Hello Everyone I have had problems getting into the GardenWeb forums, but it looks like the issue has been fixed. What I wanted to really know is, is this forum still viewed by anyone? I could take some pics of a couple units that I modified last summer. I currently have about 8 snowblowers. -Toro 3521 (I a couple of years ago put a 11 hp engine on this. But we did not get enough show for me to pull it out. I also took the engine off because it had to sit back a little too far. So it made the snowblower too light in the front. I would have had to add weight to the front to keep it down) -Toro 521 (have 2 units. One modified with 7.75 hp OHV it's awesome). MTD 524 (have 2 units. One modified with 11 hp OHV). -Ariens 520 1984 model Just picked it up for $50 not running and in very good shape. I will try it out before I do any mod's to it. -Montgomery wards 524 1980 Looks almost new never repainted, paid $40. -Honda HS520 I picked it up not running for $100 has electric start. Not that it needs one... LOL Well, that's all for now. Have a safe Winter. Take care, Jeff

Rosepedal, Don't you just love living in a "temperate" climate? Seasonal swings better than 100 degrees- Temperate. Right. LOL. My GH is so well insulated and so much air moves with the big ceiling fans, I can usually keep it below 80 even on the hottest days and the 60% aluminet shade cloth certainly helps, but last August, when the temps hit near 100, I was getting a bit nervous and thought about the old fashoned whitewash I can't use on my polycarb, when I remembered what I'd seen once in so. Italy: white cloths being used for shade over kitchen gardens. So I went scrounging at the local thrift shop and came home with a half dozen king sized, white flat sheets that I sewed together to make a single piece large enough to cover my 12 x 16; roof and down the sides a bit, particularly on the end facing SW. I installed grommets on the edges and used thin bungees to hold it down, but left it pretty loose, so the the roof vents could open under it. It helped a lot and the temp. dropped several degrees. Then, eager to cool it down more, I sprayed it with cold water it and that really made a difference, although the sheeting dried pretty quickly. I left that lightweight sheeting up for several weeks, wetting it several times a day in the hottest part of the afternoon until the worst of blistering heat spell passed and am glad to report that none of my fish in any of the tanks in the GH were par-boiled. Anyway, it was a pretty cheap solution. I think I spent less than $10.00 on all those sheets. Sort of a pity on several of them though- 800 count cotton percale deserves better than to be tossed over a GH, but it worked.

As long the bulbs got at least 12 weeks of rest, they should bloom just fine. It sounds like you did everything right... up until you mentioned what type of soil you're using! ;-) It's not incorrect, if that's what works for you, and you know how to water properly using it, that's great. For me, it's way too fine and silty, and it tends to collapse fairly fast and suffocate root systems. It's not aerated enough, and it holds way too much moisture for too long a period of time for my use. I have switched to a more inorganic, bonsai-like approach to growing container plants. I've learned exactly HOW soils and water and roots behave within a container, and WHY certain mediums work better than others. To learn more, do a little reading over at the Container Gardening Forum. Exceedingly educational, to say the least! Back to the bulbs at hand... I usually don't fertilize my bulbs until AFTER they bloom... and I use an all purpose diluted liquid fertilizer at about 1/3 or less strength every time I water. I also add micro-nutrients. I water when the soil around the actual root area feels fairly dry. I don't have a south facing window with good light, but I've found that an east facing window will net very close to the same results. West should be fine, as well. It's the amount of light and good care your bulbs receive following their bloom cycle that's most important... so, if you're taking them outdoors after the danger of frost is past in spring, and caring for them well until autumn, you should see nice blooms after they get their rest... which is usually about a 12 week nap. I grow my bulbs as houseplants... I allow them to grow and rest on their own schedule. They usually bloom in early spring, and they rest in autumn. I watch them for signs indicating I need to hold back on watering while they rest, or renew normal watering as they begin active growth. If Hippeastrum bulbs teach us anything, it's to have patience... and to be observant.

You're welcome! Oh, yes, I know La Crescenta weather! I had a very large (twelve-hundred-plus plants) rose garden in Newhall for eighteen years. Happily, I'm down to under two hundred here in Encino, now, not counting seedlings. I'd think once you have the plants sufficiently hardened off, putting them outside when the weather cools off, in a protected area while they continue maturing would be much better for them than anything indoors. Do you have issues with squirrels, rabbits or other rodents where you are? Hopefully not, as they can devour a new, tender young plant like those in a sitting. I budded some plants earlier this spring and they were developing nicely...until a rat or squirrel gnawed the shoots back to the shanks. They went far enough to even get the guard buds, so they failed. As long as you're not concerned with the plants blowing away or being washed away by heavy erosion, there isn't any winter storm weather you should really have to be concerned with there. It doesn't get cold enough to damage roses as a general rule. They're honestly not as fragile as we like to think they are! As long as the potting soil drains and doesn't remain goopy, soggy, it shouldn't be an issue for cuttings. I've planted all of mine in the plain old Miracle Gro Moisture Control Potting Soil because it remains damp enough for smaller pots to not dry out in a day when we have the heat and wind spike so common in our areas. It works just fine, much better than the non moisture control has because it does hold more water than the "regular stuff" without being soggy. The only bagged soil I've encountered in recent history which was real garbage has been Super Soil. It USED to be decent, but now is a mucky, goopy mess, so I'd avoid that like the plague. My dissatisfaction with the other brands I've more recently used has been they have dried out too quickly, often requiring being watered daily when it is hot, dry and/or windy. The Moisture Control hasn't. That can make a huge difference during a heat or wind spike. I even use the Moisture Control soil to raise my rose seedlings in with good success. I only cut it with either seed starter mix or perlite for the seed cover to prevent it from being too heavy to allow small seedlings from breaking through. If your bags are remaining sufficiently moist to only require watering every two weeks, you probably don't need to mist the cuttings. It sounds as if they are remaining moist enough. Too much misting in the bags can easily turn to rot very quickly. I'd only mist them if you're seeing them being flagging or wilting from heat. Otherwise, it seems you have your bases covered. Good luck! Kim