what a difference a month makes! the first (bad quality) pic is my sunshine blueberry plant with new leaves on every branch. the second pic is of another bb plant (i can't remember the variety) which never lost its leaves over winter- it's doing even better, already putting out new shoots from the branches. the plants are only on their 2nd years - i haven't pinched any of the flowers, or pruned any of the spindly branches near the base touching the ground- i get the feeling like i should I have, but is it too late to do so? This post was edited by tehol on Mon, Mar 4, 13 at 19:13

Thank you, Pirate Girl and Norma, for your very helpful responses! You are surely right about one thing, I have learned a Lot by reading over the past week--first, this forum's FAQ and archived Christmas cactus threads; then some other excellent information sites on the web. These other sites originated from botany and horticulture departments of various universities. It's hard to know where to start, so I'll just hit points as they fit. Plant wrappings are no problem; I generally remove them soon after getting a plant. Also in the process of elimination is the notion that normal movement, without significant temp change, is detrimental. After all, every one of my Christmas cacti was Moved in the process of its being presented to me--some for quite some distance on trucks or through the mail! All came in bud or in bloom, and none lost any significant number of buds. Having tried to ferret out the reason for bud drop for some time, I am aware from experience that these plants do not want to be household warm when they move into the blooming mode. Mine live, all year, where it is coolest in winter (diurnal range of 55 to 68 F.) in good bright light, but shielded from direct sun. This plant's need for uniform cool winter temps is what originally prompted me to use only cold water, but you surely have a point, Pirate Girl. Cold water in a temperate climate is a far cry from Cool water in the subtropics. It is entirely possible that this watering temp has been shocking these budded plants--even though the same temp water was used for weeks leading up to the actual bud drop. When Norma 2006 wrote: 'In nature they grow high in trees have fast drainage,...' she gave me an 'AHA! moment'. For some reason I had never read and never realized that Christmas cacti were EPIPHYTES! No wonder my poor CCs struggle to bloom! Heavy watering (saturation of pot) can smother roots in close or compacted media; and pot saturation in cool temps can promote root rot. Either way, bud blast will result. This was born out in at least two information sources I read, Clemson University and the U. of North Dakota (live link below). Finally, Pirate Girl wrote: 'Don't know where got your idea abt maybe water being trapped in the bottom of the pot & the paper towel business, don't think this is true or a problem. Pls. forget that completely & stop blotting the plant like that.' This principle (for which I cannot take credit, by the way) was first explained to me in a post by Al a.k.a. 'tapla,' a soil and Bonsai specialist who frequently posts on GW forums. (The principle is explained, again, in one of tapla's recent posts noted, below, after my signature.) This principle concerns the percentage of water which never drains from a pot and how it becomes detrimental to potted plants. It made immediate good sense to me. Wicking away this water ("the paper towel business") is my short term solution to water retention problems. As said at the beginning of this post, I've learned a lot over the past week. Norma's revelation (to me) that these plants were epiphytes in the wild pointed me to the primary cause of my plants' bud blast. I was suffocating them. While it is possible that cold water was also a contributing factor, that will remain to be seen next blooming season. My plan of contrition is to repot my Christmas cacti into loose media more befitting housebound epiphytes, and to avoid media saturation for the duration of their bloom period and, except for flushing, thereafter. As a test, I plan to separate out two of the five CCs and treat them exactly the same as the other three, except for watering them with cold water, instead of room temp. Norma and Pirate Girl (and Al!), thank you very much for your time and help in thinking this through. Here's hoping for persistent CC buds next blooming season! Sweetcicely ~ tapla Post: 'Be a plant P.I. (very long post)' paragraph 15 which begins, 'Let us take a moment to consider the cultural effects of growing in a poor soil as opposed to a good soil.' This is located at the following URL: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/houseplt/msg1215043526101.html?32 Here is a link that might be useful: Christmas Cactus saturation and Bud Drop

Although I know a lot more than when I started, I suggest asking a lot of others besides me when it comes to getting good answers about blueberries. I don't think we have a lot of experienced people here in Oklahoma, though. If I could have found a good, reliable source for 3 or 4 gallons of blueberries each year, I probably wouldn't be growing my own now. During winter and early spring before budbreak, you can tell which buds will have berries and which will be plant growth. The big, fat ones (usually at the ends of last years shoots) will make berries. I've learned that it is a good idea to prune off more of these than I would like to in order to still get good plant growth and have tasty berries. If my plants are shorter than 2 feet (about 3 yr old or less), I prune off almost all of them (but leave a few to see how each plant will taste). I have forgetton the exact timing of budbreak and blooming. I do know that when we had the late freeze last April (I forgot the date) that about 50% of the blooms were open. Losing 50% of the blooms might have been a good idea on my older plants since I didn't prune enough. My most important 2 reminders are (1) to mulch with about 4 inches of pecan shells (best), fine pine mulch (good), or pine needles (ok) - or better yet, mixtures of them all; and (2) keep the roots moist all the time. One ten-day vacation in July without them getting water and they may be all dead when you come back. The roots don't even go down a foot. All of my open space came at a steep price. We had to live for 10 years in Texas (good jobs and no state income tax) in order to save for it.

Interesting. I will look at my ficus tomorrow. They are all outdoors. I haven't checked them recently but will look to see if they are making new growths. I use rain water to water my potted plants. I also use Dynamite time release with micro nutrients on the potted plants. The sand (soil) in Florida is quite alkaline. My ficus, in the ground are in full sun. The potted plants get some shading. They are placed under an oak tree. I'll post back after I check. I'll take some pictures. Jane