all across our nation now. Even if you save your own Impatien seed and keep other garden center plants away from your carefully and lovingly tended imps, you are still vulnerable as this is an airborn pathogen that will stay in your soil from one season to the next. It starts on the underside of the plant where you don't always see it. You won't notice until the leaves turn yellow and fall off, the plant withering and dying. There is nothing as of yet that effectively will combat the virulent attack.

This is my list of alternatives to the dilemma of what to plant to give that same heavenly splash of color in the shade garden.

My top picks are

1) Begonia , green wax leaf, tuberous , angel and dragon wing

2) Torenia

3) Browallia

4) New guinea impatien

5) Diascia

6) Fuschia

7) Balsam

8) Shade coleus

9) Lobelia

10) Euphorbia 'diamond frost'

11) Geraniums

12) Ageratum

13) Caladiums

14) Strobilanthes

15) Fan Flower(Scaevola)

There are a bunch more that will take part shade such as Nicotiana, Salvia, and Sweet Williams.

I will miss the sweet sweet impatien, but while the experts search for a cure, it gives us all the opportunity to step out of our garden box and into the wild new territory of DIFFERENT and awesome plants that will put a smile on our garden faces.#itchingforspring

#Gardening #Plants

www.shabbyfrenchcottage.com. It has been viral online since then! It was also featured as a Cover Story in the September 2011 issue of Romantic Homes Magazine!

#Bestof2012

each. I'm now on the lookout for more pieces at thrift stores to make sparkly Christmas vignettes. Get a can of Krylon "Looking Glass" spray paint (available at Ace Hardware/K-Mart/Craft Stores, according to the Krylon website, but I couldn't find any in Las Vegas, so I ordered the small can online to give it a try). Paint is about $11/can. Step 1. Clean glass well. For the larger piece, I sprayed the inside, for the narrower piece, I sprayed the outside, with identical results. Step 2. Spray, using several light coats, being careful not to overspray to avoid runs. The paint is slightly cloudy when sprayed, but dries VERY quickly to a mirror-like finish. Step 3. After about 3 light coats, mix a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water in a spray bottle and mist the painted surface enough to create beads. Step 4. Let sit about a minute, then dampen a paper towel with the vinegar/water mixture and firmly "pat" the beaded moisture that sits on the paint. You can actually rub a little in places, removing some of the paint as you go. Keep dabbing/wiping until you create the antique/worn look you desire. Step 5. After the piece completely dries, spray one very light coat of the looking glass paint over the already painted surface. This fills in the wiped away spots, adding dimension. You can repeat steps 3-5 until you get the look you want, although I only did it once.