I am very surprised, vane, that none of the 125 maples germinated true to type, which characteristics would place it under the name 'specie'. A cultiva is either a sport or a hybrid created by nature or man and quite often is sterile (not producing seeds) or producing seeds which never germinate. If they do make seeds then the seedlings will show much variation, though some may become true to type. I have a specie Palmatum Athropurpurum whose seedlings are true to type nearly 100%. AS far as I know Bloodgroup is not a specie, so it must be a sport or hybrid. That explains why the it is sold as a stem-grafted plant and not on its own roots.I mentioned earlier there are 600 varieties of J. Maples, majority of which are cultivars. When we say 'red' J. Maple, often the color is not a true red but a purplish red or dark scarlet especially if it is the specie Atropurpurum. One example of a truely red leaf J. Maple is the cutivar called chishio, its leaves remaining red in summer and its red tone deepens in autumn. The family name of all maples in the world is Aceraceae, then its genus, Acer or Diteronia; under Acer then you have the Section and Series, like the palmatum. Under the series we come to the specie, under which we then have the sub-specie. Most of the Japanese maples we come across belong to the largest group Series Pamata. In this Series the 2 largest and common species are A. japonica and A. palmatum. Also we are familiar with the A. palmatum dissectum where the leaf is fernlike and either appearing in green or red (A. palmatum dissectum atropurpurum). This red specie has given rise to most red dissectum in the nursery like Crimson Queen, Ever Red,Inaba Shidare and a host of lesser known red dissectum. The third well known species of palmata is the 'Full Moon' Maple and its fall color is bright red or translucent scarlet red. It has large green to bluish green leaves in summer, 7 and 9 lobes per leaf and belongs to A.japonicum under the specie aconitifolium. New seedlings give much interest and may become new hybrids but have no registered names yet. One example is red leafed palmatum. It basic leaf color is a strong maroon or black red and has a varigation of crimson, which sometimes appear as specks or in large patches covering even a entire half lobe. I have only seen pictures of it and not yet in the nursery. Outside of Japan we have other Genus maples native to the country, like in China where the leaf form is nowhere near the normal maple shape and the fall coloration is less marked. In the NW continent we have our own vine maple, which comes into the Series Palmata Vine Maple and its specie group is A. circinatum. England can only claim one native maple i.e. the Hedge Maple, which grows into a bushy tree maybe 12 feet high or if trimmed in a row makes a good dense hedge. 'Amur Maple' which hails from Europe has green leaves looking more like a beech than a maple, but its autumn red color is most outstanding. The Acers have become so numerous and complex that taxonomists in the world are splitting hairs in their claim of classification. The interrelationship of acers within the series become important when you move into propagation by grafting. Varieties within the same specie are most compatible when it comes to cambium union and the crown becomes impossible to differentiate as the plant matures. However we have known of other cases of successful grafts of acers outside its own section, but this is rare. The best way to decide if a particular plant is a maple is to look at the fruit, which must be twin blade with a seed in each blade, called 'samara'. When it is fully ripened, the blade falls n spins like a helicopter blade, much to the delight of children in my grandson's pre-school class during his show n tell period. I love J. maples and often visit my friend's farm of 2 acres, planted mostly with J. maples. When planted in masses its autumn cloration is spectacular and out of this world. I hope this note offers some insight into the wonders and complexity of the term Japanese maples.

my seed list was last updated 12/7/14. some seeds have been traded/used since then. but I have not found the magic link to update my list. can email current list to anyone interested.

Irina --- Red Lady papaya plants are one of my favorite varieties too. I noticed that you have red on the leaf petioles. The first time I grew Red Ladys, that's how my plants looked. For the last several years, they have no color. No red anywhere. I can't figure out where the red is because even the fruit is not red. Like Silvia said the best source of Red Lady seeds is from ECHO in Ft. Myers. If you have no other varieties in your yard or in the close neighborhood, then you are safe to save your seeds. I would pick the darkest seeds (also like Silvia said) and get them planted right away. I planted seeds for my next year's crop over a month ago. I put purchased potting medium in a small pot and place one or two seeds in each pot. I do this outside, not in the house. When the seedlings get too big for the small pot I transplant them to pots a little larger. By winter they will be in one to two gallon pots. I keep them outside on warm days but bring them inside at night. I am fortunate to have a small hobby greenhouse which makes things easier. Your salad looks delicious. Would you share how you made it? I have lots of green papayas too and I need to learn how to eat them unripe. Freezing temps come long before all the fruits are ripe. Here is one of my Red Lady papayas that was planted in the ground in March from seeds started Sept. 2009. See, no red anywhere. Now, this is a Red Lady from 2009. I cut the plant back to about a foot and covered it with compost and a heavy blanket just before our first freeze. Then this spring I let only one of the branches remain on the plant so it would have plenty of energy to produce fruit not lots of bushy growth. You can save the plant that you have and regrow it in next spring if you make the effort. Both plants have the lowest papaya beginning to color. I will be watching them in great anticipation. Christine

The robbin has returned home all fat and chirpy. I want to thank all who participated and kept her hopping along. Special thanks to Tina who started, planned and provided the start up seeds. The robbin would have not existed without her. I just took a quick look at the contents and want to especially thank those who sent me special thank you seeds. That was a very nice and unexpected surprise. I'll find special places for them. I already had special plans for the snow man marigolds and they are SO cute. I'm starting those seeds today. Thank you thank you!!! A super special thanks too to whoever put in the Anasazi beans. What a treat. Now questions: 1) How do you start the 4 o'clocks. I have "just planted them" twice and never got anything. Tell me what to do so that the third time will be the charm Any tips or clues on the "formosa lilies"? It says constant moisture, like at the edge of a pond or just moist with good drainage??? Or whatever???? 3)Was there anything in there that you were really wanting but did not take???? If it came home, chances are excellent that you can still have it. Just let me know. Thanks again to all Beth