Mine are doing the same thing, and they've been in the same place for many years. I also noticed that the fairly newly planted ones at work are also just starting to show growth. I never noticed that they were such late starters before, but I don't think there'd be any reason for them to be later this year than any other year. They look fairly good even before the new growth begins, that may be why I've never noticed the delay before.

I don't think I'm familiar with the daphnes you mentioned (other than the Daphne Odora which I LOVE and wouldn't be without) but I met some folks who live a few blocks away because walking my dog, I encountered a fragrance wafting on the air I didn't recognize and she checked the plant tag for me and it was a daphne caucasica. It's one of the few plants I'm familiar with that wafts its fragrance so much-not as sweet as the fragrance of Daphne Odora but definitely wafting-I first smelled it from 2 houses away)-and it is in bloom on and off early spring to late fall. Definitely on my list of shrubs to buy. buyorsell-thank you for mentioning the daphne cneorum-that is now going on the list, too! Here is a link that might be useful: Daphne caucasica

Dzitmoidonc hit the nail on the head. With some BLEs in the north, the issue isn't strictly speaking one of hardiness, but how well it looks at the end of a typical winter. Plants that naturally go deciduous look better than evergreen ones that are burned by cold winds. That being said, its hardiness probably is borderline. Years ago I pulled a Myrica cerifera out of my garden - and this was in northern Virginia - because it was clearly struggling. Might have survived for years but never really looked good. The Scott Arboretum doesn't list any M. cerifera. Here is a link that might be useful: http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/cgi-bin/nph-readbtree.pl/sconames?ETI=myrica

My dermatologist and plasticgardens obviously feel very differently about this topic. My son and I both have dermatitis. He has tried every over the counter dandruff shampoo to no avail. Until he switched to a mild shampoo without harsh chemicals his condition did not improve. Since switching to this shampoo he can go 2 days without washing his hair and the redness and flaking has dramatically decreased. I'm hoping the flaking will go away completely with time (he has only been using this for 3 weeks). Anyhow, our dermatologist said, use a mild shampoo with minimal chemicals and little to no fragrance added (perfume can irritate the scalp). Use conditioner only on the ends if at all. He said that harsh shampoos strip oil out of the hair and scalp, which looks good at first but causes the scalp to secrete even more oil to replace what was stripped away. So the best thing to do is use a very mild formula that will rinse out excess oil but not strip the hair and scalp. The oil production should slow down once your scalp adjusts to the shampoo. Seems to be working for us. And he recommended Cetaphil cleanser for the skin. I have been using this for 6 months (I was afraid it would make my skin oilier because it seems very rich) and I have not had a flair up of acne or rosacea in 4 months.