Hi Bill, Everyone seems a little hung up on whether you use dry heat on actively growing bulbs and hot water on bulbs in dry bulb state or after prechilling. My technique is based on the history of hot water treatment which you can find references to on bulbs and roses or in International Bulb Society. around 1900 a woman who was well known for nursing sick [disease,infestation,etc.] bulbs back to health primarily used hot water hydration and replanting in fresh soil mixes. Many early 20th century researchers in the U.S.. Holland, India, and England used temperatures from 90F to 124F for periods of 10 minutes to over an hour. My assumptions for temperature and time were based on the process used in the flower markets during a very bad outbreak of larvae requiring treatment of every bulb by immersing bulbs in water of 159F for 24 hours. Large stainless steel vats were built with recirculating pumps and filters and... thermostatic controlled heaters to process thousands of approximately 28/30cm amaryllis bulbs in a batch. This was a lot of overkill since basically they were cooking tiny insect larvae which only had to have body temperatures of 123F or so for about 20 minutes to be ready for the butter. (yum?] So we must raise the core temperatures of the bulbs to at least 130F for 10-20 minutes. In tests of different temperatures it was found that 2 hours at 130F the core temperature of 28/30cm bulbs routinely reach 130F. So based on this data I thought most amaryllis lovers are like me = they only have a small number of bulbs to treat. So we can use a small insulated container- hmmm a stryrofoam drink box with a styrofoam lid [you know the part that breaks first] OK what about hot water? U.S. standards for hot water heaters are settings for 112F to 148F. Go look at the little information plate on yours. So I figured homes, apartments and businesses would be good unless they have boilers for heating which sometimes send overheated water into pipes. So I unplanted my bulbs and layed them with leaves then covered with straight hot water in a styrofoam drink box with a tight lid for 2 hours. If the bulbs were larger than 28/30 cm, I dumped out the water and refilled with water for another 2 hours. I have put in 8 bulbs at a time not cooking any of the bulbs. and not seeing any spread of infestation from adult insects. All were immediately replanted in different soil. Water is a more efficient and even transfer medium of temp. than hot air. less likely to scorch your bulb. Bill Warren

jonny said it.. but i am going to rephrase it ... its a contact kill ... so hopefully you hit some ... it is NOT A PREVENTATIVE ... rain after is irrelevant ... if you missed... wasted solution ... and i hope you sprayed.. by inserting the wand.. and spraying the undersides of the leaves.. and the petioles.. allowing it to run down into the crowns... first .. because that is where they would be hiding.. and second.. because you could stain the leaves ... if in sunlight or heat ... or disturbed the waxy blue coating ... and i hope you used a very coarse spray.. so it ran down ... rather than misting it ... hey??? ... oh.. canada.. eh ??? ... you spent 2 hours in the hosta... is that ever wasted time??? ken ps: did you see what i did there.. oh canada ... if it werent for hockey games.. who would have known.. lol...

I'm surprised, I didn't expect to get much response. I did look at that link to WindowQuilts, my3dogs, and it is what I remember seeing a long time ago when they were a little more popular. I don't think I want to install tracks. Thanks for the link, though. That helped me make the decision that I want to make something myself. Daisy what you are describing is exactly what I was thinking of doing! I hadn't got to the point of figuring out to use a second tension rod on the bottom yet, and I was still considering whether to roll them up during the day and tie with ribbon, or use cords in the back, etc. I think the idea of using two tension rods and just raising the bottom during the day to fold it over is a perfect one! I think I am following your directions ok, all except the idea of cutting the fabric 2 inches larger all the way around. I assume you have to add more than 2 inches to the inside measurement of your window in order to make rod pockets and is the 2 inches on top of that addition? And what about the two inches on the sides? Is that seam allowance or is the finished panel, larger than the window opening? ghostlyvision, I will certainly post photos if I can manage to make these. Thanks!

justgotabme, thank you for those pics! I have looked at the various roman options but I lean towards the more tailored look of the flat. The waterfall is a close second but I showed DH examples from Houzz last night and he definitely wants flat. maryinthefalls, I love our pink living room!! It is Farrow & Ball Pink Ground. There are certain times of the day it is not as glowy and wonderful as I would like, but overall a wonderful choice. So glad you like yours too! I understand your point on fully compressing to get the most light. We have to do an outside mount anyway since we don't have enough depth for an inside mount, so I am going to have them hang high to allow for as much window showing as possible. mlweaving, thank you for that mock up. I did look at Smith & Noble. My choices were coming out to a lot more $. Go figure. I am trying to say away from any pattern as we have many different fabrics in that room already. We are also going to either recover or get new couches in 3-5 years. grandma, I can't do any sheers or panels on the front window as there is no place for a rod. I generally like uniformity but I have seen some nice examples on Houzz of romans on some windows and panels on another. Just has to be done right. sparkle, that window looks great! I will take a look at that type of option. francoise, thank you!! I appreciate your input. Definitely an excellent point to consider. So, a little update. I went to a local design store yesterday and they are having a window treatment sale. In less than 10 min. I picked out a great white herringbone fabric for roman shades, if we decide to go that route. DH is picking up the book today so we can see it at home. The pricing is in line with most online stores (except for the uber-budget ones) and I do like supporting local businesses when I can. We shall see if we like it. DH says the herringbone sounds interesting and that we should go with it if we like it. So, once again, the budget isn't the end all be all of choices! You guys are going to stop believing my posts when I say I want the cheapest option...