I've got all kinds of wierd babies appearing. Today I saw what must be the by-product of the black bubble eyed moor with one of the regular goldfish. Pure black, lovely fan tail and a long pointed face - ughhh! Even the tropical mollies are coming up in all shapes and sizes. No matter, love them all and their so happy not to be stuck in the aquarium any more.

Yes, bluegirl, the varieties you asked about are not known for their own root vigor. I grew all the Ophelia, Columbia, Peace, Talisman and Charlotte Armstrong mutations own root in my old Newhall garden years ago and that was a very good environment for them, even own root. Very few had anything even remotely resembling "vigor" on their own roots. It took quite a few seasons for any of the Ophelia clan to generate nearly two by two feet, even with copious water, copious horse manure and regular bud pinching. Now, Radiance and her variants, will grow like weeds own root. If you're serious about wanting to create your own seedlings, honestly, you will be significantly better off "standing on the shoulders" of more recent breeders, using their vastly improved results over museum pieces of the past. There really isn't anything to gain from the older types as far as vigor and health are concerned. Been there, done that, had fun, but all of those efforts resulted in nothing worth keeping long term. Kim

Not invasive for me, maybe it is the cold here? I planted out HOS's but last year I was given the advice to wait until they are a couple inches high or so. I bet you can search for my old post. I have some coming back from last year but not all of them. I think for some people they are invasive but this has never happened to me. I sowed more this year and plan to transplant them into small pots to give some growing room. I did HOS last year directly in the garden and they did just fine. (they were 2 inches tall or so) Good Luck!

Well, I live in a townhouse with my garden facing north. It gets the minimum amount of sun required for a garden. My best success was super snap peas. Totally awesome straight off the vine. Tomatoes grow, but get tomato diseases. I plant them anyway and enjoy what I get. Onions grow fine. Basil and oregano and dill grow great. Dill is doubly interesting because I can eat it and black swallowtail butterfly caterpillars can eat it. Most years I keep a few to hatch into butterflys on the screened in porch. Highly recommended!