Just did some reassembling of this tonight, secured with different posts and previously used 6 lb test weight fishing line but it wasn't strong enough with wind. It is planted with pink wave petunias. Will be a matching on on the left but painted opposite colors (green on pot, purple on frame). All from junk. Junk window frames that I sanded and painted, this pot is from something my MIL threw in our shared dumpster, a bucket from her ice cream maker, other bucket same thing, thrown in dumpster but similar size and shape.

@ Paphia Reverse Osmosis is valuable with container plants because it prevents the buildup of harmful or surplus elements. And because you start with "blank slate" water, you can control plant nutrition more precisely. @ Denise lol I think Omaha water tastes just fine, too. You're lucky to have sensitive tastebuds. I have to use my brain to tell me to filter my water, since my tongue won't. :P No, there are no digital reads on my RO system. It is super straightforward, like yours. I felt scared to get one because it seemed so complicated, but when I saw the thing, I was relieved it was so logical and down to earth. As Chris says, I will just be taking measurements to see how my system is performing. Also, because it's interesting. The lower the TDS level, the more efficient your body or the plant is hydrated. It should be removing at least 80% TDS. Then you can continue to use the TDS meter to measure the readout as you add your nutrients, so you can adjust and get the fertilized water exactly where you want it. Here is an article that lays it all out. @ OMB Hehe. Glad you appreciate it. I was trying to figure out how to trick people into clicking on a thread about RO units. @ Chris Thanks!! I will report back. I also switched to plants from aquariums for "less work," although what I was into was landscaped freshwater aquariums. Reefs are definitely more complex. I also discovered that getting too obsessive and creating too much work for myself had more to do with me than a particular hobby. ;) I'm looking forward to getting more comfortable with all this. It's good to have you around, since you know what you're doing and your plants show it.

Jane, thanks for all your comments. The boa's are the ones DD bought me at Michaels on clearance for $1 ea. Karen, if I set a table for you it would be full of purple colors!LOL Any time you feel like a vacation, come on up. Thanks Candy, hope DGD will remember this one. Luvs, no wonder this ice cream cone called to you! Your an Ice Cr Cone making Queen! I love yours and the red cherry really stands out. I think you could go with a heart, cherry or red and white theme and it would be darling. BTW, vanilla is my favorite flavor. There was a time in my life I didn't pass DQ w/o stopping for a Butterfinger Blizzard. Glad that passed but I still enjoy one occasionally. Punk

"Do you think that a tree's growth slows down due to mishaps in the past?" That's a good question, but it needs clarifying. How far in the past and what sort of mishap is an important piece of the puzzle. When you consider growth, I think you need to consider lost potential, and when you consider lost potential, anything that diminishes a plant's ability to operate efficiently slows growth, and that lost growth can never be regained because you can't make a super effort on behalf of the plant that forces it to grow faster than it is genetically programmed to grow. It's like a human in a marathon race. If you stumble, you can never regain the time lost. You can win the race or best your fastest time, but if you hadn't stumbled, you'd still have completed the race faster by the amount of time lost. If a tree falls against another tree and knocks off a limb, the tree loses the mass of the limb and the ability of the leaves on that limb to provide food, so the lost potential is permanent. From another perspective, the tree will react to the lost limb by shedding roots until the root to shoot ratio no longer excessively favors roots. Once that balance is achieved, can we say the tree has returned to its normal growth rate, or is it still negatively affected by the loss of the limb? Once you understand the impact of injury on a plant's potential, it's likely the curiosity that prompted the question has been satisfied. My brother and I are partners in a glazing contracting corporation we formed in 1978 (we own a glass company). My wife & I don't watch a bunch of TV, which is how I found the time to learn about plants and growing things, and why I still get to spend some time here. I don't fertilize when mean temps are much above 80-82*. The higher the fertility level (TDS/EC) the more difficulty the plant has absorbing water, so the more likely symptoms are to show up as poor root health/spoiled foliage - they go hand-in-hand. You might want to consider going to MG 12-4-8 liquid or Foliage-Pro 9-3-6. They're easier to use and keep track of concentrations than the granular 24-8-16. As you probably know, I really like the 9-3-6. Al