haha, yeah it's possible that it could be a dud. It was growing so well when I first got it. I cut it down A LOT though. I think maybe by half, but I balanced the root pruning appropriately as well. The tree started new growths at first which was promising, growing out to new leaves, but then it hit on the brakes and just STOPPED growing. I think this was after the second repot, because I wanted to expose part of the tap root for decoration sake. (Is it bad to expose the tap root?) Anyway, the feeder roots are in the soil (or pruned). Even if new growths arise, they stay the bud size. (I'd say 2-3 mm, as a cluster of 5-6 leaves - beacuse that's how the powderpuffs grow.) It's just so confusing....I don't understand. To narrow things down, what about the following: Will an exposed taproot cause dormancy? Will overfertilization of plant cause dormancy? Will out of range pH cause dormancy? Will too much light cause dormancy? (hah I don't really think that's the case) I don't know.....but for now I've stopped fertilizing, started watering the exposed tap root as well, which narrows down the questions above to light (which would be silly)... I guess we'll see in a week or so if things get better?? It only has like 20 or less leaves on it now. :( Anyway, maybe I'm going around in circles, but I was hoping if I added more details, might ring a bell in someone's head. It's got a reall pretty branch structure (like wings almost) and I don't want it to die!

This is one of the cutest plants on the planet IMO, but I've had problems with it too. I received a piece from a GW member a couple of years ago and at first it seemed to do really well potted. Then it went into stall mode. When I took it out of the pot, most of the roots were gone. Fortunately the plant still looked to be in good shape. For repotting, I finally settled on using one of my square basket thingies I make from the plastic waffle grating we use in our drip trays. I made a tiny one about 1 1/2 inches square, mounded some sphag in it and put the plant on top. Right now it's growing lots of new roots, so I hope this works long-term. Like I said, this plant is absolutely adorable in and out of bloom. Well worth the effort. Kevin

Hi all, I'm new here, This thread caught my eye because I work with glass for a living. If the glass is not tagged there is no way to know if it is tempered but it is a safe bet to assume any aquarium twenty gallons and up, that is made of glass 1/4 inch or less is tempered. This statement; > Can apply to any glass that becomes scratched, tempered or not. TG will more likly break and should break into small, safer pieces then untempered when trying to cut through it. Tempered is not stronger then untempered glass, it's just more impact resistant and when it breaks it should fall into small cube-ish pieces rather than sharp shards If the tempered glass is thinner than 1/4 the safest way to cut into it is to sandblast it which not many places that blast know how to work with glass but there are alot of hobbiest and small independant glass etchers around that might be able to it. It still might break though, you just have no way of knowing. With diamond wheels the main thing is to keep enough water flowing over the work piece to keep the glass from over heating which will expand the glass unevenly and crack it. Many diamond cutters are fine without water, you'll just ruin the glass without it or at best, clog the cutter so it won't cut anymore (which also causes more heat). Hope that helps, It's nice not being a lurker for once Danny

Stitz - I love tillandsia and I have a little one I bought years ago that has now spontaneously split into 3 plants. They hang around my mounted plants and catch all the moisture - I really want some spanish moss but can't find any here in Canada. Tommyr - these are really neat but always struck me as being too small and overpriced. What is your take on things? Terpguy - as I said: I like to tinker :) As for watering, to each his own! I really do not enjoy watering at all, and my plants suffer for it. I had automatic misters that I wasn't happy with so now I water daily by hand. It is enjoyable but I'm not organized enough to wake up on time to water and also make it to work at a decent hour. This is life. Let me clarify a little what this sort of setup would be like. An aeroponics setup wouldn't actually involve dunking. The plants are grown in baskets that are sunken into a mist reservoir. If the mist is set on a timer, then basically you would have mist pumping through every few hours through the roots. Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6o5LTl6GJw&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brvJ2fGXusU (under 32 bucks) As for aesthetics, this is where the fun and creativity comes in...your reservoir could potentially be anything, from a rubber maid tub to a sleek transparent acrylic tank, to a beautiful lined mahogany cabinet. My orchidarium is an ugly thing, but it gets the job done...that said, there are absolutely gorgeous tanks out there. When I have the time and money, I too will get one. I would love a green house, but living in a townhouse with 0 garden makes that an impossibility - I make do with what I have :) Anyway, you're completely right in saying that the average windowsill grower will have no use for such a device. Personally I would never suggest actually marketing this in any way. It's the same reason why laminar flow hoods for seed flasking, or ready-built orchidariums are really not very popular at all in the orchid growing world; most people are content with windowsill growing, or can afford the luxury of a greenhouse. But for those of us who just 'have to' grow some plants, alternative innovations are inevitable (try growing draculas in a downtown apartment!) and sometimes when you're bitten by the bug, it's surprising how far a little stretching of the imagination to create the perfect environment can accomplish. This is, of course, the reason that despite the hassle, money and time spent, there is still a huge group of people who enjoy constructing orchidariums, cold-grow boxes, terrariums etc.