I've had pothos do the same--shoot out "wild" strain green from a variegated plant. Guess we deserve it for forcing plants to do things they wouldn't normally do. ;o) I don't mind; the "natural" strains are usually hardier. On the other hand, convincing these plants that they'd be better off separated... *snort* BTW, I hope you all are happy--I ran into the Big W this morning before work to pick up some fuschias my mother's store didn't have, and guess what was new on the $5 houseplant rack? Hoyas! *bwa-ha-ha-ha* Of course I bought one. I killed most of my mother's houseplants this winter. :o( (I forgot that although geraniums love a sunroom in winter, tropical houseplants absolutely do not.) I owe her, if I can part with any of my purchases... *phhbbbbttt* I'm not going to play with you all any more! *lol* At this rate you'll have me cleaning my house, and setting up a schedule (*gasp*) so I can care for all of the new houseplants I'll undoubtably end up purchasing. I was independently wealthy the years when watering my houseplants took 10 gallons of water a week!!! Thanks for all of the great responses! ~ Wren

First of all, I'm sure your wife will really enjoy her new orchidarium when it's ready! 7' tall should be big enough, and don't underestimate the amount of light you will need. I assume you will light each level individually, since one fixture at the top would NOT be enough. You won't need to heat the unit at all, because normal room temps are enough, and the lights will add some heat. Don't buy 'grow lights' though. They are a waste of money. Instead, get 'cool whites' or 'Daylights' (the best). Better yet, get T5s. They are a slimmer bulb, with a much higher light output. And Homer is lucky to get a natural 10 degree temp. drop in his tanks. I sure don't! So I would add some kind of cooling system, unless the unit will be placed in a window, where it will naturally get cooler at night in the winter (a temp. drop is not generally required year 'round). For humidity, get a hydrofogger. Just a fountain won't do much. Either that, or hook up a misting system, though I have had to fiddle endlessly with mine, and it still doesn't work as well as I want it to, despite my having a much stronger pump (= finer mist) than the people at the store said I'd need. So I'd get a fogger. Someone here, I think it's Homer, hangs them from the top of the tank, so that the mist falls down over the plants. I think that's a good idea. Otherwise, it will tend to stay at the bottom of the tank. As for humidity control, if you want to get that complicated, I know nothing, but do a search on this forum, as that topic has been addressed before, with several good ideas. However, in an enclosed space, the humidity tends to stay at about 80%, which is perfect for orchids, so you could just have the humidifier on a timer, set to go off for five minutes every day or something like that. And yes, an orchidarium is way better than humidity trays! There is some debate as to whether humidity trays are any good at all, whereas everyone knows how great greenhouses are, big or small. Rather than one strong fan, I would put a few smaller fans throughout the unit. You'd probably need three computer fans (or their equivalent). Make sure the unit is pretty well sealed, or the fans will whisk all the humidity away. They don't even need to be vented to outside the tank, just let them circulate the air within the tank. Make sure the unit has front sliding or hinged doors! =) I asked my husband, an electrician, what you could do about the water getting on the light fixtures, and there is basically no fixture that will last forever without rusting that doesn't cost a fortune. (You would need to get vapour-proof or explosion-proof lights, which run at $800 per light. Ouch!). He suggested buying regular shop lights, the cheap fixtures that you can get at HD, or your T5 fixture if you go with those bulbs, and making the shelves out of wood that has plastic laminate on it. (I know most orchidariums use egg-crate shelves so that the water can drain away, but perhaps you can cut the shelves on a sligh angle, so that the water drains away to the sides and not directly onto the light fixture below it). Then mount your light fixture to that, sealing the screw holes with silicone or duct seal or similar product. Then you could build a sort of shield around the lights, so that water cannot directly spray onto them. Of course they would still eventually rust because of the high humidity levels, but it would be less dangerous. Take the diffusers off the light fixtures though, as they only block some light from reaching the plants. This will expose the bulbs underneath, but that shouldn't be too dangerous. Also, make sure everything is on a GFCI breaker or a GFCI plug. That way if anything shorts out, no one will get electrocuted, and no electrical fires will start. BTW, what are you planning on making this out of? Glass? Plexi?

The prettiest hair color I've seen is on a lady at my church: she has short black hair turning gray & as it gets more gray, she has a few strands all over dyed back blackish gray so it is such a beautiful & natural looking 'salt & pepper'(forget what the stylists call this procedure!) & she is able to keep it that way. Another lady has what I call the 'reverse Jay Leno': she had black hair that is all white now so she dyes it coal black & leaves a small portion in front the natural white color! Jay's is all naturally white now with a black wisp in the front... like a skunk I call it! I do think some persons have something similar that they were born with though. Many of our Native Americans here in the Southwest keep their long beautiful 'salt & pepper hair in beautiful braids or huge buns & nothing more beautiful than that natural beauty! A senior citizen that keeps her hair long,hanging loose down the back & dyed jet black (usually with the roots showing pure white!) ? ... uh, uh!!

Annie I too would never serve eggs with fish at home...at the time we just took the fastest dishes on the menu as it was late and we were hungry lol! Here they always seem to add an egg onto combo plates served in touristic eateries. Eggs together with a hamburger pattie and chips is common. Never have I ever seen a Caesar salad on a Spanish menu though. Just seems to be unknown over here. As a point of interest, you won't find burgers or sandwiches on restaurant menus here as I've seen in Canada. When you order a hamburger (hamburguesa) you get a meat pattie with vegetables. You have to go to a McD or similar to get the ones in buns, and for a bocadillo....a sandwich made from a baquette you would go to a bar or cafe where they may also have toasted ham & cheese sandwiches. However if you're in the neighbourhood of an English bar or pub you could probably get a sandwich as their food is planned more for British tourists. SharonCb