Hi everyone. Lars - Aleena is only a small plant (about 5" across) and judging by the size of the inflorescence on the Vriesea in front of your plant, it seems much larger. I have found out since growing bromeliads that good light = good colour. If the light is too low, the colour disappears and many plant's colour will change to various shades of green, indeed many spotted plants lose their spots also. Quite apart from the colour, the leaves will also grow thinner and longer, this is their way of telling you they are reaching out for better light whereas a plant grown in very strong light will be more compact with wider and shorter leaves. However, don't confuse strong light with direct sun; in many cases here where I live direct sun will burn brom's, but I have found that a covering of 75% beige shade cloth gives me the best colour. As for growing brom's from seed, I started out by just using the seeds that were the result of pollination by insects. Although they grow OK, you have no control or way of knowing who the parents were. If you pollinate the plants yourself (as I do now) you can select the parents and be guided by the types and quality of plants they have bred in the past. This improves your chances of breeding something worthwhile. Like all plants, you may be lucky enough to breed one or two good quality plants, but you will also breed a lot of rubbish as well, and this is why it's important to cull, cull, cull; otherwise your whole yard will be taken over by poorly grown and over crowded plants. I know because I made the mistake of not culling when I should have. Below are 6 pic's of plants from my own crossings; no show winners, but I think they're nice enough to keep just the same. All the best, Nev.

Most of us put type the info on top the photos. I noticed people who comment about the daylilies get really mixed up on names if you put the info underneath. But to put your caption underneath, add your photo, press enter, put your cursor where you want it and then just start typing. You don't have to click anything to do it, and no special box appears. Debra

Some of mine are still there but nearly all of my photos of PapExStasy are missing!! There are lot more also from different posts. Just disappointing because there is nothing more frustrating than reading an older post and finding that the pictures have been removed. I know some folks removed theirs on purpose because of the rash of stolen photos, but I never did. Oh well, there's not much I can do about it now...chin up and move forward.☺☺☺...Donna

I'm on the fence about the curtains. I like the softness factor, but not the traditional factor. That was an older picture of our great room. There is now some artwork, and a zebra rug. The angle of the picture shows a lot more floor. We are getting a new chandelier soon - when it's hung, I will try to choose. Thanks for the input. I LOVE this board!!!!!