That's really interesting... is it merchandise (seeds) or paper.... hmmmm... The lady behind the desk at the PO yesterday ASKED me if it was just paper in the envelope... I said yes thinking she meant is there pictures or unbendables in there... I guess I lied as there was a little bit more than just paper... paper packets with seeds in them.... LOL... hmmmmm... I wonder if I would have been charged more if I had said seeds... I think I'm going to give a whirl to mailing in plain envelopes (to conceal bubble) and maybe avoid all this bubble envelope "parcel" merchandise mailing stuff.... uggggh... Maybe I'll only be charged $ .42!!! Any more feedback on that from members who may have tried this would be helpful. ~Angela

I usually save all the little pots and cell packs from the plants I buy to reuse. I don't know where you can buy them but I know a lot of people will ask their local nursery for the pots that they would throw out. Maybe they would charge a small fee if they don't give them to you for free. Shawn

Loretta, I have 4 siam ruby reds, that I left outside thruout the winter. I covered them in February when we had the 2 weeks of freezing weather. I covered them with a sheet and bungie cord, with 4 inches of mulch. All 4 made it thru the freezes. The one that I planted on the South side of the house, did not even freeze back, it is doing great, its about 4ft tall, and has pups. The 2 I planted on the East side, did not freeze back to the ground, but did have to be cut back, they are about 2 ft tall right now, no pups. The one I planted on the North side froze back to the ground, it is slowly coming back. I did not know where to plant them, so I planted them on diffrent sides, the one on the south side, seemed to multiply much faster then the other 3. I have a sprinkler system, so they were watered every other day, even when it froze. This is zone 9b coastal, Rockport Texas. I hope this information helps you. Barbra

My 90-95 lb German Shepherd typically rides stretched across the back seats (in either an SUV or extended cab pickup). I have in the past used seatbelt harnesses to keep her safe, though I haven't done so recently because they don't work well if you cover the seats with a blanket like I do to protect them. I should probably revisit the practice to keep my dog safe. Thank you for bringing up this topic as I think it's something I should be thinking about. I never worry about her bolting out of the vehicle as it just isn't in her nature and we're very careful opening the door. In a large enough vehicle I have sometimes put her in her crate for the ride. But unfortunately our current vehicles aren't large enough to get her into the crate while it is in the vehicle and she's too heavy to safely lift while inside the crate and slide it into place. (Plus that would make regular pit stops / stretching breaks difficult due to the need to extract the whole crate in order to extract her.) She has ridden in the front seat when she was smaller, but now prefers to lay out. On short trips I often just put her in the very back of the SUV (with seats up) because she seems to like that spot best and it's easiest to get her in and out (with her hip dysplasia and advancing age).