Thank you Kate and Carol. Carol, when you said you had 33 buds on your Valencia, that made me jealous, not really! That sounds lovely, I am happy and excited for you, it is such a beautiful rose. The Cream roses are lovely.

Hi Jim, Here is Easter Basket blooming this year--about a month ago, I believe. In response to your question, I should first point out that most of the roses in my gardens are not doing quite as well as last year. This past winter was brutal and most of the roses had to be pruned back severely. While they are growing and blooming, they are still too short and not as full and floriferous as they should be. Easter Basket suffered the same conditions as the other roses, but is recovering better than some of them. It has had two bloom cycles so far this year, but it still isn't as tall and wide as it was last year. However, when it blooms, they look as lovely as usual--just not as many as usual. It has had a touch of BS--again I attribute that to it not being fully recovered from the brutal winter. However, I don't think I actually sprayed it when I sprayed the HTs a couple times in the spring. I guess I'm going to have to wait until next year before I make a definitive statement, but I have no plans to replace this rose and believe it should snap out of its brutal winter blues by then--at least I sure hope so. It will be interesting to see how it blooms this fall--whether it has recovered by then or not. Thanks for asking. Kate

sue, i'll be turbo grading on monday and tuesday, final papers as they write their final exams and then the exams as they come in, then the greenhouse on wed, then thursday my lit papers are due so a final batch of turbo grading, greenhouse friday sat and sunday, and grades are due monday so somewhere before then i have to add up all of those numbers. that will probably be my friday night, sitting on the couch, watching the thursday night tv shows online, and cursing at the calculator. i have done nothing in my garden un a long time, no transplanting of seedling yet. don't even have a plot dug up. rain rain rain. after next week, though, if no one else signs up for my 102 comp class (which would be BAD. if you know anyone desperate enough to pass comp 2 that they will come to waynesburg to do it, let me know LOL) i will only be working at the greenhouse until the last week of june, when i do my week long nature lit class. hopefully i can get everything planted out before the heat of july kicks in!!

I found this on another website; Bleach Bottle Bunny Basket* baskets03.jpg (8275 bytes) baskets02.jpg (9536 bytes) baskets01.jpg (7161 bytes) Materials Needed: * 1 large-size empty bleach or vinegar bottle, washed out well (The newer bleach bottles are shorter than they used to be, so adjust pattern accordingly.) * 2 Chenille sticks of any color (one for whiskers, one to attach handle) * Crayons or markers or felt (for eyes, nose, mouth, and ears) * 1 Cotton ball for tail * Glue * Scissors * Small-holed paper punch or other device to make a small hole Directions: Cut off the top of the bottle just below the handle, leaving a completely round bottom half, approximately 6"-7" high. Place pattern for basket around remainder of bottle (the bottom of the bottle will be the bottom of the basket) and trace outline, making note of where holes for handle and whiskers will need to be punched. Remove pattern and carefully cut around the outline. Using the leftovers from step 2, cut a strip approx. 12" x 1" for the handle. Use the handle pattern, if needed, and be sure to note where holes will need to be punched. Carefully punch small holes for the whiskers and handle. To make the whiskers, take one chenille stick and cut it in half. Insert the chenille stick into the whisker holes on either side of the bunny's face. Give the stick a twist or two to secure it. Cut off any excess and fold down the ends about a 1/4" to make them less pokey. Repeat for other set of whiskers. To attach the handle, take the other chenille stick and cut it in half. Insert the stick into the handle holes on either side of the basket (from the outside), then insert them into the corresponding holes in the handle. (Handles should be on the inside of the basket.) Give the stick a twist or two to secure it. Cut off any excess, and fold down the ends about 1/4" to make them less pokey. Repeat for other side of basket. To attach the tail, apply a small bit of glue to the back of the basket and attach a cotton ball. (Fluff out the ball as desired before gluing it on.) Using crayons or markers of your choice (or pieces of felt and glue), draw on the eyes, nose, mouth, and the inside of the ears. Decorate the outside of the basket as desired. Complete the basket by filling with Easter grass, colored eggs, candy, and/or gifts. Write the child's name on the outside of the basket (under the head, on the handle, or on the bottom), if desired. Pattern pieces (2) -- the grid lines are just to show the sizing of the pattern. Each square is 1" x 1": Handle:bunny_basket_handle.jpg (19937 bytes) Body: easter_basket_body.jpg (98714 bytes) * This is a craft that my brother learned in Kindergarten in 1964. The pattern isn't written in stone, so don't worry if the basket is too shallow, or if the face drawings aren't exact. Just have fun!