Del, Thank you for your advice, I will try it when the occasion presents itself.. most of the time I don't even bother to look at the doubles but, this one was just right there and I couldn't miss it! Aseedisaproimise, I wouldn't worry too much about self pollenating your pink.. whatever it is will be a pleasant surprise and I'm sure you'll get some lovely flowers...and most likely your seedings will all be different anyway so you may never know...unless of course you get a double..! Well, I thought I had Flaming Peacock pollen but I didn't so it was down to Alfresco (fresh) or Blossom Peacock (several months old) so, I chose Alfresco..I have enough of that left for many more dabs and I've already had sucess with a couple of other crosses this season using Alfresco's pollen. Off the top of my head if I had had to choose something else I really don't know what it would have been anyway...so here she is after her second dab..I will continue for several days and let's see what happens. I'd love to be sucessful and share some as I wouldn't want to grow too many of them myself... Donna

Hello everyone -- so....amaryllis season is at its peak now and I've been hearing about many of you all receiving your bulbs in the mail. Please post and share the condition of your bulbs and share your raves and disappointments with the forum community. =) New comers -- please feel free to share what you've ordered. Since the last time I posted, I have ordered quite a bit: John Scheepers Alfresco Amputo Amalfi Exotica Exotic Star Papilio Improved (again....because the one I purchased last season was a no-bloom) Misty Ruby Meyers Snow White Rozetta Gurneys Little Devil Zombie Jungle Bells Edens Blooms/RareBulbs Bellisimo Blushing Bride Bright Spark Evergreen Green Dragon Peach Blossom Lemon Sorbet Jade Serpent Privately Amsterdam Charisma Cherry Nymph Full House Moonlight Neon Rose Paris Pasadena Pink Diamond Pink Nymph Splash Sweet Lillian If you're thinking I'm crazy...I'm thinking the same as well. I have no idea how I'm going to fit all these bulbs in my home (I don't have a greenhouse) and I've spent several hundreds of $$$ on just the bulbs (I'm going to also have to purchase potting soil/claypots). You know what the most saddest thing is? I sorta lied to myself ordering all these bulbs saying I would give most of them away as Christmas gifts. However, going down the list, all of the varieties are not in my collection yet so it would make no sense to give them away as gifts. I think the most atrocious thing of all is, I still want to buy more bulbs. I would love to order Ambiance from Royal Colors and would be happy to have Popov in my collection. With that said, I haven't even taken a look at whats available locally and I know I'll buy certain varieties if I don't have them. I know, I know....I think I'm addicted. Yet, I try to make myself feel better by telling myself that this addiction is better than being addicted to drugs or alcohol and plus, I only splurge at this advanced pace only once a year (amaryllis season). I'm sure many of you all in the U.S. are feeling it, but the economy is a mess. At times like this, people are encouraged to spend less, and save. I feel bad about pampering myself with all these bulbs. But yet again, I try to reason with my inner me by telling myself that if I don't spend, I'm making the economy worse off by not putting money into our financial system, therefore not giving businesses revenue, making people lose jobs due to lack of sales/profits. Excuses, excuses, excuses.....I know. How I am going to explain all these new pots and bulbs to my friends and family who visit, I do not know and cannot tell. But, I find peace within myself thinking of the plethora of shapes and colors I will have before me during the cold winter months here in Virginia. Thank you all for listening (this has been really getting at my conscience) and I appreciate your support. I will be sure to share tons and tons of photos for all of your amaryllis lovers throughout the world. Have a great weekend everyone! =)

"I was wondering what are the easiest, most fruit bearing trees to plant in Southern California. (I just put in a dwarf avocado and I also have two figs, a pomegranate, lemon, lime, and orange. Do you think its wise to try apples or peaches? The citrus trees seem to have a lot of different maladies, while the figs seem to be thriving on their own.)" "Sunset Zone 23 has always been Southern California's best zone for avocados"-Sunset. Natural, ideal fit for Suptropical So Cal - Avocados, Figs, Pomegranates, Persimmons Jujube Loquat Citrus (great evergreens, but recent disease issues) Low chill Apricot/Aprium, Low Chill Plum/Pluot, Low Chill Nectarine/hybrids Mangos, Bananas, Guavas & other tropicals (esp. if you have a hot, south-facing wall.) Fussier Trees - Peaches (climate), Cherimoya (hand pollination), low-chill cherry (Royal pair can take 7 years to sync up & produce fruit), apple of any chill rating (grow just fine, but one blight can wipe them out), pear (grow just fine, but one blight can wipe them out) Consider first: Sunset zone information - quite helful How "low chill" do you need? (Compare to Sunset maps) If you want fruit, you have to select varieties with chill requirements less than the number of chill hours you get in the majority of years. (If your chill range is 150-500, a tree rated 400 might give fruit prolifically one in every seven years.) I would set the Dave Wilson Nursery tool under your median chill hour to look for varieties. Not trees, but good perennial fruit: Kiwi, Grapes, Passionfruit, Low chill southern highbush blueberries, Low chill hybrid caneberries (boysen, olallie, rasp, black etc), Gogi, etc. --------------- One more link: Here is the VERY helpful Dave Wilson Chill Zone selection tool. It's a very long link, but I've adjusted the settings to get you started. Make sure you adjust these settings for just under your average chill hours per year (set here for 300) and your USDA zone (set here for 10). If you have FROST (most don't), then maybeadjust the harvest dates too.): http://www.davewilson.com/product-information/quick-screen/fruit-varieties-zone-chill-testing?field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=apple&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=apricot&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=cherry&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=fig&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=jujube&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=nectarine&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=peach&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=pear&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=persimmon&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=plum&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=interspecifics&field_product_fruit_group_value%5B%5D=domestica&field_product_zone_lowest_value_op=%3C%3D&field_product_zone_lowest_value%5Bvalue%5D=10&field_product_zone_lowest_value%5Bmin%5D=&field_product_zone_lowest_value%5Bmax%5D=&field_product_zone_highest_value_op=%3E%3D&field_product_zone_highest_value%5Bvalue%5D=10&field_product_zone_highest_value%5Bmin%5D=&field_product_zone_highest_value%5Bmax%5D=&field_product_chill_hours_value_op=%3C%3D&field_product_chill_hours_value%5Bvalue%5D=300&field_product_chill_hours_value%5Bmin%5D=&field_product_chill_hours_value%5Bmax%5D=&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmin%5D%5Byear%5D=2012&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmin%5D%5Bmonth%5D=1&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmin%5D%5Bday%5D=1&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmax%5D%5Byear%5D=2012&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmax%5D%5Bmonth%5D=12&field_harvest_date_value%5Bmax%5D%5Bday%5D=31

Linden is I believe North Jersey, but closer to Central Jersey. Cherry Hill is considered south Jersey, and right across the river from Philadelphia, I live east of there. I would check any Home Depot in your area too. I think the way it works with EA is that at certain times, certain varieties are ready for distribution and all go out at once. These had just arrived, one of them was still in a plastic sleeve. There is a garden center near me that sells EA and a few times before the owner placed an order I requested a few different hoyas, and EA sent them - though it depends on what they have and what is ready. I got a linearis that way, and since I was the first person to ever take care of it, it was never abused by any garden center workers and is one of the few EA's that made it for me. I would love to get a longifolia, but you never see that one. I think EA calls it something like "Shamapry" I have a small pot of cuttings that someone sent me last year, but they are from old growth and are not doing much. Anyway, if you (or anyone else!) can find a garden center in your area that sells EA, you could see if they would order one for you. I heard last fall that EA was going to start selling retail from their website, but I don't know if it was true or if it has happened yet.