I agree too. The leaves of âÂÂAutumn Spiritâ appear to have winter sun scald which is unattractive but not deadly or very serious. âÂÂPink Icicleâ has a little damage but it definitely is either getting too much winter sun or needs something, probably nitrogen. But before adding some fertilizer, I would suggest a soil test to confirm. Many plant nurseries sell a cheap soil test that checks for high/low levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and pottasium. All you have to do is combine a pill (there is a different pill for each of the three minerals) with a soil sample and water; shake/let it sit for some predetermined time and then see what color the solution has. You can add some blood meal if the soil is low in nitrogen. Blood meal is an organic slow-release fertilizer that is high in nitrogen. While you are at it, check to make sure that you still have 3-4" of mulch and check the soil pH. There is not much you can do about the existing leaves (except cut them of course) but, see if new growth will help hide them until they are all covered by the new growth or they fall down. I remember that yellowing and falling down of old leaves in some sasanquas that I have occurs around June-ish. In the future, try watering them the night before cold temps to see if that helps (assuming the soil has not frozen). Do a few searches on the forum to see what others do to prep the plant leaves when unusually cold temps occur. I have used some christmas lights on non-camellias that have given me trouble before. Luis This post was edited by luis_pr on Fri, May 10, 13 at 5:16

The climate will be a problem. Macrophyllas like Nikko Blue do well up to Zone 6 and need winter protection in Zone 5. Zone 4 might just be too tough. If I were the nursery, I would have put them in the Annuals Section! As far as the sand goes, the plant will do fine if you mix compost with the sand, fertilize with organic compost in Spring and water 1.5 times more than normal. For example, a new hydrangea can gulp 1 gallon of water per watering but in sandy soil, I would give it 1.5 gallons instead. PS - Sorry for the late reply. I just saw your post.

Hi Roberta... Your question is good..however...us "pros" use plug trays in many ways. FIrst, it depends on the size of the plugs...for instance, I use 501's- that means there are 501 tiny cells per tray. Those would be for things with super tiny seed...begonias, petunias ect. It is unlikely you are using those though. There are many, many sizes. My guess is you have 72's or, perhaps 35's. Does not really matter..the answer to your question about soil is what you need. Use the BEST stuff you can find, a soiless mix (all peat based). The best thing you can do is pop into a greenhouse and ask if they will sell you a bag of their mix(it is a commercial blend sold to growers, many different brands). It should cost you about 15-20 dollars. It will be a big bag, not to worry, you will use it all. They may also only have it as a compressed bale...'bout 35 bucks. The soil you use in a plug tray is the most important thing. Yes, plug trays are easier to use and save a lot of space. The top-notch soil mix will pay off in everything you plant. It is very worth your time to find this stuff. BTW..yes, there are specific mixes that can be bought for plug production but you do not need this. You need the all purpose greenhouse mix. Your other question...I used to live in Rockford and was a grower there too. I got smart and moved to the land of sun (TEXAS!) but I remember well the schedual for perennials. I assume you plan to sell them as green plants. If you had a greenhouse it would not be to early to plant but since you are doing this in your house, the light levels will be way to low and your seedlings will probably stretch and be a sickly mess in very short order. If it were me, I would wait until March or so to get started. This way you can at least be moving your trays out into better light on warm days. A better way is to start your seedlings in the mid-summer and winter them over (once dormant, a garage will do pretty well to protect them). As spring comes around, you simply bump them up to a bigger container and you will have blooming plants to sell (at much higer prices). Growing stuff in Illinois is frustrating this time of year- even when you have a greenhouse. The quality of light is just so poor. I hope this helps a little....your questions are actually rather big and I know I only have touched on the answers. Hang in there- Tim

Pricing's all over the board, so I can't tell you what they should cost if someone else makes them. Some will charge more or less than me. In a previous post, I guesstimated (and it is a guess without knowing all the specifics), I said I would charge aprox. $3,000 for labor and linings. Add to that probably around another $1,000 for fabric, so maybe around $4,000 (plus tax where I live). So, the $1,475 really is cheap for this and the reason they look the way they look. You've gotten a lot of tips thru all these posts telling you how they show have been made. I don't think there's any mills left in the US that make fabric, however, you would have been better to use someone here to make them. But as in my guesstimate, you would have paid a lot more.