@JMJ 4Life Really sorry to learn about your tree. I assume some part of the root mass is fused, so the soil/root mass remains intact like so: If the answer is yes, unpot the plant and set the root/soil mass on a stack of newspapers, rags, old towels, dry sponges - something that will PULL excess water from the soil. Allow it to rest on the wicking material for an hour or two before returning it to the pot it fits. Use a wooden "tell" to "tell" you when it's time to water, because with no water loss from foliage, the plant will require very little water. Using a 'tell' Over-watering saps vitality and is one of the most common plant assassins, so learning to avoid it is worth the small effort. Plants make and store their own energy source – photosynthate - (sugar/glucose). Functioning roots need energy to drive their metabolic processes, and in order to get it, they use oxygen to burn (oxidize) their food. From this, we can see that terrestrial plants need plenty of air (oxygen) in the soil to drive root function. Many off-the-shelf soils hold too much water and not enough air to support the kind of root health most growers would like to see; and, a healthy root system is a prerequisite to a healthy plant. Watering in small sips in order to avoid over-watering leads to a residual build-up of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil from tapwater and fertilizer solutions - which limits a plant's ability to absorb water – so watering in sips simply moves us to the other horn of a dilemma and creates another problem that requires resolution. Better, would be to simply adopt a soil that drains well enough to allow watering to beyond the saturation point, so we're flushing the soil of accumulating dissolved solids whenever we water; this, w/o the plant being forced to pay a tax in the form of reduced vitality, due to prolong periods of soil saturation. Sometimes, though, that's not a course we can immediately steer, which makes controlling how often we water a very important factor. In many cases, we can judge whether or not a planting needs watering by hefting the pot. This is especially true if the pot is made from light material, like plastic, but doesn't work (as) well when the pot is made from heavier material, like clay, or when the size/weight of the pot precludes grabbing it with one hand to judge its weight and gauge the need for water. Fingers stuck an inch or two into the soil work ok for shallow pots, but not for deep pots. Deep pots might have 3 or more inches of soil that feels totally dry, while the lower several inches of the soil is 100% saturated. Obviously, the lack of oxygen in the root zone situation can wreak havoc with root health and cause the loss of a very notable measure of your plant's potential. Inexpensive watering meters don't even measure moisture levels, they measure electrical conductivity. Clean the tip and insert it into a cup of distilled water and witness the fact it reads 'DRY'. One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell' (more reliable than a 'moisture meter'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod of about 5/16” (75-85mm) works better. They usually come 48” (120cm) long and can usually be cut in half or in several pieces, depending on how deep your pots are. Sharpen both ends of each tell in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell's tip comes out nearly dry. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue. Al

Bob...I'd change my priorities. Get rid of the wife first...anyone that rips out a plant, stomps it into the floor, etc. is going to be a pain in your side in the future and I'm certain she's been that in the past. Replace her with a dog...they know how to give unconditional love...then go for whichever greenhouse you want. Learn to be happy again and not obsessed with worries. For years I dealt with someone that would threaten suicide whenever she didn't get her way...or feel properly coddled. After years of enduring that we separated...eventually divorced and thank God she moved to another state. She no longer could get her way with her threats or nastiness. My life has changed totally. I'm no longer the quiet, cautious, think-everything-over-five times and then do-nothing guy. Think it over, get counseling, take it slowly...but if your life is one of worrying about plants destroyed, avoiding nastiness, busted windows from her throwing things in rage, etc...change it and be happy.

Jerry, I love Morikami gardens. Whenever I go down to South Florida I try to stop by. One thing I did not see at Morikami though was the use of Native Sand Pines (Pinus clausa) in place of the dwarfed pines normally used in Japanese Gardens. The sand pine takes trimming very well. It was once used for Christmas trees, and kept trimmed into neat cones. You can trim them into big bonzai shapes. I haven't done it myself, but I saw of photograph of a beautiful sand pine trimmed this way. I think you can really get the feel of the Japanese garden using easy-care natives and naturalized plants if you just go for the same style of planting. For example, for those low mounding shrubs, you could use coonties. Lots of the native stoppers can be trimmed into picturesque little trees. There is of course a big selection of tropical bamboo. The one problem is finding a substitute for the Japanese maple, which won't grow down there. At Morikami I noticed they were using Firebushes for this effect, but to be honest I wasn't really crazy about it. Finding a deciduous small tree with "fall color" that will work down there would be difficult, but there must be some kind of tropical shrub or small tree with burgundy/reddish leaves. You wouldn't have the change of seasons, but you could have the look. Down where you are you probablly have access to lots of natural Florida limestone rocks too.

Hi, everybody: It finally happened. The kitchen is done and I believe the colors and contrast match perfectly. Like most everyone else, we'll live with it for a while before deciding what do to with the backsplash. Again, thanks everyone for helping us deciding the contrast that was best for us. Joe Ps. Her's a link to the pictures and there is also a before and after set. http://www.flickr.com/photos/joe_p Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen remodel