Love the markings on Epigeneium cymbidioides. Nice to have a few blooms after a long" famine". Thanks for sharing.

My kousa dogwood always keeps its bright red leaves later than other trees, but not as late as my Fothergilla 'Mt. Airy' (bright orange and gold) which even now has some leaves, my spirea (I can probably look up the variety if anyone is curious) which hasn't dropped any leaves yet and is a muted red, gold and orange, or my high bush blueberries, which are just dropping the last of their bright red leaves now. My other late favorite is a late double mum which is still blooming fully, usually right until snow. It's a lovely mix of pink to gold that from more than a few feet reads as a light copper color. Its only drawback is that it spreads, so I really should dig it up and replant in a restraining container. Then I also have evergreens and red twigged dogwoods that have nice color, a pagoda dogwood that has a beautiful silhouette, and a striped maple that will develop orange and gold color to its twigs as the weather gets colder to complement the green and white striped trunk bark.

Hello WendyB, I am in a similar situation this year. We have a 2 year old Sweet Autumn Clematis that had amazing blossoms for the first time last year (picture below) In late November last year, when all the leaves and blossoms were killed by the first frost, I had pruned it leaving about 3 feet length. The winter this year was unusually warm specially in December and the plant set out new buds and vines which were killed by a later snow storm. Now, there are no buds, no swelling, no vines, nothing. Please tell me I did not kill this beautiful thing. Did your neighbor's clematis come back to life last year?

If you are pulling up roots then you are deminishing that plant. Every Spring I cut five or six stems from the back side of my plant where it would not be visible when they are about 5 in tall. Then scratch a spot in the garden or a flower pot and place them there and water. They root very easily. I must have done that over 30 times and given away a healthy plant every year.