I appreciate your comments, only some of which are deserved. I think there are 2 main factors that make for success. One is growing skill, no doubt about that, but probably even more important is location. Living in Hawaii, San Francisco, Los Angeles or Miami all comes with sure fire success in some genera and difficulty in others. I know people in San Francisco who grow Dend cuthbersonii like I grow dandelions. The lobbies of Hawaiian hotels are overflowing with hard cane Dendrobiums, I think Vandas are the natural for Florida. When I give 'Orchids 101' lectures at our spring show, I borrow a beautiful, fully in bloom, nobile Dendrobium and a stunning Miltoniopsis from one of the vendors. I also bring a blooming Australian Dendrobium from home. I tell them that if they buy the first 2, make sure to take a lot of pictures, love them a lot, spend a lot of time with them because neither one of them will ever bloom for them again. Then I show them the Au Dend and tell them that they can toss it in the backyard and without any further care it will turn into a huge plant in due time. Full sun, full shade, dry, wet, nothing matters, you can't kill these in our climate. Members from my club marvel at how healthy my plants look. Only part of this is due to growing skill. With the Miltoniopsis being the notable exception, I generally don't bother with plants that don't like me. There are so many to choose from, why bang your head against a wall with genera that don't like your conditions. If a plant lingers, it won't be long before it's on the silent auction table, my visitors never see the lingerers because they don't last. Recently i bought some Lepanthes thinking that with a cold greenhouse and all i might be successful with them. Not so, one out of 10 lived for a year, i won't get any more.. By selectively choosing genera which thrive in your environment you give the impression of being a very successful grower. The guy in SF who grows cuthbersonii like weeds is not a genius, he gets a little help from the fog and cool, moist air that prevails. He is a good grower, no doubt but location is all important. I will grab some of the praise though as a little research helps. One of our members tried Cypripedium acaule (native to the NE of America) and promptly killed them. Mine are doing fine. Difference is a little vinegar as they like to be watered with Ph of 4.5 to 5 solution. I titrate a watering can to that Ph and they love it. He took note and will try again next spring. Nick

You got that right! A few successes and THEN add the enablers and watch out dl addiction! I was into roses when I lived in a climate where they were easy to grow. Now I still love them but have scaled way back to a few that will perform OK without pampering. I'm sticking mostly to hardy vintage & OGR this time around because I most love the quartered look & strong fragrance. I hate to grow anything that I have to pamper. Don't want to spray every few weeks or lift them out of the ground before frost or other such mucking around in order to keep them alive & looking decent. If I give them good soil, plenty of water, a little fertizer once in awhile- well I want blooms for my trouble. That's not too much to ask and daylilies don't really ask for any more. Iris too for that matter, though I wish they bloomed longer.

Looks beautiful and very well though out...taller plants in the back and low maintenance but beneficial marigold and nasturtium flowers in the middle where it will be more difficult to reach. Love it....great job. May you eat well from it. Rachel My Blog: GrafixMuse's Garden Spot

Lovely!...Now you need to make a gingerbread house with "stained glass" windows. Linda C