First, let me say that as a professional writer, I am very much in favor of protecting your work. I believe we should all respect protected items of any kind. I get really angry when someone plagiarizes my work, but in reality, I don't have time to try to find every copied article or blog post, so I'm sure I catch many fewer than there are. That being said, and having worked for a grower with patented cactus, nobody is going to come into your yard and arrest you for having a Snowbank without the original tag or proof you bought it. They go after the sellers most of the time, not the gardeners. After 20 years, there are so many illicit cuttings of Snowbank out there, that they probably are only pursuing people who are reported. I'd report a nursery or online seller who was violating the law, but I would never report a gardener who had one in their yard. First, the only way to prove it really IS a Snowbank is with a genetic test, which is very expensive, and the patent owners are not likely to go out and test every suspect plant found in every yard, because it just isn't cost effective. People lie, so even if someone asks where you got your Snowbank, and they ARE the plant police, they aren't going to arrest you or charge you if you say you got it as a NOID brug from another gardener. You are under no legal obligation to rat out your trading partner or friend, and you could simply say that you didn't keep records of your trades, so you had no idea where you got it. Unless you have a backyard full of them, they aren't going to arrest you and confiscate your computer to find out where you got it originally. If you are selling them, they may do just that, though. Let's not all start freaking out. Just respect the law, and if someone sends you a NOID variegated brug, love it and take care of it and don't sell cuttings.

It seems too good to be true. My kids finally get to see snow. My wife bought a '73 VW Superbeelte from a lady who had moved here from WA state and it came with snow tires. Do you think I need to put them on the car? LOL. Know what you mean about the potted plants I had a bromeliad to bring and I was done. I'll just cover the blueberries and miniature figs and say a little prayer.

As you can tell I don't visit here as much as I use to, but I will try to answer your questions. Island I did nothing special when I planted it I only added add some potting soil when I dug the hole, and really not a lot of potting soil. Yes the ground does freeze here to give an example I think water lines must be installed three feet below ground so that should give you some idea of how far the ground freezes. Kat, I think it has been three years from the second picture to the first. I am kind of loosing track of time with it. I really need to go through my digital camera and get the dates off the pictures I have saved most of them I think. It has been colder than normal this late fall for some reason, however I think it going to be in the 60's tomorrow so that will make the palm happy. I have one Windmill that I have grown from a seeding and now it is about a five gallon size and I am going to plant it in the front yard,in the spring which is not really good spot because the house will shade it early in the morning which I think help the plant in the picture to help it warm up a little with the first morning light.

yarnlover...LOL..thanks but I didn't paint this one...it was a card that I bought a few years ago...I love it. patti