplant

What you are seeing are the seedheads of Pulsatilla. It is in the same family as clematis. When in flower, it looks like this and is available in several colors and forms:

www.kristamenzel.com/photos/2006-04-21/index.htm

Rudbeckia triloba is a biennial that self-sows prolifically. It also has a variant form - see here: http://www.everwilde.com/store/Rudbeckia-triloba-variation-WildFlower-Seed.html

It is very easy to grow and makes a good cut flower.It is quite tall, so it works best toward the back of perennial borders. I am also quite fond of Rudbeckia 'Prarie Sun,' which makes another good cut.

'Scarlet O'Hara' is a true scarlet color, whereas this photo is more of a burgundy. If the actual plant is really scarlet, then you're right about the cultivar. I know photos often do not show the color as it actually is. Oh, and this is not a Japanese form - it is a single form.

'Scarlet O'Hara' is a true scarlet color, whereas this photo is more of a burgundy. If the actual plant is really scarlet, then you're right about the cultivar. I know photos often do not show the color as it actually is.

Looks like a cultivar of Weigela florida - can't say which cultivar, there are many. 'Dropmore Pink' was popular in the '60's, but it could easily be a different cultivar.

Looks like schizanthus, an annual.