The sense of smell is directly connected to the sense of taste. If you loose the sense of taste, the sense of smell goes too. I believe what is perceived as a bad smell is a built in protection against eating poison, infected waste matter or rotten food. Personally I like very hot foods, such as hot peppers but many do not. I also like vinegar, most anything that has been pickled & started asking around & discovered many people who like hot peppers also like the smell & taste of vinegar. I wonder if the different ways people react to smells is based on their tongues & taste buds? Why do some like hot while others cannot take it? The worst smell around here is the stockyards. It smells like burning fat & hides with rancid overtones that just smells greasy. I grew up in a refinery town & that smell never bothered me & still doesn't. Most people find it absolutely awful so maybe when you are exposed to a smell considered bad by most as a child, a bit of nostalgia or familiarity sets in? The best smell was the time I went to Phoenix & the Orange Blossoms made the entire city smell like Jasmine tea. Of all the wide ranging odors I've run into that still wins #1 as the best I ever encountered. It did smell better than a refinery town, I must admit. I like medicinal smells in plants and most woodsy smells like patchouli, a favorite. I hate any perfume with musk, the really sweet ones----some women nearly gag you with over doing it, the worst is to have someone come up & give you a hug then you're stuck smelling it the rest of the day. Thanks a lot. This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Tue, Apr 1, 14 at 14:25

Thank you! The top bud in both stocks appear to be turning brown. The remaining two in each are still green, which is a good thing! The lowest one on the Cardinal Hume stock is pushing very quickly. I use what Sequoia used. It's a medical supply product called Parafilm. It's used to cover petri dishes like a saran. Mine is a 4" wide, 125' long roll which I cut into strips of varying widths (all 4" long) depending upon the guage of the stock and size of bud. I just searched for the product and found they are now making a grafting/budding tape. If it's anything like the medical product, it's great. It adheres to itself and lasts about long enough for the buds to take, then rots off. It won't girdle the stock or bud, either. I was surprised to see how the prices have risen! A fellow Huntington volunteer (easily 25 years ago!) worked in a lab and she bought the roll for me for $6. The list for the same roll is now $68, with prices around $50! If you use it, keep it cool, meaning don't leave it anywhere direct sun can shine on it as it will melt to itself. Mine has always been kept in the house and it is still perfectly fine after all these years. You peel off the paper backing, hold the loose end securly against the stock and bud, then stretch the tape as you firmly wrap it around the stock and bud to create as firm a bond between the two pieces of rose material as you can. You can't wrap it too tightly as the film will break before you can hurt anything. When it does, just continue wrapping until you feel the pieces are securely joined together. It'll work. Kim Here is a link that might be useful: Parafilm Grafting Tape on Ebay

If anyone is interested, please go over and post a message of support at the Suggestions and Comments forum. I've asked for one. In the meantime, since we know we have to compile one, I'd be willing to set it up somewhere else if you want to go ahead and post here what you think should be on it. I have a few: What is the difference between tropical, Rose of Sharon and hardy hibiscus? In what zones do tropical hibiscus survive the winter in the ground? What is a mallow hibiscus? What is a Rose of Sharon? What is the best fertilizer for tropical hibiscus? Rose of Sharon? Hardy hibiscus? How often do I fertilize? Why are the leaves on my hibiscus turning yellow? What are these black bumps on my hibiscus stems? How do I get rid of them? How do I treat spider mites? Why won't my buds open? Why do my buds fall off? What's eating my buds? Why won't my hibiscus bloom? What's eating my hibiscus leaves? Will hibiscus bloom in shade? How do you get tropical hibiscus to grow into a tree? What is a "weeping hibiscus"? How do I plant/transplant a hibiscus? How often do I water? Why isn't my tropical hibiscus setting seeds? How do I overwinter my tropical in a northern climate? Is it safe to leave my hardy hibiscus in the ground over the winter?

hi, are you over watering it as too much water makes them drop their leaves they just want to be moist BUT NOT WET. George. Here is a link that might be useful: George's Japanese Garden