Hunks o seedlings works great if you are planting in a new bed where everything goes in at the same time. It also works if you are planting in a bed with existing plants that are small or slow growing in the spring. Where you might run into trouble is if you put in your hunks o seedlings in an existing bed where the surrounding mature plants take off and completely cover up and shade your new seedlings before they get growing. Then they won't do so hot and may even die. For most things I usually tip out my container and use my hands to rip apart the hunks and then plant them in groupings of at least 3 about 6" apart. Then the hunks grow together and look like one large plant quicker. You only really need one seedling to survive in each hunk to get a plant. As long as you have plenty of seedlings to work with you can be pretty rough. Grasses often work best with bigger hunks since they can be slow to fill in and get good sized. For truly special plants where you only have a few seedlings I do like to grow them on in pots for while. This works well for slow growing things when your desired planting space for them would surely get overgrown by its neighbors. It is just a little extra work to monitor a few potted up plants in protected spot over the summer and then plant them in the fall. Things that don't get planted in the fall can be sunken in the ground until the spring to help them survive the winter. I end up doing that with at least a few things each year, mostly tree and shrub seedlings. Below are some pics from my first year way back in 2008 showing how the hunk o seedlings fill in quickly. They were just planted in early May in the first pic. The bottom half of the bed in the second pic is that same area in late July which was entirely hunks o seedlings. The third pic is another bed in June with mostly annuals that was also planted hunk o seedling style in late April.

I'm not ruling anything in or out, but you may be onto something, Lori. Since this started, DH has found that he tolerates salad better than almost anything. I'm anxious to see what the doctor says Tuesday morning. DH is OK with me going because if doctors say anything more than two syllables long, he just tunes it out. And really -- do doctors know any words less than two syllables long? LOL! When DH saw his regular doc about this, he had the doc look at a growth on his temple. Doc sliced it off and sent it for biopsy. He called DH later and told him it wasn't cancer but it was "something else with a real long name" (according to DH). He told DH he could get "something with a real long name" to put on it. *sigh*

I read through the OP & some of the posts, but stopped at this one & had to respond before I continue on with reading the rest of the posts. (so forgive me if I missed something that was posted after this) "Why can't you respect someone who works 2 jobs (see your first post)? What is not to respect about that? Did anyone notice this comment????" I noticed it. My first thought was "at least she's working". I've also had similar difficulty with my own feelings/judgments, etc regarding my SD12's BM. She is 38 and has never worked a real job. She was lucky enough to get a minimum wage office job, instead of fast food... but a real job that gave her some good responsibility, but she screwed that up by stealing from her boss & ended up being convicted of embezzelment. Now, at 38+, how is she ever going to work & support herself? I stuggle with judging her for that because I have worked since I was 14 and often worked 2 jobs to support my kids... she sits on her backside all day, thinking of ways to get others to take care of her. Our values & lifestyles are such a stark contrast to each other, I cannot relate to her at all. It's much easier to judge & criticize her than to try & understand something I can't begin to comprehend. Just as I can't understand her relationship (or lack thereof) with her kids... I loved kids, I wanted kids & when I had my kids, I live for them... there's nothing I wouldn't do for them. I can't count the sleepless nights, how many miles I've driven to do things for them, everything I've gone without so they can have. So, I don't get someone that lets her child run around in the cold with shorts & no shoes. I don't get someone that relies on others to be taken care of when I know eventually, those people will be gone. and what bothers me most, which really ISN'T my problem, is that she is modeling her "everyone should take care of me" lifestyle to her daughter... and if falls back on me & DH. I wonder what it will be like when SD is 25 & has kids... can't keep a relationship together (like her mom) and comes back to us for help. She won't go to her mom because her mom is already nearly 40 and can't even get a minimum wage job because she's a convicted thief. I guess in a way, my opinion or judgment of BM could be seen that I think I'm better than her... and there is some truth to it. I am proud that I supported my kids, raised my kids, and would do anything for my kids. If I were a BM that wouldn't work, fought supporting my kids, let someone else raise my kids & made excuses every time my kids needed something or wanted me to come to one of their things... then I would feel like a loser. But, that comes from MY perspective from the parent that I am. I can't understand what someone else feels when they do things so differently. There is no shame in manual labor at any age. There is no shame in an honest day's work at any age. I can only imagine that someone "at her age" chooses to be a waitress because she may enjoy the interaction with customers... she may be a bus driver because she enjoys being around kids & likes the schedule. It's not always about the money or prestige. My aunt started a landscaping company at age 55 when she divorced her husband. It's something I would never do but she enjoys it. I gave up a secure office job with benefits to have the freedom of self employment but sometimes, when the phones don't ring for days & the bank account starts dwindling... and I don't have my bi weekly paycheck to count on, it's scary but I love what I do so it's worth it to me. I try to understand SD's BM... not working, etc. I imagine she enjoys each day, sleeping in & playing games on her computer all day without a worry in the world. I couldn't do it, but I am getting better at seeing another perspective.

I'm outta sunny rm when it comes to bringing all my EEs in for the winter. So most of their corms will be cured which I'll try for the first time. But I will bring some in. The first one will be the Mojito because I don't want to chance losing its tuber after reading that...thanks. It's just 2ft tall and only keeps about 3 leaves up at a time. Spider mites have been a problem on my indoor plants over the past 2 winters so I'll be looking for a better solution for that. My Freida Hemple Caladium was full grown on April 20 of this year when I bought it and that's when the below pic was taken. It nearly doubled in size before it went dormant: Around Sept 1 its last leaf died. So I removed the root/soil mass from the pot, let that dry for a few days, then removed the dirt & cut the longer roots and dried it a few more days. I'll probably pot it again soon so I can have it growing inside for the winter. But how long should I wait before potting it again? What's the minimum time? Below are the 3 bulbs/rhizomes that are from the above plant and are shown on 1/4" mesh. The 2 on the left are upside down. There are less roots on the bottoms and more near the tops. The one on the right has 3 large main nodes. I left some of the petiole remnants on them so I know which way is up: None of my other Caladiums are at this point yet, but my Thai Giant EE stopped growing in early August...it still has 2 good leaves on it. Hmm. I may try a Amorphophallus konjac if it grows well indoors in the winter. Why do some have green leaves only, some have green leaves and an inflorescence, and others have only the inflorescence?