Ugh, this seems to complicated for me :( Well, i'm a quick learner! Good thing all my container plants are in 4in pots or smaller xD. Well, except for a large rosemary (too large) that i cannot bring my self to prune, or get rid of...i did just repot it a week ago. Al if you aren't going to make a video...can you write a book? You just have so much information to share, and this tiny website can never seem to hold it all. You could put it up for how ever much money (or free, even) on amazon.com without having to worry about getting it published or anything (which it should be) Sir Andrew of the Lemon, Recalcitrant Teenager, Newb Extraordinaire, Slayer of Gnats, Pruner of Trees, Broke as All-Get-Out, and Stabbed by Thorns

What a wonderful thread! I love all the stories and pictures. There's something truly awesome about a child discovering the natural world and considering our place in the grander scheme of things. I agree that nature deprivation is too prevalent a risk for children growing up these days. And since we can all find our own place in the garden it makes a wonderful opportunity for a child with autism to be able to show their own unique personality and gifts. I've even found that the garden can draw my kids away from their videogames, Strawb, especially my daughter. You get to hear what your children have learned from you about gardening when they explain it to others. I have 10-year-old boy/girl twins, and they've been explaining the garden to the kids in a large family that just moved in next door. My daughter was hanging out with their 7-year-old twin girls and showing them all the places to pick strawberries and raspberries, and lettuce to take home, and explaining why the blueberries were in a cage. I was smiling to listen as I pruned my mountains of roses, when one of the new neighbor girls grabbed a spare pruner and asked "can I help"? Gotta be one of the top ten favorite phrases to hear! I set all the girls up with pruners and set them doing roses on the edge so they didn't prick their legs. I was proud that my daughter could tell them the gist of it ("cut it off behind the flower part"), and eased an argument among the neighbor girls that "you cut too much" by showing them the big honkin' branches of spent blooms I was cutting myself. They only lasted around 10 minutes, because they noticed all the roly poly bugs in the leaf mulch at their feet. They all spent the next half hour exploring and trying to catch the various bugs and critters in the yard and my daughter was proudly showing off the best places to find roly polies (given that I always mulch with leaves the answer is "everywhere"). And it's not just the girls - later that afternoon a half-dozen or so preteen neighbor boys were hanging out with my son on the hammock. Yes, I can attest that the metal hammock stands can support at least 300 pounds of boy. One pulled up the end of a random plant by his feet and asked "is this a rose"? My son immediately chimed in with the odds-on decision rule - "is it prickly" and they decided it wasn't (it was a clematis). He referred the followup question, "why isn't it blooming" back to me, but it started a nice discussion. Later when my son was waiting for me to finish pruning to start another activity with him, he said the magic words "can I help" and did an entire bed of deadheading perfectly. They still have a limited stamina for garden activities, but I want them to firmly believe that gardening is fun, so I don't set them gardening chores (laundry, however, is fair game). Each time they help I sneak in little hints about gardening, like how to recognize canker or why we leave the asparagus ferns to die down, so I'm hoping they'll hear echos of those ideas when they find the urge to garden on their own. Even if they don't, they'll have an appreciation and respect for nature that is irreplaceable. Cynthia

Back to the topic... Sir Hans...Thanks for that info. You are right(as always). I have seen a pic of hippeastrums(for cut flower) with scapes and almost no leaves. I think it is in Ludwig's website. "defoliated for hygienical reasons"...How is this so? During winter time, I do not have enough growing area inside that can give my amaryllises enough sunlight. I wish I did. I do not have a greenhouse or indoor grow lights. Again, I wish I did. As much as I want my amaryllises to continously grow all year long, I can not do so. Putting them to dormancy is a MUST for me. This is my plan for this winter. Since the unheated garage is dark, I will have to let the leaves dry out and then cut them. Give them maybe a week or so to dry out a bit and then unpot, dip in fungicide, repot in fresh soil. Water a little bit and mulch to keep moisture in the roots. I have fed them well and given them as much right caring as I know this spring/summer. I think I will be getting a very good performance from them next spring.

A lot depends on for what events/contingencies you're preparing. Some of the list is humorous. "Big dogs"? Kind of goes with goats & chickens? Liquor for bribes! And seeds? Probably should include an alternate mate to repopulate the world! LOL Ease up folks, some of it clearly was for entertainment purposes. But there are basic items I can't excuse people for not having in stock. If you don't have a supply of batteries in your refrigerator drawer, purchased when free or cheap, you deserve to suffer during a power outage. Again I endorse the crank flashlights/radios (until analog radio is turned off of course). I would suggest going with propane for lantern and stove fuel rather than the white gas ("Coleman" type) fuels. That stuff is explosive. If you doubt it, take a tablespoon and throw it on a campfire sometime. But be back a ways when you do it. A 20# propane tank can have splitters on it to run multiple lanterns and a stove, even a heater, much more safely than the white gas. Heavy garbage bags make excellent makeshift raingear. And don't forget about firestarters. If you're talking emergency situations, I'd suggest waterproof matches. Make your own by dipping the wooden matches in paraffin wax. Firestarters are many different kinds. Save some dryer lint. Works great. Keep it in a coffee can. Dip some cotton string in paraffin wax. Some books of matches waterproofed (with? yes, paraffin) works too and even the end pieces from candles you use in the house at holidays. A hatchet is a good idea to keep handy too. Essentially, camping fans will do fine in a lot of emergencies. Other cooking sources are your propane grill, kettle grill if you have charcoal and starters. A good alternative to thermal underwear is sweatpants and shirts. Even southerners often have these. Depending on the clothes sizes you can put a pair under and over a pair of jeans. Or the flannel lounging pants under and sweats over them. A few cans of waterproofing spray like Scotchguard will help keep them and you dry. Another little camping tip. Oh, and instead of a dedicated toilet, a portable toilet is made easily from a 5 gal pail, seat if you want to get fancy or even a folding camp stool or a lawn chair! A camp shovel and squat will work too. And if truly an emergency, modesty goes out the window. Fasten the toilet seat to the 5 gal pail and you won't have to argue about who left the seat up! :) Wire clothes hangers can be versitile tools. Use them to make your own lantern hangers, repairs, tie things together, and you can even hang clothes! (To dry and more.) Can also be used as a weapon to beat off people trying to steal your rats, chickens, goats and big dogs! ;) Personally, I think I would use duct tape instead of stockpiling screen patching but the idea of all of these suggestions is to get you thinking. I really think that doing some research on camping tips and tricks would be of great benefit to a lot of people. I live a rather modest life, austere to the view of many. But when the power was out for a week here the last time, I survived quite well. Comfortably under the circumstances and even had some luxuries that many others didn't. I had tv, radio, light, food, water, telephone... Not a huge disaster compared to some, but being prepared not just with supplies, but also in a state of mind. My last suggestion. On these ideas, why not put together a 3 ring binder or something with lists of what to do in certain situations? For instance, power outage, turn off as many breakers as you can, the crank flashlights are located in the hall closet, 1st aid tips, important phone numbers, insurance info, etc. Even ideas for food, crackers & PB (sans-salmonella, eat first from the frig, etc.) and how about including notes like check on the handicapped neighbor, your elderly relatives, etc. Could be helpful. Even though I disagree with some of the ideas, I do like these lists minnie_tx. Keep 'em coming. I like going through them and see how they compare to my checklists and I get ideas from most all of them. I appreciate your efforts.