Some replied back saying that Bluestone probably had price increases of their own to deal with. Yes, I could understand that if that was the only reason for the increases. I wouldn't care if that was the reason. I wouldn't want them to go out of business because of increases in their costs. But as someone else posted here, they have changed their business practice. They decided to take a chance and do something different. Here's what they did: They've decided to grow larger plants and put them in biodegradable pots which go right into the ground. Apparently they figured people wanted larger plants and didn't want to deal with plastic pots. I don't think they talked to their customers to see if this would fly or not. I think this isn't what the majority of gardeners want. I've never had any trouble getting perennials started from small plastic pots. I loved the low cost and small plants. Go figure why companies shoot themselves in the foot. The old saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" would have been a wiser thing for Bluestone. Small plants and plastic pots are a good thing.

I think there has to be some sort of equalibrium point below which the price of sheet rock or a 2x4 won't drop. A point where everyone along the chain is making enough money that it makes more sense to keep going than to close shop. Prices can go below that for limited periods when shifts in supply and demand make it more important to move inventory than make money, but it can't stay below it for long. Flgargoyle is certainly right that energy is a big part of the equation. The oak veneer ply I bought yesterday was made of trees grown here, shipped as logs to China, milled and shipped back. And people worry about locally grown produce...

i dont ever recall them dying to below ground.. in my MI ... livonia nor adrian .... hey.. wait a minute.. are you trying to trick us .. using common names and all .. i was wonder what the heck a gloriosa daisy is.. so i googled up the latin .. and its not even a stinkin daisy ... its a black eyed susan ,.. rubeckia you will get much further in you quest for knowledge.. dumping common names.. and finding the latin.. so at a min.. we are all talking about the same plants ... anyway ... rubeckia... i still think there should be a freeze dried clump of stuff.. that looks dead as a door nail.. but should come back ... but i am not sure about the glorious versions... hopefully others will know ... if there is absolutely nothing.. odds are low ... ken

You did a senior thesis project on NPK and pH and you never thought to test your own soil? Hmmm. I suspect this test will set you back something like $20. This isn't a yearly expenditure, but rather information that will get your gardening off on the right foot. Lot of inexpensive ways to fertilize, but again, don't go shooting in the dark. We got seven inches of rain last week (Harvey remnants), and my cantaloupes are totally disease free. A couple of powdery mildewed leaves on my squash though. I just pull those. You have lots of healthy looking leaves and, as such, fruits that simply stop growing point to some other problem.