Rose of Sharon, also called Althea, thrives down here in Texas as well. That's one hardy plant! Azaleas in Texas are a wimpy attempt to have the spring color but they don't do well here and there are only a couple of muted colors. In Washington state, on the other hand, they are huge colorful monsters, where we had rhodys the size of houses and azaleas the size of VW bugs. Same as in North Carolina, another place with rich well-drained acid soil. Lilacs don't make it here in Texas at all, neither does andromeda, another of my favorites. Huge ferns from the Pacific NW would only grow in botanical gardens under the right conditions. (All of these plants I've wondered if I could try to grow, then dismissed the idea.) Roses are ok here, as are magnolia trees (though it isn't that popular). Crape myrtle is a star of Texas yard color, as long as they aren't planted too deep (they have lovely broad trunk flares that should be in view, otherwise the plants kind of suffocate.)

I see a steady stream of that china selling on eBay. You could putter along selling pieces individually or in groups depending on the size of boxes and packing you have.

There is a stack of three concrete slabs (pieces of the old front walk) in the front yard that I was thinking of topping with an old wheelbarrow barrow on to fill with soil and flowers, but I've figured out a better use. This fall I need to start digging out the side of the berm and pull the old tires out, and I'll put the concrete in there. I'll need some help to move/roll/drag the pieces because they're very heavy, but they'll be out of the way and the tires need to go away; I think they're breaking down and killing the trees nearby.

That planter-destined wheelbarrow (a rusted antique) has been sitting beside the garage since I put in the new chunk of fence a couple of years ago. For now it's going to join some other rusty yard art so I can mow the corner where it is currently resting. The grass is too tall around it and kind of blocks the swing of the gate right there.

Deciding on yard work now is one thing; it's too hot out to do much of it. I'll move the wheelbarrow this evening and mow, but the rest will wait.