Margaret - I am the hostess for March. I will not post anything until the very end of February. For some of us, being able to send a bit later at this time of the year will allow us to send plants, cuttings, etc. so I am trying to time it so the sign up will be early in the month and the mail out deadline will be nearer to the end of March. There will be non-plant options for people who can't send and receive plants in March. Jeanne

Ditto, no selling at the Fort Worth area swap. One lady showed up one time and wanted to sell her plants, but when we told her we weren't there to buy anything, she packed up her kit bag and went home. If you log on the Gardening in Arkansas forum and go to the trading forum you can just post a notice that you would like to have a swap in your area and see how many people are interested. You may be surprised and if you only have 5-10 people respond, go with it, a small swap is still a swap and you still get stuff for your garden for free. Ours started out several years ago with Sylvia doing that, and it is always a big event. We reserve a space at a centrally located public park, preferably an area with a pavilion and a grill. One couple has agreed to always bring refreshments for everyone in exchange for plants and seeds. Then if anyone has something they want to bring extra to eat they bring enough for at least 30 people. Then we set a date, usually a Saturday and people start listing what they plan to bring. We have a lot of "pre-swaps" on the garden web and then there are on the spot swaps after you get there and find people have brought stuff that they didn't list that you want, like tools, books and other fun things. One time someone brought gardening aprons with the GW logo embroidered on them. One person always brings great soaps and bath salts that she makes at home. Some people will bring baked goods to trade for plants if they don't have enough plants to swap. Another person made cute personalized name tags for everyone. Once you get one of these swap things going you will find that a lot of the same people will attend year after year (oh and we do it twice a year too, Spring and Fall) so we all get to be very good friends, even visiting each others homes and gardens and sharing plants and info on a regular basis. My humble opinion of the swap is that you should not ante up a dime for anything, otherwise you will be expected to continue to cover the costs and you will eventually lose out big time. Go cheap, spend nothing, and you will have a fun get-together with other gardeners who share interests in the best way, freely. This way you will never feel used or abused and in no danger of having to make it into some kind of business. Check out your public parks, maybe a church yard or a school yard will allow you to set up for a couple hours on a Saturday morning. If you plan to help out your humane society that can certainly happen too, they would have to be willing to set up at whatever location you choose but if they want to make money by selling something, you may again wind up obligated in some way. Personally, I'd keep those kinds of activities separate from a free plant swap. Cheryl

Nice to see those pictures. I planted one in Ncentral AR. The house protects the plant on the north side, and stone walls are to the east & west, full southern exposure. While you might get one to live further north, perhaps the reason why they haven't naturalized there in Cent. AR is that they don't reproduce well enough in the colder zone to self-seed? For almost any tender plant, head north and sooner or later you reach it's limit on zone tolerance, right?

Isn't that poem perfect for the theme of this swap? I too received that card from Chelsie and was very pleased to hear from her! Thanks, Chelsie! Well, I've checked and everyone who signed up to send cards this month have done so. I want to thank each and every one of you for taking time out of your busy lives to participate in this swap. And thanks again for sending the extra, last minute cards! I love this swap and you all helped make it very special for me. Many, many thanks! And I was so glad to hear from our other members too! Nice to catch up with everyone! Please remember, everyone, if you can't join in on any of the swaps, we would love to have you stop by and visit with us. Cards were sent to ALL members of FOTESS, but there are some who haven't responded yet. To those who haven't posted, please let us know if you received Winter Solstice cards, okay? Posting on this swap site will be fine. Jeanne has posted the January FOTESS swap and it sounds like it is going to be FUN!! She always has the best ideas! Check it out and join in! To close this swap, I want to wish all our members a peace-filled New Year, and remember, the Winter Solstice Season lasts for a few months, make the most of it! Shirley! PS - one Winter Solstice Season activity I totally forgot to mention was: feeding the birds. I'll leave you with one last WSS pic.