Kenn and Temple, AWESOME photos! Thanks for sharing. Janie, I read that too (about the male taking out materials to encourage the female to speed up nest building). I'm not so sure that applies to this male and female though :) If you watched the first 4 or 5 days of the videos, Daddy took out more than Mama brought in!!!! And today is Day 14, so if it's supposed to get Mama to make the nest faster, I don't think it worked :) I know I'm over simplifying this...I know that they respond to a complex combination of clues like supply of food, etc. And our weather has been up and down and up and down, too. As far as the female taking out nesting material, with this pair only the male has done it. And in the early days of nest building, I could see that what Daddy was taking out "didn't fit." But also in those early days, he took out as much as she brought in!!! Some days it was hysterical seeing him in the box taking out stuff with her at the hole 'chattering' then her going in with him only to have him slide quickly out with his 'treasure' LOL But yesterday's little piece of ? that he took out...really now! That's a bit obsessive :) I have to watch not to anthropomorphize too much! I'm hoping Mama will start egg laying SOON (as in this week). But I've been fooled by birds before...they don't seem to take MY feelings into their egg laying decisions!! Bluebird blessings, Linda...and may none of us have to deal with HOWRS or HOSP!

If you are like many of us that have speed ovens, you may find that you will use the speed oven more than your larger oven, as Fori suggests. Like you there are only 2 of us, so when I do baked potatoes it is usually just two, does it not seem like a waste to preheat a large oven and then cook just 2 taters in it for 45-60 mins (Including preheat)???, when the taters are done in 14 mins, (Including preheat) in the speed oven. Likewise for meatloaves, stuffed bell peppers, You name it, we just don't find a lot that does not fit in our Elux speed oven. Reheating poultry , fish, and fries comes out much better than if you tried to nuke them, or even reheat them in a regular oven---I hear tell that convection ovens reheat these items pretty well, but I have no personal experience with same, alto since the Speed oven can be used just as a convection oven, I suppose I could try it, but as mentioned I like the way they come out speed cooked. With the exception of our induction cooktop, our speed oven is our most used cooking appliance. If Hubby is concerned about the price, you have 2 options! Option # 1. Put left hand around his neck, put right hand around the other side of his neck and slowly join your hands. Option # 2. Look at the Elux Icon Speed oven, more than likely you can save quite a bit of money on it compared to the Miele, alto folks do like their Miele Speed Ovens but I've had the Elux for more than 5 years now and except for a screw coming loose on the handle, it has been trouble free. HTH's Gary

I should doubtless read through the comments on this thread carefully before adding anything, but am in a hurry,so excuse my eventual impertinence, please. Just want to say that I've heard that Beales' "Mons. Tillier" is Marie Nabonnand (just never got big enough to actually climb in his climate) . I have both Marie Nab. and Archiduc Joseph. Got the former from Le Rose di Piedimonte, the latter from Paola Lungaroni (ex-Walter Branchi). Marie N. is a vigorous climber,with flowers that look like the one in Marolena's photo (excellent spring flush, with consistent flowers afterward, though not like a flush,but my plants have very tough conditions). Flower colour is pretty consistent. My Archiduc J has very variable bloom colour. Shaped much like those of ozmelodye's photo (esp. the first two flowers),they are sometimes a very nice deep-pink-and-peachy sort of blend, at other times a much less pleasing (to me) ruddy orangey tone. One other thing.Perhaps this is due to a difference in American English versus British English, but to me, as an American, I would say that roses don't have "tap roots" at all! To me, a "tap root" is like the root of a carrot or a dandelion : a big, thick, single thing that goes deep into the soil, and has little hairs coming off it...

I have the lady gardener and was not wowed by it . Very washed out not like the advertisement at all. Tamora is one of my favorites! So glowing and fragrant