I have a question. One of my seedlings had the top broken off a few weeks ago, by a #@&@&!*(*($ squirrel that has a death wish. The topmost lateral branch (and only branch it had at the time, in fact) has continued growing much longer, and has somewhat turned more upright, as if trying to make a new leader. At the same time, several new shoots are starting in the axils of the needles along the stem, including one right next to the lateral branch that's now turning upward. Should I take that branch that's already trying to become the new leader, and stake it straight up? It's flexible enough to do so. Or - should I just let it go for a while and see what happens? I actually pushed a bamboo stake in the pot this morning but stopped short of trying to tie it straight.

Lynn, when I moved, all my roses came with me except for 4 that I gave to neighbor friends. It's less work because they were already all in pots. Allison, Brigadoon was terrific for me when I lived in Mobile. That time I did leave quite few roses behind, taking only young plants and rooted cuttings. That plant was so big and robust that I didn't want to "sentence it" to life in a pot. But it is a beauty. Regarding Over the Moon, I'm missing Valencia, which was a gangly grower for me but with beautiful and fragrant blooms that lasted well. I've kinda been on the lookout for a worthy apricot replacement for it. Regarding Rock & Roll, I think I'm going to have to get it to go along with the Red Intuition and Pink Intuition I already have. Used to grow Scentimental, but the blooms always shattered after just a day or two; too frustrating. As for Silverado, jury's still out for me. I have grown Paradise--several years. It's striking and a great bloomer of modestly sized blooms, but that raspberry edging is quit a different effect than paler lavender. It was a good bush but extra sensitive to garden chemicals; always needed extra diligent watering. If I had unlimited space, I'd still have it, but it was replaced by Fragrant Plum, another good rose, but it has not been the impressive bloomer that Paradise was. I recently bought a young rooted Blue Moon from Heirloom Roses. Nice delicate lavender color, but the bloom form still hasn't impressed me. I'm reserving judgment until it's third year. We'll see. Always on the lookout for a worthy lavender, though. If I don't buy Silverado, I may try Enchanted Evening. I just don't know if I'll be able to get cutting roses from it or if they'll all be in big bloom clusters. I don't have many floribundas, largley because of my bias toward HT form. Thanks for the input so far, everyone! Mike

I probably shouldn't have mentioned my variegated arundo donax, since the discussion was about northern grown vs. southern grown hostas, and the fact that the location or environment in which a hosta is grown does not alter its genetic make-up. To answer greenguy, you'll have to look around and find someone who has a big clump...it will be much easier to start if you get a sizeable root mass to begin with. If you can't find it local, then you'll need to order it from a supplier like Kurt Bluemel, Inc. (http://www.kurtbluemel.com/) or other on-line source. As far as being aggressive, the plain green arundo is much more vigorous and grows like crazy (mine will be 22-24 ft. tall this Fall). It's considered a pest weed in many southern States and California. However, the variegated is not nearly as invasive and is very well-behaved here in Michigan. I recommend planting it in very rich, deep topsoil, full sun, all the water you can give it; fertilize it in Spring with manure. Don

I am just about finished painting my cabinets, which had already been painted at least twice - the last time badly done by PO with cheap paint and the paint was peeling/chipping. I found a post on GW about painting cabinets which was very helpful. Essentially, sand the surface to remove and rough or peeling previous pain or in your case to rough up the surface for better adhesion. Key step: PRIME. Use a good primer, the thread I found recommended the primer I used which was expensive for Primer ($38/gallon) but it did seem to do a great job and I only needed about 1/3 gallon and I had to do cabinet faces as well. It is Sherwin Williams Problock latex primer, designed to adhere to glossy and previously painted surfaces. Use one coat, over-priming is not good. This primer can be topcoated after 1 hour, so you can apply the paint after that time has elapsed. I am using BM Aura because I wanted a BM color. However BM also has Cabinet Coat which is supposed to be excellent for cabinets. It is more of an enamel finish. I wanted a regular latex because it is more flexible and my cabinets had already been painted a few times so there are multiple paint layers and I suspected a hard paint might crack. For your unpainted cabinets though Cabinet Coat might be better. I primed and painted the backs of the doors first, then flipped over and did the fronts. That way I could sand off any drips that came around onto the front, and any mars from having the uncured paint face down would be on the inside of the door. I let it all dry for 24 hours before flipping over of course. But the paint is not fully cured at that point. I put the doors on strips of wood to elevate off the ground and allow edges to be painted, but painting on a table would have been far more comfortable. I did it outside because it minimized paint fumes in the house. I used a brush, not a roller. I've never been able to get paint smooth with those foam rollers I get bubbles everywhere. When painting over original wood you are supposed to paint with the grain not against. Mine I alternated the primer and paint since there is no remaining grain to show through all the existing paint coats! It's a lot of work but as the kitchen is functional without cabinet doors, you can do a few at a time and not rush. Having them professionally painted would certainly be a lot easier, but with the paint costs only, it is very cheap (less than $100) to DIY.