Fawnridge, thanks very much for those names, I did not know one of them. Whenever I saw a croton that I liked, I bought it and because they are so difficult to grow here in Cape Town, the nurseries do not bother with cv names. Tomas, that white orchid is definitely a Dendrobium, but not nobile. It might be a cv with nobile as one of the parents. The flowers are fuller than nobile and as you remarked, nobile flowers end of winter, beginning of spring and this white one mid to end of winter and then all through the year sporadically. It also flowers on stems that still have leaves where as nobile flowers from bare stems. Den nobile: Thanks Lisa. That upper storey greenhouse might be the answer! My first own seedlings have germinated already!!

Kevin, those are beautiful blossoms.. They must smell heavenly. Enjoy the warm nights if there are any left. Our trees do lousy once temps fall into the 40's.. Hi Pug! I wish I could say the same about the weather. I love the humidity and warmth just as much as my trees do. It gets hard for me to enjoy the cold every fall. I always wish I should of moved much further south when I had the opportunity. Even the Hoya's will be coming in as soon as this week(( Hope you are well. Good to see you as always. Mike

Air exchange heat pumps are only good, ( operational) to -10c. They start to bite at +5c, but are as efficient, ( the newer models) as geothermal for cooling, and for heat, within their designed operating range. Unfortunately, they use an electric heater as back up for when the temps fall below their operating range, and due to its small size and the inherent design, it is much less efficent than even proper electric baseboard heat at those temps. Geothermal are better in colder weather than heat pumps, because rather than trying to draw heat out of cold air, are drawing heat out of cool, (56 degree) soil. Other than the medium, (air vs. earth), there is little difference between geothermal and air exchange in the operating equiptment, ( compressors, exchange units, etc). The motors as yet, are major power consuming AC units, not the ultra efficient DC motors, but due to the source of the heat, geothermal is the most efficient source of electrically powered heating. With geothermal, you either need a lot of space to run a surface grid, or pay the costs of deep drilling to sink the coils in wells. Personally, the best method of heating, IMHO, is evacuated tube solar hot water radiant heat, backed up in colder climes with a demand hot water heater like a Bosch, with the thermostat set on cool, with passive solar for the day heat- evening gains. We face west, and being off grid, use evacuated tube solar hot water radiant heat, cycled through a electric hot water heater, converted to 24dc, that burns the excess solar and wind production, circulated by a efficient solar powered DC pump on its own panel. Once I added in an automatic switch to control the pump, ( the solar panel in the winter, still produces power when the solar hot water tubes are no longer producing heat), we find that this system produces all our heat and domestic hot water from April to November. We get some passive solar assist in the afternoon. The system stops providing enough heat when the outside temps reach -15c or 5F so it is backed up with a demand propane hot water heater (a Bosch). The system still provides some heat, so from December to April, the solar tubes basically pre-heat the water for the Bosch. All told, I spent $3800 for the Sunda tubes, the solar panel and DC pump, and the pump control. The DC element for the electric hot water heater was another $400, but I had to "burn off" that excess solar power somehow, and using seemed better than dumping it to a light bar. The Bosch cost another $1500, and all told, the plumbing cost about $800. I also built a Russian mass heater, ( a huge airtight fireplace that uses a quick fire, like a rocket heater, to heat a large mass of brick and stone), which we use in the winter, to boost the temps above the thermostat setting of 65F. First however, before I built any of this, we installed new windows and doors, rock wool insulation, (R32 in the walls, R50 in the ceiling), radiant heat barrier, and resheathed the exterior over R10 foam board to provide a thermal break between the studs and the sheathing. I might actually have R42 or higher in the walls! BTW, earlier a poster suggested closing off some attic vents. Dont! The attic vents keep the air moving above the insulation and prevent moisture buildup in the attic. Close off your vents and you will trap heat in the summer, baking you out of house and home, and will trap moisture in the winter, reducing the effectiveness of your insulation, and of course, growing mold. Older homes, if anything, dont have enough ventilation in the attic. If you reinsulate an older home, first make sure that you have soffit vents and good ventilation. When you reinsulate or add insulation, make sure you keep your soffit vents free and clear. For a final trick, when all your insulation is in place, top it off with a radiant heat barrier like a mylar film over the insulation. This wont do much to keep you warm in winter, but will make a huge difference in keeping you cool in summer.

LAST DAY OF SUMMER Last day of summer, what a bummer, Hostas startin' to die, Think I'm gonna cry, So long Fire and Ice, It's been very nice, See ya Christmas Candy, Sure has been dandy, Wait what's this I hear, Hosta seeds, have no fear, Who can say or who can know? What luscious seedlings you can grow? Give it a try and you just may see, A cool streaked one, just like me, So happy rest of summer all, This poem is corny, but I had a ball. By Shade Tolerant *********************************************************** A Few Nights Before a Hosta Christmas A few nights before Christmas, Katsu in her house. Stirring up cookie dough as quick as a mouse.. Garden catalogs were placed by the chimney with care, Hinting for gifts of more hostas dollars to share. Gardeners were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of hostas danced in their heads. Chocolate and her turkeys, Ken and his kids Shade and fenceberry Dreaming of hostas for bid. When out on Kens driveway there arose such a clatter. Was it nematodes or slugs? Or just what was the matter? Hey-J, and GREENGUY Paws4pets, too Ran to the window, Wondering what they should do. The moon on the breast of the mountain of snow, Made us yearn for summer and August Moons glow. When what to our wondering eyes should appear, Not Santa, no sleigh, no eight tiny reindeer. It was Papou from Canada Out about in the night. Mapping hostaholics to Post on his site. He was lively and quick And knew just what to do. Gathering names, and birthdays, And the every popular zip code, too. There was Kines and Hosta Freak Lavendargirl whew! So many hosta lovers, Bound to miss a few. How bout Marriedtomud Hybridizer extraordinaire Unrelated playinginmud Planting hostas with care. Theres Mulchlady, teresa, and Michigans Patann The list could go on, As far as it can. Yet, the map wont be complete, Without a special thanks to, The very heart of the Forum, Caliloo, Keeper of the FAQ With his map job well done Papou headed back home. Bringing amazement to all How far hosta lovers roam. But I heard him exclaim As midnight struck the clock, Wishing a Merry Christmas to all, And a hosta in every sock. Marsha AKA megaul ****************************************************** Hey_J looking her best!