I lived in SoFla for 30 years and while well grown Queens are gorgeous trees they are messy and dirty plus need yearly frond removal. Most residential lots can't handle Royals. Over the years I had all of my Queens removed and replaced with self pruning varieties like Solitaires and Christmas Palms and Foxtails and Sargeants. I had many Licuala varieties and they all did well as long as you choose the spot carefully. Even had a nice Lipstick, although I had to create a micro-climate for that one. Bottles and Spindles and Bismarkias and all the Latanias were staples as well along with Teddy Bears and Princess and Carpenters. Lots more- the frequent Palm shows and sales serve to keep palm addicts enabled, LOL. Soil was mostly coral rock mixed with construction rubble but it was very easy to grow things as long as you feed on schedule. Just remember that after you get your dream garden done all it takes is one storm to wipe you out. Ask me how I know. It broke my heart so bad I left (thankfully at the top of the real estate bubble) and never looked back. Nice dream but unless you have the funds to start over after a catastrophe the dream is not always the reality.

Stephen, pics please??? I would love to see what you have growing. Thank you Vladimir..What's the point of the question? There are many here that ABSOLUTELY need to use vinegar in their fertilizer solution and those that are lucky they do not have too. I see no point in it at all because everyone's water and pH is different. Some use rain water and some have tap that is just right, while others can't use rain water and others have the worst tap like I do. Some can't afford the other products suggested for their potted plants and use vinegar as a cheaper method that does work for the short term every time they fertilize. I'd like to know who uses it, regularly, and what happens over time when they stop? Sounds like a great thread I should start. ) There are going to be those that swear by it like I do, and many that have seen unbelievable/remarkable improvements in their trees within days , so good that they have no need to come here for help any more for YELLOWING , dull , and poorly nutrient fed almost lifeless trees, and then those who keep looking for answers to get them as vivd green and as healthy as possible as some folks around here. Vinegar as been very useful just as other acidifying products out there, especially for potted plants...Another tool in the bag sort of to say...... Also too, I can see the difference between those that make sure their pH is in harmony with their fertilizer over the years here, as compared to those that give pH no consideration especially for potted trees. A select few say they don't use vinegar at all and in my opinion not that it matters have less than ideal vivid trees to me, and many that use other products which I would like to know about that works and theirs look great..Now that would be very helpful. don't you agree? By the way, vinegar does a great job at lowering the fertilizer solution which is why many use it, and not for the purpose of lowering the 'soil' pH. Have a great day my friend Mike

Careful, those are postal regulations, not Dept. of Agriculture regs. Light Brown Apple Moth quarantine for all nursery stock from quarantined areas (includes the list of quarantined counties);Imported Fire Ants quarantine for listed specific areas; I would check with the State Agricultural Department before moving any potted plants from one county to the next. Some counties can't provide propagated roses for donations to sales in other counties without State inspections. It depends whether the shipping area is under quarantine for pests and/or diseases if the plant can be moved into the receiving area. Do you remember the discussions in the past about how expensive the phytosanitary certificates were for Vintage to ship roses, while other sources didn't have to provide them? Vintage was in several quarantine areas for specific issues where Visalia wasn't. You should check to insure the sending location isn't under quarantine for something your area doesn't already have.

I think it's disingenuous to suggest that a well-made 5:1:1 mix needs constant watering. It doesn't. Even the gritty mix, that holds even less water than the 5:1:1 mix doesn't need constant watering. Do you have to water more often than more water-retentive mixes? Yes. But there is a price to be paid in the form of lost potential for the convenience of soils that hold water for extended intervals. Denise: there is a monetary consideration that clearly delineates hobby growers from professional growers. Nursery/greenhouse ops wouldn't be willing to pay employees to water twice as often as a heavier mix because they've weighed the cost of limitations due to temporary periods of excess water retention against the cost of watering more frequently, and decided it's to the advantage of their bottom line to sacrifice some lost potential to save labor $. The hobby grower is in the hobby to scratch their nurturing gene. for the most part, They actually feel good about spending more time with their plants and offering them the best care they can afford, as opposed perhaps to the cheapest soil they can find. Think of it in terms of the difference in perspectives between a puppy mill and the owner of a new puppy - two completely different worlds. So, care given by a nursery and greenhouse of will always be in consideration of the bottom line, which means following their lead will not always be in the best interest of the plant. Your care and mine are far more likely to be about providing the best care we can. Holding up the practices of a greenhouse or nursery is a little like asking us to emulate a puppy mill. I know - tugging at your heart strings. I wasn't really trying to do that - just the first good comparison that popped into my mind. Chicken farmer/ pet chicken, beef grower/ pet cow is another. If a plant is properly handled during a repotting session, it would be extremely unusual to lose a plant. Look at the two following root reductions where well over 90% of the roots were removed:Here, I have just finished pruning the top. This is after the root work was completed: Here ^^^, about 1/2 of the roots have already been removed The plant with root work complete:Note the size of the roots I removed. Many were more than 1" in diameter. In subsequent repots, I have removed all the knobby roots from the bottom of the bole. This plant was grown in the gritty mix - note the remarkably (for a maple) fibrous root system. The entire soil mass, you can see, is densely packed with the fine roots that do the lion's share of the work. After the root work: If you look, you can see the wire that shows this tree was layered above a poorly formed (but not unhealthy) root system. Where each of the 7 main roots are now, those that emanate horizontally from the trunk, I bored 7 holes into the sapwood and treated each hole individually with IBA rooting gel. I ended up with 7 perfectly spaced roots that will look great when they are later exposed on top of the soil. One more series, just to illustrate how little trees care about having half or more of their root systems removed: Again - note how healthy the roots are. ^^^ I wouldn't suggest you approach root pruning this radically, but removing 1/3 to 1/2 of a young plant's roots (younger than say 25 years) should be no problem. Plants that grow extremely fibrous roots (boxwood, azalea .....) need a slightly different approach. Keep the roots always wet while you work. First remove all problem roots (crossing, encircling, girdling, j-hooked roots - roots that grow upward, straight down, and roots that grow back toward the center of the root mass. After the problems are corrected (makes future repots much easier - the first is always the hardest) concentrate on removing the largest roots with the fewest fine roots attached. We know that root congestion negatively impacts growth, vitality (health) and yields, and those limitation become increasingly severe as root congestion increases. Pruning a bit around the edges of the root/soil mass and potting up is a half measure that ensures limitations remain until someone physically gets into the root mass and corrects the congestion and problem roots. Even planting out (in the landscape) will not eliminate the effects of congestion in the soil mass that existed at plant-out time. Al