So there are qualifications to your original post about mosses that you did not make clear? The point I made is if you have moss growing on your soil check that soil to find out why the mosss is growing there. Do not assume certain fixed beliefs about moss, but dig in and look closely and correct the problems found. Do not simply go and buy some lime, which may not be the right kind and what you do need, and spread it around and waste your money, time, and energy, but have a good, reliable soil test done to determine whether what you need is a calcitic or dolomitic lime and how much would be needed to start to coreect the problem and also look at the level of humus in that soil and get more in there.

I can only tell you about what i have seen whith my meyer lemon tree. this is the first winter it has gone thru. I can tell you though that the fact that the flowers are paler may be from the diffrences in the light. The artificial light source is not going to give you the same flower color as the natural sun. My meyer's flower color is now white without the purple tinge. I also have fruits that are more of a golden color than yellow. I don't think that means you don't have a meyer lemon. Also, the fruit cluster not looking as good could be from just moving it indoors. What kind of light are you using on your tree? I have not removed any of my new blooms and my tree does not seem to be affected by it negatively either. I know that I am not an expert but I have been growing citrus indoors for a few years now, and have only lost one tree to root rot. I do know that floursecent light set ups are not going to be of any good use to you so I wouls not encourage using those. Andrew

Not sure what area of ME you're in, so don't know your zone, which would affect your list of possibilities. Red oak is hardy to zone 3, and pin oak is good to 4, both have an average growth rate of close to 2'/yr once established in good conditions, and both have the benefit of beautiful fall colours. We purchased a few young pin oaks this spring, and I am really liking their form and colour, more so than the red oak. Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica) is quite tolerant of soil conditions, with beautiful fall colours as well, and some cultivars are faster growing than others. If you wish to look outside the box, bald cypress (taxodium distichum) may work if you are in zone 5, likes moist to wet soils, is very fast growing, and has beautiful, soft, ferny foliage. I don't expect their are many bald cypress in ME! Katsura (cercidiphyllum japonicum) is hardy to zone 4, adaptable, and relatively fast growing though may take some time to become established. It also colours beautifully in fall, though its heart shaped blue green leaves are pretty enough throughout the year, and has an added bonus that when the leaves colour in fall and are warmed a little by the sun, they emit a wonderfully sweet fragrance that has been likened to caramelized brown sugar or cotton candy. Even my young seedling has done this. Have fun in your search, and don't be afraid to get creative!

Yeah, three or four years is pretty good. My cherimoya that I got from Home Depot last year flowered this year in late May thru June. I successfully hand pollinated about ten flowers, got fruitlets that grew to about 10mm. Over the course of the past two to three weeks, the fruitlets decided to drop on their own, leaving me with now three of the smallest fruitlets that I doubt will make it to harvest. :( i guess they drop because this is their first year flowering and producing fruit?