I just did the count thread and I really only have 2 roses! Seil, I had 60 something in pots for about 8 years and through some bad weather, my mother spraying Round-Up around them without asking or telling me (about 40 or more went to the landfill because i thought I had RRD), and neglect for various reasons, I am down to 30. I am determined not to let that happen again (losing roses because of neglect)...and my mother knows not to spray Round-up in my yard anymore.

Hey Tom: Thanks for posting the link to this thread. Very helpful indeed, and your garden is gorgeous, healthy and thriving. I must get some cattle panel--wonder how I'm going to fit it in my Mini Cooper! I've also had good luck making our Serious Tomato Cages using cow fencing. Finally, we have mater cages that are tall enough and strong enough to actually support the heirloom tomatoes that get over 8 feet tall. It's fun to think of and share creative ways to use products like cattle panel for the garden, isn't it? What else have folks used that works well? Carolyn Here is a link that might be useful: Cowlick Cottage Farm

I am getting things potted up for the swap. I am focusing on bringing a smaller number of larger trades this year. I stopped by a nursery to find some cheap pots and talked them into selling me some of their 6" square pots (probably about 1/2 gallon ones) for $.20 each. Last year Oakland Park had nice 4" ones for $.09 each, but they didn't carry them this year. So far I have rhubarb, chocolate mint, lemon balm, spiderwort, lamb's ear, evening primrose, Golden Tiara hosta, misc. var. hosta, and Michaelinsis daisy potted up into 1/2 gallon or larger pots. I also have quite a few small starts of Penny's Worth daylily, a nice little daylily with yellow flowers. It kind of looks like a miniature version of Happy Returns. I also have plenty of tomatoes. I have about 60 varieties started this year. Some I only have a few of, but many of them I will have extras of to bring to the swap. We will be potting up some other things to bring as well. We usually bring the dogs into Columbus with us when we visit. But I don't see how they will fit in the van with all of the plants. It looks like we will have to leave them with friends for the weekend. We are looking forward to seeing everyone on the 15th. James

Mariann - Oh you are so welcome, I love sharing my experiences and there is so little info on this on the interent, with any form of detail. As far as the place I kept them, due to the time frame with Early Spring, I put the cuttings indoors. Really wasn't sure if they should be warm or cold, but I figured if I'm trying to root them from dormancy, they need to be coming out of dormancy. My assumption was correct on these particular items. I can't say on other woody cuttings, but I prefer the quicker method (in warmth) than the unknown "stick them in the ground" method. They ended up starting green growth, before the outdoor items did. I've actually heard that, depending on the HW cuttings, keeping them warm helps the root growth, so they were in my upstairs bathroom at about 70 degrees constant. Now I'm testing out the softwood cuttings...oh it's so much different! But the bagging method works beautifully with that as well. I have 3 English Laurel cuttings in baggie method and 3 English Laurel cuttings in perlite method. The baggie method has roots EVERYWHERE! And I do mean EVERYWHERE!!! They are growing roots over the entire stem! 3 out of 3 are growing roots. The perlite/bottle method is just starting to get root buds, but isn't showing alot of promise. 2 of the cuttings have died off, so I'm awaiting the growth of roots on one of the 3 cuttings. I'm kind of getting a feel from the type of plant (that I can't explain it) as to which type of rooting method to use for which type of plant. Some seem to do beautifully in the perlite and bottle method and others do better in the baggie method. I suppose it's just keeping notes on each type of plant. Wanted to point out on the propagation boxes above, the only thing lacking is a plugged terra cotta pot to dispense moisture. I've included a link below for one on GW. While they are beautiful, they need the moisture. Check out Easy Propagation Chamber on GW and you'll see what I mean. This is so fun....Thanks so much for the fun.... Toni Here is a link that might be useful: Easy propagation chamber