This time of year, some of the suppliers have stopped shipping for the season, but you can shop. Horn Canna Farm has the basics, & their prices are right. Karchesky has gorgeous cannas, & a huge variety, but expensive. If you want to add cannas to your garden now, you might post on this forum's exchange page & on the Georgia or Southern Gardening Exchange pages. I don't know if "the system" will allow you to post on the Texas Exchange forum, but if it doesn't, email me, & I'll post a link to this thread: lots of us have cannas that we can send for postage. I'll be happy to send some Wyoming later in the year, it's blooming right now: green leaves with a dark edge, brilliant orange flowers on a purplish bloomstalk. I have lemon yellow (Conestoga) & coral red species type ones (Canna Indica Indian Shot) as well. If interested, just keep my email address for late October: sylviaboardwalk@aol.com

...on a pine candle you can cut as far back as long as there are needles. Buds will form anywhere on a candle for next-year be if this is the case. You should always wait a year, but Tom says it equally-right. I've had several one-year grafts that pushed the following year when I thought for sure there was nothing, furthermore. Dax

Hey there! I totally admire your dedication to your candle-making practice—especially since it’s tied to something meaningful and spiritual. It’s great that you’re experimenting and learning what works best for your setup. Cleaning the jars – You’re right, that smoky residue can be stubborn! Besides hot water soaking, you might try adding a little vinegar or baking soda to the water—both can help cut through soot. Some candle makers swear by using a bit of rubbing alcohol on a paper towel to finish up the job. Wick suggestions – Zinc-core wicks can sometimes burn too hot for narrow jars like the 7-day ones, which may explain the sooting. You might want to test out cotton or paper core wicks instead, which can give a steadier, cleaner burn. Alternative jars – If you're thinking of trying different containers, thrift stores often have tons of inexpensive glassware that can be repurposed for candles. Finding more 7-day jars – You might try checking with local dollar stores or even nearby churches—they often go through these jars and might be willing to save you empties. Even for personal use—or especially if you ever decide to share or sell your candles—thoughtfully designedcustom candle boxes can add a beautiful finishing touch and help protect your jars during storage or transport. Hope that helps, and happy candle crafting! 😊

As far as I know of, this is something that is common to soy wax. Blends of soy wax do not do it, to my understanding, but the frosting of the soy wax (at least the last time I used soy wax, which has been quite a while) does. It was a common complaint of the soy wax users, and therefore a lot of the newer soy wax blends were developed, I think. Again, it has been a long time since I used soy wax, I only tried it a few times and didn't care for it, but I do like the blends. Susan