Just want to share my amazement at some of the things happening in my yard this year.

The background: Moved to warm, tropical zone 3 - bought the house because of the huge yard. Year 1 everything grew to twice the expected height. Year 2 I realized I had problems with 'delicates' surviving/sowing & spreading in my garden. (Thanks for all the advice.) Year 3 - I am summer fallowing large swatches to regain control, only buying plants I have zone 3 experience with & pulling (almost) everything that I know I didn't plant.

However I have decided that this was not a nuclear waste dump & no aliens landed on the site. My garden is magical!

The magical positives:

My expensive variety, fussy, blah blah sweet peas self-sowed & are growing beautifully on the back fence (as well as in the gravel in the alley).

Several clumps of 'annual' dianthus varieties & pansies survived the winter. I first noticed the pansies because they were blooming in April.

The oriental poppy that appeared out of no-where is blooming beautifully.

An ostrich fern has appeared in a shady spot where it can stay.

There are 2 pink potentilla shrubs now, although I only planted one.

A new rose bush is growing in the front yard along with an unidentified evergreen.

The packet of free annual seeds that I accidentally planted last year self sowed in a most non-invasive way and are covering a small corner with tons of blooms.

The violas have created a beautiful swath of medium & dark purple (planted pale blue but like this much better) & are choking out the weeds under the delphs & columbine.

& I acquired a discount coupon for Round Up.