If TN weren't so far away you could come over for a garden tour and trade. Picture yourself on my path here-- Those armeria came from a trader who drove here with a car load of plants to trade several years ago. http://photos.gardenweb.com/garden/galleries/2007/05/armeria_lined_walkway_in_il_zo.html?cat=great_gardens Earlier this spring a GWer drove over and traded in person. She and I both ran out of walmart bags packing up the plants she could take home! We ended up with 3 plants in a bag. I figure if she's willing to do the driving I should make it worth her while! Good thing she brought a van. Then another lady (in one of my garden groups) not GWer_. For those of you without your glasses on- I repeat... not a GWer, _ came with a van and nothing to trade but a new house to landscape. We decided on $1/bag. She left with more than 25 bags. It filled her van as well. I enjoyed meeting both of these people and my garden didn't even look like anything was missing! If we hadn't traded we wouldn't have gotten to know each other very well. I think everything works out for a reason. If I miss out on a trade I'm at peace with it. I figure it just wasn't meant to be;-0 So ends today's discussion on trade philosophy. You can quit snoring now. lol! Let's get back on topic- This plant is still available. Karen

zengeos, I would think if anything other than the tomatoes was planted deeper, especially leggy stems, they would rot if planted any deeper. I've got some serrano peppers I started from seed & they were so spindly I had to prop them up with sticks! I just increased the amount of light & they rec'd & they took off great. And yes, Rachel, we do heat the greenhouse over winter. We try to keep it at 50 but sometimes the horrid weather drops it into the upper 30's overnight. You're right about the heating cost, we've had bills up to $750/mo but that does include the house. BTW, when the daturas are overwintered, they will be in the big 18" pots. I just need a decision for now, indoors and under lights. Carol

I have some I grew from cuttings taken when I pruned mine last year, and I'm keeping them in pots for now, too, since they're still small. They started growing pretty tall, and I also snipped them back to about 8" tall so they can concentrate on root development. Mine are still in 4" pots, so I need to move them up to 1 gallon soon, I think. I'm still not sure if I should plant them outside this fall or next spring. They seem so tender! At least the skinniness of their stalks and all. Are they tougher than they look when this small?

I found the 1927 study: http://www.sustainablefarmer.com/pdflibrary/library-rootdevelopment.pdf The section on tomatoes starts on page 180. The first several pages clearly shows that disturbing the tap root causes a more fibrous root system, however, transplanting also checks plant development. What really matters is the health and yield of the plants when in the field. In this regard the report states on page 192: "Usually the seedlings are transplanted when they are about 2 inches high and more space given each. In this process the roots are more or less severely pruned and the new root system is much more fibrous. Frequently a second transplanting is made in which each plant is given still more room or transplanted in a suitable receptacle such as a flowerpot, paper band, tin can, etc. Since the root system is disturbed and the development of the plant more or less checked at each transplanting, it might be concluded that plants grown from seed sown directly in pots or other containers would grow more vigorously and give a higher yield than those once or twice transplanted. In fact this has been shown by numerous investigations to be the case. That transplanting in itself does not promote an early crop nor an increased yield has been also clearly demonstrated. In an experiment in Wisconsin three crops of tomatoes were grown . . . In each case seeds were planted singly in 6-inch pots in the greenhouse; when the plants were about 2 inches in height, two-thirds of the whole number were dug up and reset in the same pots; later, one-half of these were again transplanted in a similar manner. As soon as weather permitted, 10 plants of each lot were knocked from the pots and set 4 by 8 feet apart in open ground, every precaution being taken to avoid injury to the roots. Those not transplanted yielded more than those once transplanted, while those twice transplanted yielded least. The total for 10 plants with each treatment during a 3-year period was, 1,175, 1,131, and 1,001 pounds, respectively. TomNJ