Shipping is easy when used correctly and the average reseller (especially ebay types) do not understand shipping. I will ship this coming week USPS two day service without problems. Only the most remote areas have ever taken three days. In the last two years I have not had a single customer complain of an orchid damged by cold and I ship fully open Cattleya flowers all winter long. I warranty the flowers and buds and have not had one claim for credit for blasted buds. Customers only need to email they had flower damage to get the credit no proof is necessary. It is easy to make slight errors in addresses that will delay delivery. When you use the USPS on line mail system this does not happen as they edit the addresses against valid addresses. Heat packs though are a waste of your money. They only last 4-8 hours and then then are done. With two day shipment most of the time you do not have a heat pack even if you paid for it. If the heat pack is removed from the plastic liner completely the heat may only last a couple of hours. For longest effect the pack should be left in the plastic liner with only the end ripped open. I have shipped orchids and before that live fish for thirty years. I have used thousands of heat packs and the use was mostly to reassure customers since they really did not do much. They had minimal value when shipping air freight and had delivery in 4-6 hours. As I said longer times and the heat pack is dead anyway. It is not a matter of cost since the high quality heat packs I buy commmercially only cost 0.60. They really do not do anything but make you feel better.

I have bought canna and calla root at Home Depot in early spring. But I do prefer our local garden center, as the root isn't bagged and it is stored in peat. I picked up a few varietes last year - both dark and striped leafed colours. I'm close to Belleville and use Thrashers Garden Center.

Hello again all, Wow!! Thanks so much for the trades everyone! Please double check that I've got the details right from all the posts: Gardeng8 I'm looking forward to your: monkshood, Karl Forster grass, obsidian heuchera, ws siberian wallflower and Yvonne's salvia (any chance that you could find more to trade so I could get a 2nd or 3rd one? I'm getting some from Jeff too, but if possible I'd like to have enough to put some in my front yard too to give the other hummer in the neighbourhood somewhere to drink (she gets chased off by my regular gal), I'd give up the heuchera for that :-). I have you down for my: dark blue agastache, Hummingbird red nicotiana, sweet william pinochio, and hot pink cranesbill geranium. greylady-gardener/lois: I'm excited about the virginia bluebell and honeysuckle vine, do you have any more of the: short (approx one foot) iris-plain yellow. I have the following set aside for you: spiderwort navaho princess, sweet william pinnochio, gaillardia burgundy, agastache Heather Queen signet/heather: I have us down as trading your: mini purple iris, unknown name red lily, yellow canna, and hopefully you still have some of the medium height dark purple iris or if not some of the brunnera 'Jack Frost'- if you have more of it, for my: cuphea Starlet, rue, burgundy leaved coral bells, French tarragon, Hummingbird red nicotiana rosco_P: I have us down for trading your monkshood and kerria for my: sundrops, Lorraine sunshine. Is there anything else in my list that you would like in exchange for a 2 or 3 cardinal climbers? flowergirl_on/Merja: Thanks for the trade of your:tall white phlox, leopard's bane, white peachleaved bellflower, aster tongolensis star of wartburg, and white datura for my: lavatera Mont Blanc, giant snapdragons - chunks, cerinthe major, Monet's Choice orange cosmos, and Hummingbird red nicotiana nyssaman Jeff - Thanks for setting aside a couple of Yvonne's salvia for me I don't know what gives with my germination of these, the salvia coccinea pretty much all germinated in the same conditions !? I've set aside a couple of the cerinthe major for you, I got the seeds on a trade as a darker blue than the usual one. frogged: Yes I do have Signet Lemon marigolds - they are supposed to be pretty bushy with single yellow flowers I'll set some aside for your yellow iris barb from london: Welcome back! On the off chance that there is something of interest on my list I'd love some of your: dwarf purple iris - possibly darth vader. Mom of Three: I'd love some of your manure if there is any left, yellow daylilies, sunflower Carol - 3 if possible, or pink ground phlox if you have another division, for my: dark purple columbine, gaillardia blanket flower, hot pink climbing rose, groundcover sedum Dragon's blood, Hummingbird Red nicotiana, and some rose of Sharon. Bev_W: Do you have any Red cypress vine Ipomoea quamoclit (seedlings in 3" pots) left? I spring sowed them but they succumbed to something... I'd love 2 or 3 if possible, if not I'd like some Verbena (blue, perennial, ground-cover type, gorgeous) or Phlox paniculata (seedling of 'David") or either: Penstemon whippleanus "Chocolate Drop", Penstemon smallii "Violet Dusk" I have a bunch of white cleome and 2 cuphea starlet set aside for you, does anything else of mine tempt you? Thanks to everyone for the great trades! It's like Christmas to me to get such wonderful stuff. Cheers, Heather/Blueiris3

It is 75 out right now. My two daughter's and my little granddaughter had lunch on my porch and later we colored. It is 75 out right ow. Leaves are rapidly falling and crunchy under the wheels of my big rig and the acorns pop as we drive over them. Beautiful day out. We probably won't have many more days of this nice weather. The Swiss Chard still looks good in the garden and I have tomatoes and peppers that have ripened since I had them picked. Sue in central Indiana