Don, I am pleased that you are featuring a thread on the tiaras. I've had mine for several years...bought it around 2005. It's hard to believe Golden Tiara has been around since 1977! It is one of those "workhorses" ... Dependable and reliable and pretty resilient, being able to withstand lots of sun exposure and drought as well. It makes a great ground cover or edger and maintains a delightful mound. It is a hosta that everyone should have at least one of, IMO. ...(and because it is a superstar as well...having won awards and revolutionizing the world of "small hosta". Definitely worth a few minutes of one's time to read up on this one if one is not familiar with it. :-) Thank you for bringing attention to such a sweet little hosta. I had no idea there were so many in this family! I'm going now to google these names you've provided. Jo

Hey, welcome. I am in Urbana, and there are tons also of us in Dayton. Well, three that I know of. If you are relatively new to hosta, just give me all of your money now, and I will let you come and look at mine. That way you won't spend hour upon hour going through the hosta library looking for that "just one more this year" hosta. You won't plan your vacations to make sure you "just happen to be a little ways" from some hosta haunt you heard about so "you might at well stop, but only to look. Really, I'm not going to buy any". You won't go through lists of hostas looking for a good name for your next child, dog or cat. You won't create 'themed' beds of hostas or hosta family tree beds. You won't agonize whether Great Expectations is going to make it this year, and if not, will you try it one more time. (PS: It is worth it!!!) Great Expectations GE Leaf You won't have to wonder whether you have this June or maybe this one Any way, you probably get the idea. I will be expecting a check in the mail. You can keep your sanity!!!! WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You found the spot with the most knowledgeable hostaholics in the world! Dave Here is a link that might be useful: Hosta Library

I bought about 10 flat shets at a thrift store and Goodwill last year for .50 and $1.00 each. But like you.. I wouldn't hesitate to sleep sheetless if needed!!! Sunny

I have the Bayer Systemic for Roses etc, and it has the Merit in it. I also got some of the Natria brand insecticidal soap that Bayer makes, and their iron phosphate slug baits. All the chemical mix I had going on in the garden early in the year, who knows what actually controlled stuff. But I must get to it again, since that 20 inches of rain washed everything away. I stopped putting the slug baits inside the pots. Why? Because when they deteriorate, they make a black dust which puffs up when I apply water to the container. Not sure what the decomposition product is for the iron phosphate slug baits. I probably do not need to be breathing it. One thing I always do when I find tree leaves fallen into my containers, is to pick them up and look beneath them. And, I pick up the pot itself. If there is anything under the pot, I give em a whiff of the diatomaceous earth, and it seems very effective on some of the multilegged dudes, not silverfish, but something present in substantial numbers. I think they like to go up the drain holes of the pots. Gesila, when you say you used soapy water to kill the beetles, was it the Safer soap? Or, perhaps liquid dish soap? I've heard that the Dawn detergent applied to a cotton ball and placed over a tick embedded on your skin will make it turn loose and it will be removed by the cotton ball. Dawn is good stuff--cleaned up the poor shore birds after the BP oil spill too.