I remember reading in a publication somewhere long ago that the most important color in the garden was green. I remember because, at that moment, the brakes in my mind came to a screeching halt, and I thought: What!?! This was early in my horticulture enthusiasm when I only thought about Bold Color All the Time. Around my three Hybrid Tea roses ('Tiffany,' 'Double Delight' and 'Chryslur Imperial',) I planted hot pink begonias and periwinkles in straight rows like small soldiers on the march. My design capabilities were limited, and green foliage was simply a means to an end; literally the stick with leaves which held up the "perfect" rose. In my defense, this was before I had any shade, and before I learned how great green looks in the garden; how soothing it is; how it helps one's vision move from one part of the garden to the other....

Head on over to my friend, Brit' Girl Sarah's, website and check out the gasoline (or petrol) sign she saw while in Enid, Oklahoma. I laughed so hard I thought I would . . . . Well, you get the idea. It was funny.

While thunder rumbled around us (not too close,) and the skies went from cloudy to clear to cloudy again, HH, ASW and I cleared brush on the 6.5 acres of our property other than garden. Many of our trees have an unfortunate growth habit. Their branches grow downward as if the leaves are trying to touch the soil. Sumac, poison ivy, Virginia creeper, and other weedy brethren grow upward. If left unchecked, it creates a tangled web of thorny vegetation which is snake heaven. Copperheads are common in our part of the state, and we don't like giving them any natural cover close to the house. One vine we encountered had prickly, cactus-like stickers while another resembled a grapevine with wicked reflexed thorns. I'm not a native plant expert, so I can't tell you their names. However, either one will pierce leather gloves if you don't handle them right. Above,...