Well, chaz; there is not just one! Actually, there is no secret at all. They need a nice, deep trench to grow in with moist, friable soil. They like their heads in the sun and their feet in shade (easily accomplished). You must start with good seed; something I am sure you understand with your quality Hippeastrum. Sweet peas are a cool weather annual. They like to be given enough time to develop a good root system. Many times when they are sown early, people do not reailze that they are actually growing right on schedule; but it is the root that is developing, not the plumule. In your area of the country which has harsh winters, you would want to start them in the house early enough to get a good couple inches of growth, but not so long that they are hopelessly pot bound. This means starting them about six to eight weeks before you wish to plant them. Probably around February to Mid-April would work well for you. Start them in the house, with no heat unless you have very cold rooms; they germinate at about 70 F but like cool rooms and weather; so once they are up, keep them cool and put them outside as soon as you can. They can even take a frost if they have been started cold enough. Keep them moist but do not overwater. They will start coming up between 7-10 days. I start mine in indiviual pots of about 4 inches. You can get the sweet pea bed ready the autumn before, if you wish. They will not be living there until the weather turns nicer. This means putting them in a full sun area and digging a trench about 12-18 inches deep. Avoid planting close to an established hedge or where there will be competition from tree roots. Amend the soil with good compost and manure well rotted; of course. Let this overwinter on its own after being dug out, and the frost and snow and rain will condition it for you; making it friable and weather ready. You can also plant in barrels or deep containers if you wish. Just make sure they are deep enough; they like the cool soil around their roots. About 18 inches or more is right for quality peas. If your sweet peas are blossoming, but you only get one or two, consdider where they are, first: are they in enough sun? Do you water them about two inches per week once established? If in the ground, do you keep the roots cool with mulch? Do you start them early enough and when and where are you getting your seed? They can grow weakly if overfertilized. I do not fertilize until after the first flowering, and even then only at half strength. Do not use a fertilizer rich in nitrogen as they are nitrogen-fixed; as are most legumes. Believe it or not, but a good brand of a balanced tomato food is ideal. For young plants, slugs and snails can be a real problem, so bait for them must be put out THE SAME DAY you plant your young seedlings in the garden. There is nothing worse than seeing your peas bitten down to the ground by these voracious molluscs. It is an idea to have your supports in place before you plant as well. Much easier. I am sure if you work on these things your fantasy of fully-flowering trellises of peas can be accomplished. If there is anything particular I can help you with, please do let me know. I am never tired of talking peas!

Jody-YES that is a very brilliant green star! I was surprised to get this much color. The green stay and the burgundy striping, especially on the back of the flowers amaze me. The photo in the online catalogue did not seem to have this much color. Plus, Soultan mentioned that there was nothing Green about Green Magic, so I expected a much paler bloom. The star shape is cool, like a starfish. It also seems, looking at all 4 blooms emerging now, that this is one of those that doesn't fully spread open, just teases you to look inside. It's first bloom is about 3/4 open and seems to hold that position. ps let me know if you want San Remo seeds...email me!! Eliz!!! Her girl, you would love this one! San Remo and Charisma would be stunning, I agree. Unfortunately I missed my window of opportunity crossing them. Charisma did not bloom very long and the only seed pod that seems to be taking is the selfing one. BTW-the Charisma crossed seeds you sent me are amazing! Still growing strong. I lost the orig tag, but I think it may have been an Exotica mix. They sure are hardy seedlings and getting so big. I can't wait till we get to see the outcome!

It's near the top of the burgeoning "must have" portion of my constantly growing "wish list"! My dream would be to have enough space and enough light to have one of every hippeastrum variety, and more than one of the varieties I really like! Of course, it's only a dream... as it is, I am finding that I need to be a bit more picky in the varieties I choose as I'm running out of space to keep all of my bulbs happy! If they were all miniatures, I'd have plenty of room... but many of the hybrids are so big, and the leaves grow so tall and long, that I am having trouble finding appropriate places to keep them all! San Remo will be one I collect, though... Cindee has had such a wonderful time with hers, and it's so beautiful, that I just must have it! Plus, it appears to be extremely fertile, and that's a consideration. I almost wish some of these were ugly... it would make keeping the collection to a manageable size a lot easier! I'm at over 45 bulbs, and counting! We still have the summer Aussie order coming up, and that will net about 6 more bulbs... and I have 1 bulb on order right now... and I just got 5 bulbs recently... it's becoming more of an obsession than an addiction, or is it an obsessive addiction? I don't know... I just know I'm in deep, and I must gain some control at some point so I don't end up with so many plants that I can't care for them all properly!

Meyer-keep an eye out on Jungle Jack's website for the open house announcement next year. I only learned about him from the great folks here. You could purchase from him online at his website and he has an eBay store with a few varieties. On eBay he is under californiahoya. Nearly everything I have purchased has had inflo.'s or multiple branches or both! I'll paste a link to his website for you. This was my first time to go, so I don't know if he has one each year, but the more experienced folks here will know the answer to that one. Plumeria shopping! What a great excuse for a vacation to sunny CA. Not sunny on that day but it was worth it! Here is a link that might be useful: JJ