sherry, best thing would be to contact your county's agricultural extension office or the university. They are more familiar with your area and best at recommending and help you out. They would have local information that they know more than us who are not in your area. Besides, the help is free and they would gladly help. That's a good starting point. Then you can clarify some questions in this forum and we will relate to your problems of growing your fruit trees.

There should be plenty of time for them to benefit from the outside this year. Lovely bright sun in the day and that great drop at night. I'll take them in when temps dip below 50 or so. They're all still in growth, one with two sheaths. Hope y'all don't mind if I give you a blow by blow. I noticed last night that the top of my air conditioner window unit seemed to offer much better support than a slanting narrow window ledge (not to mention being lots bigger - 26" x 21"!). Might have space for six instead of three. I'm starting small with what I have on hand, which includes a nice high-sided wire grid basket (large enough for the three catts I have now) and a nylon quick release strap from backpacking days. I have room for a basket twice as large and I'll expand when I feel safe that no-one's going to call the cops on me. I wonder what the fine would be? This morning, after leaning outside my 15th-story adjacent window so I could catch the dangling end of the quick-release strap from the far side of the air conditioner with a coat hanger and thread it through the ac struts, I felt like I'd probably created enough of a spectacle for one morning. Tonight under cover of darkness I'll get the basket out there and secure it with the strap. The plants'll have their first lovely night outside. That basket isn't going anywhere, barring a tornado, in which case we're all screwed anyway. And the sides are high enough that the plants can't get blown out under any but violent conditions. My concern (aside from prison) is this: We all know that you need to acclimate indoor plants gradually to sun. So I'm worried they're going to cook. In my favor, there is usually quite a breeze up there! That should help ALOT. I thought about draping cheesecloth over them for the first couple of weeks or so. Because of the air conditioner, there is hardly any clearance to be continually taking the plants in and out - they have to be tilted almost horizontally to make it. The ones in sphagnum don't present a problem, but one is in aliflor and of course that all spills out, as I discovered at 3:00 a.m. when I woke up and decided to experiment. I'm definitely earning my place as a nutty orchid person. J

I know the original posting is over two years old, but I must share my Minas soapstone experience: 1. It is not, by any means, one of the hard soapstone varieties. i thought it was, and it is not. 2. It is beautiful with lots of dramatic veining. 3. After waxing it, it stays black for months, so maintenance isn't bad, with a few caveats: around the sink the stone can get white; iced water glass, etc. can leave white rings; bowls with silicone feet will leave white marks. These are easy to wax out, however. 4. DO NOT install under-mount sinks. The least little touch by a pot being washed will nick the sink cutout.The small dings don't bother me - i can sand those out. But I live in terror of a soapy pot falling out of my hands and hitting the edge, however. The result is that unnatural care must be taken when washing pots, etc. 5. The scratches are easy to wax over, but for some reason, the dings stay white - even after oiling. Thank goodness the Minas has a lot of movement. But still, the little dings don't bother me. IT'S THE SINK AREA! 6. Conclusion: The Minas is gorgeous, but I would not buy it again. I would buy soapstone, however - just a much, much harder variety - perhaps Minas duro. Tried to get Beleza, but it was not available. Here is a link that might be useful: nomorebluekitchen

It certainly looks like my Mrs. Dudley Cross - blooms, leaves, and the way the heavy blooms bend over the stems - I am hoping when mine gets bigger they will do better. Also the color of the new growth is identical. Jackie