Sorry I haven't been posting but my poor little webtv won't let me on so I have to go offsite to login.Any weekend is good for me.there's plenty of parking at my place-2 acres :O).I've already started potting things but haven't updated my page yet.As for food around here the best is The Ark! Best shrimp & catfish there is.People come from all to eat there & it isn't expensive.There is also a chinese buffet,The Shack barbeque,a mexican place & several others to choose from.Anyone want more info just email me directly as that is easier for me.Hope we have a good turnout this fall.I have lots to get rid of-from tropicals to hardy to water plants! Jan

oakleif, Oh no,! Don't say that! My page is outdated and somewhere in that changeover that GW did, they lost all my links! So now it doesn't make since and I'd have to really look to dig to see if I even have a copy anywhere... Sigh! I pretty much hang out in the Vegetable Forum. What happened when GW changed over anyway? I missed what sounds like was a pretty big mess. As for a swap... how about meeting out at the Nathaniel Greene park in Springfield on either of these days? Sunday, April 22 at Noon-? (Earth Day appropriately enough) Sunday, May 6 at Noon-? We can vote on a day and narrow it down to a pavillion, probably the one on the North side of the park that has a parking lot somewhat close to it. Not sure if they have to be reserved. You'd definitely have to bring a chair. Everyone can "bring a dish" get plants potted up, plan trades (wait for me! my plants are barely up yet!) It's also just a few yards away from the MG Demonstration Gardens so eveyone can mill around at their leisure. If you have extra pots or gardening tools you no longer need, you can drop them off so the MG volunteers can use them for the gardens to it might be a good time to do some spring cleaning. But we can work on details later. It's been a while since I've seen you guys... what d'ya think? Sound like a plan? Let's start voting on a date!

Snaps are "officially" annuals, Alice, but I always have them overwintering here and there. I NEVER put any in at this house--there were a couple here when I moved in, and since I let them go to seed I now have them kind of all over the place! Mostly I pull them out when they're done blooming because most of mine get rust really badly by then, but there are always some that go to seed before they get pulled out, and the seeds that germinate in fall overwinter and bloom the following summer (a couple of mine are budding already), and sometimes I'll deadhead/cut down ones that aren't coated with rust and even some of the ones that bloomed the previous year will be semi-evergreen over winter and rebloom the next year. I've loved snaps since my uncle, next door, grew "floral" snaps in his greenhouses---LOVE the scent, and love how the different colors have slightly different scents, just like carnations (which he also grew). And they're amazingly "indestructible" too! Every year I have some coming up in the rock mulch--which is on top of landscape fabric--in a hot, sunny corner where I NEVER water, because I don't have anything "planted" there, and they grow and bloom, seemingly without any water at all! I'm always amazed by that! So let the seeds drop where the plants are growing for more next year, or collect some of the seeds and scatter it in other spots--and then ignore it until the next Sniffing Time! Wonderful, carefree things to grow! Skybird

"Yffterday I refeeved m'box frmmm Mliffa,...effclooff me...(chew-chew-slurp-swallow) - Ahem,...there, that's better. Forgive me,...I received Melissa's (mellovesgardening) box yesterday and as I'm sitting here typing this I've been sampling the totally tasty sugar free, Splenda-sweetened, variety flavored "Jelly Belly" jelly beans she included (plus *regular* sugared ones as well for Elly & Roy (told Roy they're "Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans" from the wizarding world of Harry Potter)) - So, shall I tell you, now, about the rest of Melissas's marvelous box conents?! Yes?!! Right, then,... Seriously, I'll tell you what, Melissa may be a newbie, but she certainly packs a great swap box!! Item #1) A neat little hollow ceramic guy,...green with blue sneakers. Muppet representation of a green thumb critter, perhaps? Anyway, he's kewl (there are even small white shoelaces hot-glued to the sneakers) and he was stuffed with sugar free Life Savers candies and a folded-up surprise packet of Rye Grass seeds (cleverly sneaky, that!). The Life Savers have since been removed to a zip-bag and now the Muppet green thumb is next to our computer, loaded with Q-Tips. Useful, yes, although arguably not nearly as much fun. Item #2) A wonderful tin of "Badger Balm - For Hardworking Hands" organic hand balm. Elly and I are both using this already,...mostly Elly. Nice stuff! It's made-up of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Beeswax, Castor Oil, Aloe, and Birch & Wintergreen essential oils. Smells good, not greasy. Feels great! :) Items #3) Candy-candy-candy!! Woo hoo!! For me: Sugar free chocolate crispy caramels, sugar free Life Savers, sugar free Jelly Belly jelly beans. For Elly & Roy: Sugar sweetened Jelly Belly jelly beans, Laffy Taffy. Items #4) Seeds: Holy criminey! Tons! Rye Grass, Radish: German Giant / White Icicle / Early Scarlet Globe, Bean: Kentucky Wonder, Anise, Turnip: Purple Top White Globe, Brussel Sprouts: Catskill, Parsley: Moss Curled, Pea: Burpee Early, Eggplant: Egg Tree, Spinach: Bloomsdale, Printemps Lettuce, Cilantro, Tomato: Prudens Purple / Big Rainbow / Pepper: Sweet Banana / Poblano. - Basically an entire garden's worth! Thank you so much, Melissa and Bryan! - Oh, and on a weird, fun note, (LOL!!);...tonight we were at our favorite local mom-n-pop store and in my pocket I had a small zip-full of the green plastic Easter grass you packed your/my box with. I went into the back room and seriously asked our friend, Gloria, if she wanted some really good "grass" (aka marijuana), to which she shot back "No!" But then I persisted "This is the best stuff, though! (pulling it out of my pocket) I know it is, `cause I bought it off the Easter Bunny!" Then, of course, she cracked up, realizing she'd been had! LOL!! :D So, thanks for that fun, too!! :D What a great swap/mnf-interaction this has been!