Very nice Jennifer! Yes like Chris said...photos please!

Oh Jennifer I am so happy you will be taking photos when you go. That is the only way I will ever get to visit that nursery. Thank you in advance.

Hmmm well I read the reviews on DG . I'm a little nervous to go there. I am by no means knowledgable about the types of plants they grow. Reading what some have experienced visiting there makes me reticent.

Jennifer, I read DG after reading your post and see what you mean. It seems like, however, that the people who were satisfied were mostly gardeners who knew their plants. I have had my share of losses by buying wonderful plants that took more babying that I could or would give. Or they didn't do well where I planted them. I've gotten quite brutal over time, sort of a Live Well or Die mindset. So I LOVE my Iris, oriental lilies, semps and cyclamen b/c they give so much for so little. Arrowhead has a fab collection of semps and I would be out of control if I got near that place! So I say go, buy what you know and avoid the unusual, exotic stuff that it sounds like they baby... And have a fun outing!

Yes.

WOW,I haven't been feeling well,the rain does nothing good for me & we have had it's over 16 inches of rain since Dec. I come back to find all this information.I am now going to go link surfing.I'm still in bed but i'm sitting up & have "some" control of my arms & hands so please excuse any mistakes i make typing.

Lynn,(i think said it) you have a point mislabeling or just the fact that people call the same plants by so many different names.The person who wrote the book i seen the semp in & got the name from was using mostly her own plants.I will look up the name you gave & see what it looks like.

I just bought a new printer but haven't really had the chance to figure out how to do anything besides print on it.I am going to ask my daughter or try myself to scan the 2 pictures in the book into my laptop but i am not mechanically inclined and see if anyone ID's them any differently than they are labeled in the book.

Greg,Thank you for the nice words but my yard is one big mess! It's been over 10 yrs since anyone lived here & there was nothing much done to the yard then.We have been here 3 yrs. in May. and we spent half of that totally gutting & remodeling the home,which still isn't completed.

Outside there were so many tree's that grass wouldn't even grow,the whole place was under a canopy of tree limbs & that's no exaggeration.

We started by letting some sun into our yard,so i am being careful not to put any beds anywhere unless i know the amount of sun it will get.I need to see how much sun & where the sun is for how long & at what times.The only place i'm sure of is where i'm putting the bed currently

It's sad,between 18-20 tree's had to come down and we only had the ones within a close proximity to the house cut.

Jojoe, hope you feel better soon! I'm not comparing myself - its on a much smaller scale, but I too have pain when there is heavy cloud cover, for me it doesn't matter if its actually raining or not, just the cloud cover So I can relate! Your yard looks so large and ready for new plantings!! I know its lots of work, and you're being smart to plan!! Its alot of work and I say Take your time, do what you can and try not to overdo it! In a little while you'll look back on old photos and say "Wow, we really got this yard looking good!" Just my 2 cents!

Greg,Thank you so much for the kind words. I do know what you mean about it doesn't have to be rain here,i think sometimes i can feel rain 2 states over.I tell people it's raining not here but it's raining somewhere close.

I do have my husband to do my heavy lifting.I get him to dump a wheel barrow or 3 at the bed and then all i have to do is shovel it where i want it.He dumps the bags of pea gravel out and i mix soil & gravel and anything else i want in it in a large metal tub of a thing,it works well.He won't put as much compost or rock as i want,he put as much as he wants me doing that day!!

My daughter just brought me 2 magazines saying"oh yea you got these in the mail" she tossed them on the bed & one opened up to an article on planting in different things shoes,wagons etc... there was a picture of the semp that i seen in my book that was labeled 'sugaree' or it really looked like it.I have to go figure out my new printer & scan these pictures and see what all of yall think it is!! whoops my southern accent slipped i actually typed "yall"

Jelinda you have been very busy in the last 3 years. Sounds like you are doing the same way we did. The first 3 years were spent on the house, then slowly doing things in the yard. First thing was raised beds so we could grow vegetables. I found for me the best thing I could do was to just enjoy each step as it was accomplished, and not worry about how fast it was happening.
And how wonderful that your husband helps you and watches out for you. He sounds like a wise and caring husband.
Sure hope you get to feeling better soon.

jojoe, looks like you got a lot of stuff going on indoors when you can't get outdoors...And outdoor stuff can really wear you down.
I find that as I am getting older I revel in the stuff that I can do inside when restrictions prevent us from enjoying and doing in the outdors. So after I type this I will be perusing the Arrowhead Alpine website and again be surprised at the variety of arachnoid semps that they have available for sale! Most nurseries have 2 or 3 arach types but this place has about 10-15 types.
Well, anyway take care of yourself. From what you have told us, you sound like you can't be trusted with a shovel. It's good that yur hubby watches out for you.

Good luck at the Arrowhead website Bev. It's a very dangerous place to visit!

I did attend the self-restraint class that Lynn was absent from...If you look at my list of wants, the number wanted is inversely propotional to Greg's Want List... I discovered yesterday while looking at one of Arrowhead's semp for sale, that the words "owl sh_t" was part of the semp's description, so that was pretty entertaining and have I mentioned the number of arachs available on that website...???

I haven't had a chance to get to that site yet due to a hubby ordered give your arms & hands a rest!!

But i've taken my medicine and i feel ok so going link surfing or the way yall are talking i'm going to just one site maybe i should save that one for last.

I love that the site uses such crazy language to describe their semps!! (when they do!) Many are not described so you don't know the sizes, that's annoying - still lovely photos!!
Did I tell people that Perennial obsessions website is mostly up!!! Again some amazing photos!! Fun to look at!
BTW I was really good today at HD, I didn't buy any plants! only soil! Chris hurry and get your winter done with so I can get those semps from your store

Jelinda be sure to keep breathing when looking at the Arrowhead Alpine site. If you don't you can get a wee bit lite headed.

They have been working on the new site for months. I am so glad it is up and running for 'Sempervivum Week'. They have been working very hard to get everything entered on the new site with photos. It is such a time consuming job.
I love their new site.

Oh good, I'm off to check out there new website too!

Greg, I'm trying to get rid of winter, but melting all that snow with a hair dryer is going to take a while. I'll try to post a picture later today of what my yard looks like these days. Much more snow than the rabbit damage pictures.

Today's pictures of three of my semp beds. Looks more like the middle of January than the end of February.

Oh Wow, Chris. Forget the hair dryer...go inside and have a hot chocolate.

Its beautiful! Crazy how I used to live with that type of weather, don't think I could do it anymore! Best to you, stay warm and dry...it sure is lovely!