Thanks lilydude. Do you know, botanically, why the color change from white to dark pink? Just curious. I've heard from several different people (who might just be passing around the same faulty? garden lore) that certain flowers change color to indicate having been pollinated, kind of like wearing a wedding ring or changing the ear you wear your flower on : -). Is this completely false? If so, too bad. I kind of like the idea.

Lucy, I'm not sure I entirely understand your question. Your inflo has the potential to continue to put out blooms for the rest of the season and maybe even into the Fall. The inflo structure consists basically of the main inflo stem (sometimes there are more than one), then the peduncles come off of that -- there are usually at least 4 or 5 of these and with really healthy plants, many more. It looks like there are 4 on yours. Then the buds form off the peduncles. The little buds form on pedicels. The pedicel falls off with the bloom when the bloom is old. The peduncles continue to 'lengthen' as the buds continue to form on their tips. I suppose you can get some idea how old an inflo is by the length of the peduncles. There is no new 'branching' going on; just more buds forming on the already-existing peduncles. Not sure that answers your question!!

Maybe the old oven temp was high. ;-) Can you give us an example of what you are cooking and the time difference? It is possible that the thermometer you bought is off. You could always have Wolf come out and check it.

Not just termites, but soil holds moisture, so it's best to avoid having it up against anything other than concrete, such as wood siding, due to the risk of moisture rotting the wood. Note, the old house guys say that 'dry rot' is a misnomer - it normally means the wood was wet for some time. If your vinyl siding comes down over the concrete and that's all that is behind it, then maybe it's not an emergency. I've seen termites where I live, they are everywhere, and we always leave an expanse of exposed concrete to keep them from getting behind the siding into the wall (or crawling upwards till they find the wood wall) without being exposed to light. Never soil up against siding because there is protected air space behind it that can be used as a highway for not only termites but ants and other bugs. I'm going to guess that if you showed this to your pest control guy during your annual inspection you might see a raised eyebrow. It's up to you to decide what is appropriate. If this were my house I would get some bricks or blocks and make a border along the back with an inch or two of air between the blocks and the building. Or a treated timber or 2x4 on edge. Just my two cents.