What is Trader's Village? The three I have in the ground are, two in the front yard and one in the back yard. In the front, I have a Golden Malayan Dwarf that I ordered through a nursery in South Florida a few years ago. I was shipped with four others through UPS, but the driver killed 3 of the 4 by throwing the package down onto the concrete front porch. I was furious. Anyway, one survived and grew very slowly because I would have to keep it inside my homemade greenhouse in Bryan in the winter. I moved to Corpus Christi last May, but did not plant it in the ground until April of this year. It has doubled in size from 2.5 feet to 5 feet since April! I use an all organic fertilizer made in Houston called MicroLife 6-2-4 all purpose. It has 70 micronutrients and is specifically formulated for the Texas Gulf Coast. Randy Lemon of the GardenLine program recommended this fertilizer to me. The second one in the front yard is a Jamaican Tall (I think) collected by my wife in December of 2010 underneath a mature Jamaican Tall in Key Largo while we were looking for good viable coconuts and/or sprouted nuts. It has doubled in crown width since being planted in the ground in April, but has only gotten slightly taller. It too was stunted from being kept in my greenhouse in Bryan for a couple of winters, but has really started putting out robust new leaves since April. It is about 3.5 ft. tall now. The third one I have is planted in the back yard, and it was sprouted from a coconut I collected off the beach in the vicinity of Matagorda Peninsula or one of the beaches just north of there last Spring. It sprouted just a couple of months after moving to Corpus. I think it is a Golden Malayan Dwarf too since it has the golden colored petiole and has a very straight trunk. The most cold hardy variety in the Western Hemisphere is the pure Mexican Tall. I estimate Mexican Talls when they have some size to them to be hardy to 26F. There are two mature Mexican Talls in Brownsville that have survived at least 3 hard freezes in the last 10 years, 2 of those freezes were in the 26 -27F range, and one of those freezes included a couple of inches of snow during the Christmas snowstorm in 2004, when the Lower Rio Grande Valley had it's first snow storm in 104 years! I collect as many viable coconuts as I can find off the Texas beaches each year. Coconut palms easily hybridize, especially nuts from Tall varieties (Malayan Dwarfs I believe are self pollinating and therefore produce pure variety offspring). I have 3 out of the hundreds a friend and I have collected that have just sprouted in the last two and a half weeks. When they get to be about 3-4 ft. tall, I sell them to people.

The closest I have been to tropic is hermosa beach calif, and a couple days in Jacksonville just ahead of a hurricane. To a miserable cold Michigander California had something fabulous: fluffy dark red porous soil. When it rained the rain went in like a sieve. Michigan soil by contrast (except for the sandy sites) makes a heavy dark mud when it rains. It holds the water in dirty puddles. Water gorged earthworms coating the sidewalks after a summer rain are childhood memories. Calif and Florida dirt seems light and fresh. Also the succulents. So many plants had thicker leaves or waxy flowers giving a richness. Florida had a scent - spicy-musty that might have come from all the mulch used. My imaginary tropics is defined by a warm and somewhat humid air, plant scents, and especially birds, parrots and exotics with louder calls and brilliant colors. The nights are not cold (like california). There would naturally be more water: waterfalls, streams, ponds, fountains. A palm tree or two would not hurt but aren't required. I think of flowers colored white, pink, red more than yellow, orange. Funny that in Michigan I find plantings with white blossoms cold looking, but in a tropical setting I would find them rich and warm looking. Wouldn't expect to see a field of blue flowers in the tropics.

Goodmorning Everybody! Happy saturday to you all...:) Hi Barb :) I am excited to hear from you...I am glad they made it to you...How are you doing down there? They are calling for a snowstorm up here...Lol I have a geranium coop coming in the mail today too...I might as well right them off...Oh well :( Francess you poor thing I remember alabama soil all so well red as can be....That would be tough to take care of...I told al the day we moved here to the cabin the carpet is out of here... Lol Francess I have some baby mandeville they are just seedlings...I will toss one in when I send you your plant...You will have to coddle it...I bet ones of those gh structures would work down south..At least for some stuff..... Chell Wendy Regina I cant get a plumie seed to germinate if it kills me...I bought some from a few different places and none ever germinated..Oh booey... They are tricky to me...I bought some cliva seeds yesterday off ebay and gonna give them a try...I seen you have to soak them first...Anyone grown them before? I could use some help on them..:) Regina a black jack dealer neat..I bet you have seen some weird stuff..Lol Congrats on your sons achievements! You have done a wonderful job raising a boy..Give yourself a big pat on the back and I say yes he does deserve that limo and out to eat..You must be so proud of him..:) Now when he goes off to college stay strong...Is he your last one? Or do you still have some at home? It is tough being a empty nester...I get to squeeze and hug my daughter today..:) I am so happy....

In for sure... Barb (rosepedal) - Haves list posted Norma (bigmama4ever) - Lists posted Regina (ladygreensleeves) - Lists posted Chell (chellflower) - Lists posted Dawn (dtm1966) - Lists posted Mariann (galium) - Lists posted Dee (gardendee) - Lists posted Getting ready to cave/May be... Frances (fcoffill) Melissa (hazelnutbunny) - Lists posted Thanks everyone for participating so far in the "get to know each other" activity. It's so much fun to read everyone's answers!! Regina, that variegated lipstick is a beaut! (P.S. I have variegated lipstick on my wish list...lol!) I think I have my husband sold on the idea that we don't need electric for the pond right away. BUT, we will need to get electricity back there somehow for the winter if I want to overwinter my fish and plants in there. Here in MN, I think that the pond would have to be 6 feet deep or more in order for it not to freeze to the bottom! I'm not sure what the exact depth is, but it would have to be very large and deep. Thanks for all the info!! Your pictures make me so jealous!! Beautiful!! Mariann, I think that people probably hesitate to give technical advice because they may not know enough to explain it well. I've been in the business for 11 years and have worked with varying degrees of users, some with hardly any computer knowledge. I've also spent a lot of time writing lots of time writing detailed user documentation. I guess it all comes with experience. If you ever have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask! :-) I don't have a greenhouse, oh how I wish I did though!! Frances, great website and awesome art too!!! Art is one of my many hobbies too, but I don't have time for it now that I'm in school. Now I only do paintings when I decorate one of my rooms. I wish I could win the lottery and retire so that I would have time to indulge in all of my hobbies!! :-) Thanks for adding the extra tip, that's a great one!!! BTW, everyone is encouraged to include a tip if they think of one!! I will be posting another tip early next week. Oh, I almost forgot...after reading you talking about the bulb planter, I ran out and bought myself one last night!! LOL. I used it today to get my new tropical garden planted and it's AWESOME!!! Thanks!! Barb, renting a trencher is a great idea and hitting all corners of the yard is a great idea too!! Thanks for the advice. The only problem is that we have an underground sprinkler, so we may have to dig it by hand after all. We don't know exactly where the water lines run. If we cut a line, it's pretty easy to fix them. Just more work! bluespiritartist, why don't you go ahead and post your full list and we'll see what you've got. If nothing else, perhaps someone would want to do a side swap with you! :-) And yes, we will definitely be having another tropical swap before the fall...hopefully more than just one!! Hi Heather (divahethr), good to see you!! Hope you're doing well. Chell, looks like you got a great box from bigmama!! And your greenhouse looks great, it's really coming along! Your rooms full of plants look like mine! I have that exact same mini-greenhouse in our spare bedroom. BTW, what ever happened to Redheaded Stepchild? She was great! So, after I ate dinner tonight, I got up the energy to get my tropical garden planted!! it's mostly bulbs so not much to see now. I can't wait for it to start to produce, it will be beautiful!!! I took some new pictures of my other gardens last night. I will get some pictures posted soon. No time tonight, I'm pooped and ready for bed! I don't know what was up with the forum yesterday, it must have been something major though since it took them so long to get it back up! LOL, I was thinking that lots of people were probably suffering from withdrawals like I was too!! Dawn, I don't think that you will be disappointed with this swap!! This group has been trading for a few months now and everyone has been very generous so far!!! I am so glad that you decided to take a chance with us!!! Good night! Amy