Ann: Great thread in getting ready for next year. I have 4 big trees chopped down this year so I'll have more full-sun spot. I'm thinking about buying red raspberry bushes. My Mom has black clay (less dense than mine) and she grew very sweet red raspberry, it was a treat eating from the bush.

My wish for roses: Still shopping for the TALLEST and most fragrant roses .. rabbits eat everything lately. I really need to plant rhubarb for next spring. When I had a big rhubarb bush back in 2000 to 2012, I had zero rabbit problems .. rhubarb is poisonous to rabbits.

My husband has finally retired...and is finished taking courses/doing degrees etc....so he's all mine! YAY!!

He's planning on cutting down some dead trees (dead for a few years from a snowstorm in late August), planting some Miss Kim lilac standards, designing a huge container for capturing rainwater from the roof, finishing our deck (it's been 4 years with a half done deck) and helping with maintenance. He's a fabulous worker and I'm so excited that he's going to have time this summer to really shape things up! He also gets lots of ideas...which I'm not that good at. :) :) I also killed a bunch of roses this year (pH issues) and I'm getting a lot of new roses...so that's going to be fun!! He's also going to rebuild our raised bed in the front. :) :)

rosecanadian Your Miss Kim lilacs will smell so good. Next door neighbor has it and I can smell it wafting 30 feet away. I would love to hear about future progress on the projects in your garden.

I'm happy to hear that your husband is retired and will help you in the garden. There's a few stuff in my garden that I need husband's help, like pruning tall branches from trees. He's 6 feet tall and I'm only 4'11".

ann beck 8a ruralish WA I'm on the same path of improving my soil. Now March 9, I research on soil chemistry to see if I can use the BOTTOM silt layer (deeper than 2 feet) as fertilizer. I have heavy black clay above, but some places in my garden have silt below. Below is a pic. of silt soil:

"Silt soil is usually more fertile than other types of soil, which makes it especially good for growing crops. Silt will promote water retention and air circulation. Some plants can thrive in silt soil, such as hostas, hellebores, daffodils, and roses.

To determine if you have silty soil, pour in some water to give it a little moisture. Then put a ball of soil in your hand and squeeze it slightly. If it breaks but doesn't scatter, it is most likely silty soil."

https://dengarden.com/gardening/How-to-Determine-Your-Soil-Type-For-Planting-Success

Below is a fantastic link on types of soil. An excerpt from below link:

"Sandy Soil

The first type of soil is sand. It consists of small particles of weathered rock. Sandy soils are one of the poorest types of soil for growing plants because it has very low nutrients and poor water holding capacity, which makes it hard for the plant’s roots to absorb water. This type of soil is very good for the drainage system. Sandy soil is usually formed by the breakdown or fragmentation of rocks like granite, limestone and quartz.

Silt

Silt is known to have much smaller particles compared to sandy soil and is made up of rock and other mineral particles, which are smaller than sand and larger than clay. It is the smooth and fine quality of the soil that holds water better than sand. Silt is easily transported by moving currents and it is mainly found near the river, lake and other water bodies. The silt soil is more fertile compared to the other three types of soil.

Clay Soil

Clay is the smallest particle amongst the other two types of soil. The particles in this soil are tightly packed together with each other with very little or no airspace. This soil has very good water storage qualities and makes it hard for moisture and air to penetrate into it. It is very sticky to the touch when wet, but smooth when dried. Clay is the densest and heaviest type of soil which does not drain well or provide space for plant roots to flourish.

Loamy Soil

Loam is the fourth type of soil. It is a combination of sand, silt and clay such that the beneficial properties from each is included. This soil is also referred to as agricultural soil as it includes an equilibrium of all three types of soil materials being sandy, clay, and silt and it also happens to have humus. Apart from these, it also has higher calcium and pH levels because of its inorganic origins."

https://byjus.com/biology/types-of-soil/

Joey: Your garden sounds wonderful with pink and purple roses along a white picket fence, plus fruit trees and raised veggies beds. Delphinium, lavender and forget me not are my fav. companion plants !! Yours is my type of dream garden.

I hope the Duchess de Rohan plant I'm sending you will be beautiful like the 8th-year-own-root Duchess in my garden. Below are cluster of pink Duchess (smells just as good as Comte de Chambord), and light pinks are Evelyn. If I had know you earlier, I could had sent you the many Evelyn rootings I made instead of killing them.

Below shows only 1/6 of Duchess bush. It can get big if not brutally pruned after each flush:

That is a gorgeous bouquet!! I love the contrast with the cool and warm pink. Your Evelyn is stunning! How is the fragrance? I have her on my wish list but have not found her in stock.

Evelyn is pure ripe peaches plus roses. If your soil is alkaline, the scent is very fruity delicious. If your soil is acidic, the scent has an old rose tinge. Will start rooting Evelyn for you when I prune my roses in spring. Below to show you how Evelyn looks next to Sweet Mademoiselle. This bouquet was during hot August so the blooms are smaller:

Blooms of Evelyn gets big up to 4" during spring rain:

Evelyn can have big blooms like PCdM (less petals) in below of Evelyn next to PcdM:

Thank you SO much!

Those blooms are just stunning!! I added PCdM to my order as well, it looks perfect for blending my pink roses toward the bed of creams and yellows.

Straw - Yes, my Miss Kim lilac standards do smell wonderful! (pictures are from last year) And there's also 2 different lilacs on the other side of the fence. :)

Yes, I'll keep you updated about our progress. :) :) That is, indeed, a huge difference in height...he must be a huge help!!

Joey - I am SO looking forward to spring...I can barely keep it together with the cold weather and boredom. Next week should be awesome though...and I'm hoping to start rolling my roses outside for a few hours of warm daytime hours!! Oh I am SO excited!!! Your yard is going to be amazing!! Please post lots of pictures when you get blooms!!

Straw - oh wow!!! Such beautiful blooms!!! I wish I could smell those roses!! I tried to get Evelyn from Hortico this year, but Nicole said that Austin isn't allowing her to offer it anymore. Darn.

I love your lilacs!!!! IT is actually my favorite flower.... I use to try and time my vacations to see and smell it in bloom..... It never worked out.....

Carol: thank you for posting those gorgeous pics. of lilacs. They are my favorite. Two decades ago I started out with 4 bushes of lilac (lavender and deep purple), now I have only 2 Syrian lilac which decline in wet & poor drainage clay. Lilac needs good drainage. Below is my Syrian lilac which is compact and forms a vase shape. It smells like heaven but can't be cut for the vase (makes a big mess).

Sharon - thank you!! :) :) What a shame to miss lilacs blooming! My daughter is allergic to lilac (among many other "outside" allergens) so I could never cut lilacs to bring inside.

Straw - oh my!! Those are such lush lilacs!!! I love them!!! I expect mine to get bigger heads of leaves/flowers on the trunks as the lilacs mature...they're only a few years old.

What stunning lilacs in this thread!! I have what I think is a lilac in my front yard, it's almost as tall as the house and hasn't been pruned in ages so I really hope it blooms.

Joey - oh, I hope it blooms too!! Lilacs are pretty special. :) :)