Hi Rebecca, Those leaves being there are really not that uncommon. Sometimes that pair of leaves are more robust than others. Sometimes those leaves will turn into a plantlet all by itself. I find that happens more often with miniature trailers but I have seen it happen on other kinds of violets too. It will be interesting to see if those two leaves turn into a plant. As far as the leaves being pointy and the violets having round leaves, I'm not sure that it means anything. Yes, it would be interesting to see a picture to see exactly what you are referring to. Larry

It's that time of year again. I cleaned up the Nun's orchids yesterday. I cut off the spent inflorescence (flower stem) and all of the prior year growth. I cut the old leaves off at the top of the pseudobulb. If the new year's growth has started, you have to be careful not to cut it off in the process. Each pseudobulb sends up two new sets of leaves, on either side of the prior year. Those will each become mature pseudobulbs that can eventually be separated, if you want. I also repotted them in fresh potting mix. I up-potted some of them into larger containers. Nun's orchids have thick, fleshy white roots and boy, they will fill a pot. I lift the entire pseudobulb mass, gently shake off all the old potting mix and tease the roots until they are hanging straight down. Then I root-prune by cutting off the lowest 1/3 of the roots... otherwise, I would not be able to get them back into their pots! Fresh potting mix, put the plant back into the pot, gently shake the pot as I continue to add mix - shake it a lot - to make sure all of the roots are covered and no air pockets left, add time-release fertilizer, a layer of pine bark mulch on the top, water thoroughly, and back to a shady spot. Done for another year! Next, address those stems. I cut them into sections, two nodes per section. Make sure you know which end goes down. I do that by making the bottom cut square (straight) and the top cut at an angle. Remove the triangular green sheath over each node. Using a stipple (a stick, pencil or anything that will make a hole), I made a hole in the ground in an all-day shady spot. Placed them vertical in the hole, one node below ground, one node above. Watered in well. Needs to be kept moist. Hopefully will root and form new plants. Yay! How are your Nun's orchids doing this year? Carol

My wife Suzanne and I learned how voracious monarch caterpillars can be when we set up a monarch breeding colony after we moved to Naples, Florida (Zone 10b). To protect the adults and caterpillars in our garden from birds and other predators, we installed a large (36-by-60-foot) covered screened enclosure, which we now also use as a sunny and mosquito-free dining patio. In the enclosure, we planted dozens of flowering milkweeds, which provide the only leaves monarch caterpillars eat. We watched as the butterflies laid their eggs on the milkweeds, and the caterpillars that hatched out dined on the leaves.At first we could hardly believe what a good appetite the cats had. We resigned ourselves to buying more milkweeds to meet the demand, until the eaten plants can regenerate their leaves and the milkweed cuttings we planted elsewhere had a chance to grow. When the cats grow large enough, they create their chrysalides in which they develop, and weeks later they emerge as beautiful monarchs. You can click on each of the photos we made here to enlarge it and see its details.In nature, the chrysalides would normally be hung from branches, but in our screened enclosure, they seem to prefer to hang from the enclosure's frame. When the green coverings become transparent, we love watching the new butterflies emerge and spread their wet wings out to dry. They eventually take their first flight in the enclosure, totally safe from predators. Now when we dine, we have literally hundreds of butterflies flying all around us, and occasionally landing on our heads, shoulders or hands. Here’s a photo we took of two pairs of monarchs mating to produce the next generation:Since we starting breeding monarchs, we've also bred five other local species of butterflies, providing the specific varieties of plants necessary to feed their own caterpillars. We've never before felt closer to nature. Our visitors have the same reaction, especially the members of our Gardeners of Southwest Florida group. The club schedules free gardening classes two or three times a month throughout the year. The classes are sometimes held in our garden and its enclosure, and often in the gardens of many other members. In that way our members and their guests can learn which plants each class host grows successfully in this semi-tropical environment. Class topics include butterfly gardening and dozens of other subjects, each designed to make Floridians better gardeners.Everything in our group is free: membership, classes, snacks, drinks, etc. Its extensive and informative web site at www.meetup.com/FloridaGardeners includes hundreds of photos and full details of the 123 previous gardening classes and upcoming classes. Over 1,300 families with gardens around Naples and Fort Myers are current members of the group, and more are always welcome. Whether you'd like to attract butterflies to your property or learn other gardening techniques, we feel you'd enjoy meeting many other local gardeners by joining this free group. Here are some of them posing after a class in the screened enclosure in our Naples garden:Peter Kacalanos and Suzanne Cherney, leaders, Gardeners of Southwest Florida

I looks in good condition. Maybe too cold in winter? Do you warm your house up much? Recommended temperature range in the old temperatures is 60 to 90F. Mine are getting strongly filtered sunlight in winter.