I tend to be very sceptical of 'miracle' products like Eleanor's fertilizer and Superthrive that use broad & vague rhetoric to tell you they do everything but cook a perfect 2-minute egg. If it worked like they want to believe it works, they would assuredly lay out the mechanism by which it works to satisfy the sceptics & even the cynics, thereby separating them from the ability to taint the manufacturers sweeping claims. It's sort of like the gritty mix or FP 9-3-6. I can recommend these products for container culture & make help you believe they will work because I can explain why and how they work in a way that leaves you feeling satisfied that your odds of seeing them as beneficial are very good. The many others adding their voices don't hurt, either. OTOH, we can see that it's difficult to sell heavy, peat-based soils when we look critically at them from the plant's perspective - or with the aim of optimizing growth and vitality. There will always be as few people who LOVE these heavy soils for whatever reason, but when it comes to convincing the masses that they truly ARE the best from the plant's perspective, the conversation usually finds them coming up short because of inherent issues that are very difficult to remedy. The same can be said of certain types of fertilizers. As a result, FloraNectar ensures optimal metabolic rates during the flowering and fruiting phase when nitrogen levels have been reduced. How can they make this claim? How can they 'ensure' anything optimal? FloraNectar fulfills the additional energy requirements of your plants throughout all phases of growth and during stressful times of transition. How? Plants' only source of energy comes from the sun & is stored in the sugars, starches, oils, and other bio-compounds they manufacture themselves .... When it comes to horticultural products, if it SEEMS too good to be true, there's a very strong likelihood it isn't. It doesn't bother me that some one else might be convinced of the product's value, but personally, I need a lot more convincing & something with a little more substance to sink my teeth into before I take the hook. ;-) AL

I think basically what one does is not take the pups off the mother plant and the plant grows by pups maturing, flowering, having pups which have pups which continue until they break apart somehow (by humans doing it or by, say, falling out of a tree). If they are a kind that do not easily clump (I understand that funckiana is like this), you can arrange them together and perhaps use fishing line (since is can be nearly invisible) to make the into a clump. As for favorites... funckiana, heteromorpha, and similar plants, because they remind me of pine trees and visiting the forest, which I don't get to do often enough. Xerographica and similar gray ball-shaped ones (like chiapensis) because they're... loners maybe, lone wolves, and I like Mexico, too. Whacky looking ones (bulbosa). Whatever is growing well at the time or being surprising (lots of ionantha flowered this last winter, and two what may be filifolia, which was very cool). While I take pictures of all my new plants with their labels for later identification, I don't always recall their names. I should work harder on that.

I can certainly understand your concern about not being able to get someone on the phone. I had not dealt with this company for many many years but did have a positive experience. I was doing some digging to find you the contact info and came across some very negative reviews many of them in more recent years. The bulk of them for very poor customer service. Unfortunately it seems the owner has become quite bitter over the years. In light of there change in attitude I would recommend against ordering from them. I did find another company that has some specimens listed available with good reviews and full contact info. They have these Ionantha "Balls" for $30.00 but if you order through Amazon you can get it for $26.00 and you have the security of ordering through Amazon. Here is a link that might be useful: The Air Plant Shop

Well, down in San Diego, there is a show and sale going on in Balboa Park that weekend. Pretty sure there will be some tillandsias on sale there as well as other broms (and probably a lot cheaper than anywhere else). With regards to tillandsias, I'll check who all is selling stuff, some people have a great selection at some sales. A lot of nurseries have at least some selection. Are you looking specific specimen plants, bulk, or just a range of selection? Everywhere from the box stores, Walter Anderson, Armstrong's, Exotic Gardens, and a bunch more. But most seem to have the same suppliers for the air plants so they tend to be the smaller/younger ones and somewhat the same selection. I'm not sure when Bird Rock is open and there is supposed to be something with cool random selection up around Rancho Santa Fe area (I think). I know I'm forgetting others, does anyone else in the area have other suggestions (and for me too)? Gonzer might have some suggestions for North County. -andy