Welcome to the Dirt-y Dozen
Here are the top Weekly Dirt news stories in 2006. We ranked the news items according to the number of click-throughs from readers.

1. Web site touts retailers with hot new plants
A Web site is helping gardeners find plants featured in Garden Design magazine and local retailers that carry them in its "Way Hot 100" issue.

2. New comic strip lampoons retailing
The trials and triumphs of the retail world will hit the funny pages starting this month.

3. Visa cards get a new look
Visa's new logo made its official U.S. debut on Jan. 3.

4. Africanized honey bees on the move
Gardeners in Louisiana, Arkansas and Florida can add Africanized honey bees to their list of pest concerns.

5. Novalis adds 3 growers, launches Web site
Fisher Farms (Gaston and Sherwood, Ore.), Hackney Nursery Co. (Greensboro, Fla.) and Windmill Nursery (Folsom, La.) have joined the Novalis network.

6. Worth a visit
Retail consultant Ian Baldwin believes that the next 10 years will open doors for this industry that we could only dream of previously.

7. Want to play garden center?
German toy manufacturer Playmobil introduced several green-industry-related play sets, including "Garden Center," earlier this year.

8. Ball refreshes Simply Beautiful packaging
Ball Hort. Co. will introduce new eye-catching pots for its Simply Beautiful brand this spring.

9. Money Magazine confirms landscape worth
A recent article in Money Magazine asserts that trees and shrubs are the best way to heighten curb appeal and boost a home's value.

10. OFA sets up temporary Web site, e-mail
Late Monday afternoon a foreign entity "hijacked" the OFA Web site. The association currently doesn't have ownership or control of the site. OFA set up a temporary Web site.

11. Screenings push Wal-Mart movie
A documentary criticizing Wal-Mart practices is gaining ground thanks to activists organizing thousands of grass-roots screenings across the nation.

12. Outdoor living is 'in,' trend watcher reports
Garden Media Group released its 2007 garden trends report this month, highlighting what's in and what's out.