I am probably very close to you. Are you by chance on lake superior, or inland? This makes a massive difference up here. What exactly are you growing as well? Something here usually gets tip dieback, but some species its expected. My one rose, "the hunter" is hardy to -35C, yet even in winters with temps no where near that, they get some dieback on the tips. Roses just seem to have some branches that die back a bit **the reason will be answered in a minute*** Evans cherry seems to routinely die back a bit in zone 3. You can expect some die back on some of the U of Sask cherries as well. My "john" pear and Honeygold apple had no die back last winter, and im sure you had a similar winter as me.... it was horrible to say the least. My toka plum had no tip dieback either. Either way, the windchills, which doesnt effect plants like it does us, will dry out plants, even if they are "hardy", and even some native trees will do the same if too exposed or us having a bad winter. THis can be caused by late season growth, due to a weird year, late fertilizing or over fertilizing in spring (too much green growth. Green wood in winter will usually die back I think). 2) You want to stop watering in late august or mid september. It really depends on how long the season is and seems to be. Even here, our "expected" first frost is september 12, but more like beginning or middle of october. Either way you want to slow watering about 6 weeks before your last expected frost date, and stop I think a month or so before (double check that to be sure). THis forces the trees to shut down slow, which can make or break your success. The slower the dormancy, the better the hardiness potential. I am also assuming you get deep snow like up here. That can make a big difference in dieback of lower plants. Using deep mulches has allowed me to grow bamboo 4 years running, and the 2 that have survived have never died back because i bend them to the ground, and bury them in 2 feet of leaves. I do this to my "stevens" crannberry, rhododendrons, grapes, roses, herbs and around the roots of my trees. If the shrub looses its leaves during the winters, mulch when the leaves drop. IF it is Evergreen, mulch when frosts are deep and persistant ( I mulch my bamboos when the nights are lower then -10C and we get the bad windchills. Roughly late october or mid november). If it is a herbaceous plant (lets say, parsley or asperigus), then mulch when it dies back. In the case of vines, some you may want to wrap, some you may want to detach from its support and lay it on the ground and again, mulch. All else fails, it should be done before your first deep snowfall. Mulch and snow is a big winner here. My latest "cant grow here" project? Musa Basjoo. That is the hardy japanese fiber banana. This guy is getting cut down, and being wrapped in a mulch cage, wrapped in a tarp and snowed in.

This is one bush I have bought as a relatively mature plant, (fruiting). If you don't know me, well I'll tell, you I'm about the cheapest, most frugal gardener you'll ever come across. But they will not grow fast enough in my lifetime to satisfy me. You do need to have one! So be willing to shell out $30 or a bit more for a plant that's healthy and flowering or fruiting. You can keep it in a pot forever, in a fertile, loose, acid mixture, repotting every few years as the potting soil breaks down. Partial shade seems to be preferable to full sun. Mine's in the garden, about 3' by 3' for years. You can prune them lightly. I feed it mostly compost and give it a minor element spray every spring. A dose of gardenia fertilizer at the beginning of the rainy season and it fruits in flushes all summer and fall. It's flowering now and putting out a few berries. The neighborhood children are asking almost daily if there are any miracle fruits because my calamondin tree is next to it and the key lime nearby is always dropping ripe fruit. I get more enjoyment giving the neighbors and kids the experience than I get from them myself. But that key lime squeezed in water on a hot afternoon or that evening mojito with No sugar, and just that one miracle berry, really brighten up a day. The seeds do germinate under the bush, but transplanting them has been disappointing. I highly recommend you all have one. There's room in everyone's yard to tuck a nice evergreen bush somewhere. There is a taller growing tree type too, so know which you are buying. Both are wonderful. Treefrog

Thank's for the feedback. I only have the 1 plant but I guess from everything I've read I'm doing all the right things. It's happy right now, just not putting out the berries. I can wait. Your seedlings look great, Rick. If I can figure out how to download a photo of my plant, I'll send it along next time. It's also nice to know that you're having luck up there in CT. How does your plant do during the winter months inside? Any special heat lighting involved? Has it bloomed during the winter months? And Regine, your plant is 25 yrs. old?! That's also encouraging. I have some older plants around here but nothing that ripe old age. That's terrific that the miracle plant has hold on for so long. Your thumbs must be very green. Thanks again. Check out that site I posted a little ways up. Jene's Tropicals is my favorite nursery and I promise "anyone" you "adopt" from their nursery, won't let you down. (Never made it to that plant swap in Tampa. Maybe next year)

Great idea to eat Miracle Fruit prior to the Dragonfruit! I usually douse my chilled dragonfruit segments with fresh Lime juice, which seems to really enhance the flavor. Am looking forward to trying them with MF. I'm in a bit of a tizzy, since I'll be soon harvesting my very own home-grown dragonfruits. I had given up on these, since they kept blooming, dropping, blooming, dropping, so I thought I had a non-fruiting type. I had aquired them from Mounts Botanical Garden, at a plant sale, for $1.00 each cutting. The seller said all Dragonfruits were the same, and I did not know any better at the time. I have since purchased named varieties, but none are large enough to fruit. It was a real thrill to see big, green, finned fruits on my plants.. I'll get photos after they ripen, and maybe someone can ID them. They are thornier than my named varieties. Funny how first-time fruit is such a big deal!!!! Lisa