Cecilia - we've got 2 large dogs, too - about 80 & 95 pounds. Over time, the younger, smaller one picked 2 carnivorous plants off the shelf below the orchids and unpotted them. With our 3 dogs and 3 cats, the place usually looks like we live with wild animals. :) I'm with you - love it. Because you've got the zoo theme going anyway, you could "cage" the orchids for their protection. Maybe put up a barrier so the one dog couldn't reach the window, making it high enough to keep the cats from jumping over. Or, build a stand for your lights (I made one out of plastic tubing), secure it to a shelf w/ a lip on all 4 sides, and suspend everything from the ceiling on pulleys. Or, wait and see what the terrarium folks say. A glass box would be a bit less complex. :) Let me see what I can find on the mouse traps. Whitecat8

Hello again! Thank you for very nice comments. I dunk the roots into the sink filled with tepid water and a little fertilizer up to the little black pot and inevitably some of the sicky up roots can't get covered. These can be sprayed but at this time of year I'm not too concerned that all of the roots don't get dunked. I have only been growing this type since last May so I haven't had a years cycle yet but I'm so pleased especially as you can get more than one spike a year. Thank you Sue for your birthday greetings. I didn't buy a new orchid from the show as they were very poor and not worth buying. Hazel.

laticauda(OK - zone 7) I think I read somewhere that to make a room have clean air (not just cleaner air) it takes like 15-20 6-inch potted plants. For one room. If plants can make a room clean (not just cleaner) why United States Enviromental Protection Agency does not write about it at all? Residential Air Cleaners (Second Edition): A Summary of Available Information Sourse: http://www.epa.gov/iedweb00/pubs/residair.html#Will-Air-Cleaning-Reduce-Health-Effects Quote: "Some air cleaners may produce new, potentially toxic pollutants or may re-disperse old ones". It's interesting to know can live plant produce new, potentially toxic pollutatns or re-disperse ones? For example, Sansevieria or SPider Plant.

It was June last year that I commented on this thread. Some updates: Falstaff was removed. I had enough after some serious pampering this spring without a single flower. I did love those (rare) flowers though. Madame Isaac Pereire died. It was in too dry a spot after all. My tears dried after putting my nose into Alnwick Castle. Evelyn. Moved to a sunnier position and they have taken off. Keeping them. Alexandra Duchesse de Luxembourg. My opinion hasn't changed. Doesn't thrill me. I don't hate it. From a distance it does catch the eye since the flowers are so large. She's in a holding pattern for now. Claire Austin was removed. I just didn't like yellow color fading to dirty newspaper color. Blech. Old Blush. it's still there. I'm getting used to those flowers with poor form and strident color. Pure Perfume. I discovered that they need more sun and water, but I have no place to move them to. Keeping them for now. Radio Times, moved to a pampered pot, grew a little, but never seems happy. Will not stay in my garden. William Shakespeare 2000. I discovered that the problem really is that they need more water. I may put them in pots. Off the chopping block. So I was somewhat right: some of the "eh" factor was due to cultural factors. But not all. These are now in the "eh" column: Sonia Rykiel. Flowers don't take the heat. Not very fragrant in my yard (maybe next year). Doesn't produce those glorious flowers that Fragrancenutter shows. Doesn't really want to grow. My second plant died and I've already replaced it with another Alnwick Castle. Dee-lish. Happy to grow, happy to bloom, lovely fragrance, but to my eye, not very pretty. Winchester Cathedral. It's there, it blooms well in the spring, with very short-lived flowers, then a few flowers here and there the rest of the summer. Weird fragrance. Doesn't wow me. In my garden it's just a nondescript white rose without a lot of flowers. Iceberg. I really like the fragrance, but after the spring show, the flower form is lost, and the leaves always look sickly yellow. I may replace them with Desdemona, or Bolero, or ...