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Agree with flowerbug, rhododendrons are pretty tough and that kind of marking usually isn't worth worrying about. Could be old frost damage or just mechanical damage from something brushing past it. If it's not spreading and the new growth looks healthy, I'd leave it alone.

Welcome! Second year with a proper garden is when it starts getting really fun, you've got a season of mistakes to learn from and everything feels less like guessing. Voles are a nightmare though, hope you find something that works for those.

Nice choice, camellias are so rewarding once they settle in. The strawberry plants growing around the base look great too, that's a really good use of the space. As long as the pot's big enough they should be happy together for a while.

Those bean boards are gorgeous. I grow broad beans from about February here and common beans from mid May, so pretty similar window to yours Decoy1. Always tempted to push it earlier but they just sit there sulking in cold soil. How many varieties are you actually putting in the ground this year...

300 varieties is seriously impressive. Looking forward to following this, especially the lima beans. Do you find much difference in how the varieties perform year to year with your climate, or are most of them fairly consistent once established?

Finally got the last of the broad beans in today. Should have done it weeks ago but the rain just would not let up. Ground was still pretty heavy but they went in alright. Also spotted the first aphids of the year on the overwintered ones, so that's fun.

Drip irrigation is hard to beat once it's set up. I was sceptical at first but the difference in water use compared to sprinklers was massive, and the plants seem happier getting it right at the roots.

Finally got round to sorting out the beds that have been sitting under cardboard all winter. Soil underneath was in surprisingly good shape, loads of worms. Got some early potatoes in and a row of radish. Feels good to actually be planting things again after months of just staring at mud.

Strawberries are a good shout, they barely take up any room if you go vertical with a tower or even just stack a few pots. Herbs too, a single pot of basil and parsley next to the back door probably gets more use than half the veg patch honestly.

Sun Gold is hard to beat honestly. I grew them last year and half never made it inside, just ate them straight off the plant while watering. This year I'm trying Sungold Select which is supposedly a bit more crack resistant but we'll see.

Yeah weed and feed will absolutely hammer your veg. The herbicide in it doesn't know the difference between a weed and a tomato plant. Keep it well away from anything you want to eat.

If you want year round privacy, evergreens are the way to go. Arborvitae (Green Giant or Emerald) do well in zone 5-6 and grow into a solid screen pretty quickly. They handle Idaho winters fine too. Only thing is deer love them, so if that's an issue where you are it might be worth looking at...

Yeah the nighttime temperature thing is the bit nobody warns you about. I looked into a small greenhouse last year and quickly realised it would basically just be a cold frame with extra steps unless I was willing to heat it. Ended up just doing a few cloches over my earliest sowings and that...

That's a great spot for it, looks like it'll have plenty of room to fill out. Always satisfying when a plant outgrows its pot and gets to stretch into proper ground.

Periwinkle and blueberry in the same pot is a nice combo, the periwinkle should fill in around the base really well. Always good getting things in the ground with someone else too, makes it feel less like a chore.

Those are gorgeous. Camellias are one of those plants I keep meaning to get but never do. The sasanqua ones especially, having something flowering that late in the year would be brilliant.

Welcome! Cut gardens are brilliant, once you get going you end up with more flowers than you know what to do with. What are you planning to grow, mostly annuals or are you putting in some perennials too?

That watercress looks incredible. I've been trying to get some going in a shallow tray with running water but it's nowhere near as happy as the wild stuff. Streams just do it better apparently.

Growing the salad greens right out front where customers can see them is brilliant. Must be a great conversation starter too.

I've found that cutting back on watering once the fruit starts to ripen concentrates the sugars quite a bit. Doesn't work as well in really hot climates where the plants are already stressed, but in milder weather it makes a noticeable difference.