Darren, I wish I lived in FL, wife wont let me transfer (yet). Here are some tips I use when purchasing plants in Kansas. 1. Local nurseries are best for hardy varieties. RoS from 'proven winners' or 'monrovia' will be as ordered. With the swamp mallow vareties, I look for features that prove the plant versus what they 'say it is'. Look for the flowers, but when in doubt, know the plant. I.E. 'Lord Baltimore' and 'Royal Gems' have identical growth and leaf design. The difference is one has red veins in the leaf. 2. For tropical hibrids, local nurseries may sell inferior plants, and some growers/hybridizers may do the same. They are in a business to make money and although the flower looks great on 'paper', your heart drops when it dies or has 'issues'. 3. Personally, I only order from HVH or Dupont for tropicals. Detailed information is presented about the plant, plus I trust the growers. The product has that 'personal' care touch that can not be measured. Send me an email if you want more detailed info. Hope this helps, Ed

I have had stands in my front yard before. But the past few years the road has been noting but a dust bowl so I quit. Well now they came and tarred and stoned it, I will again try. Changes, 1 Make it portable, I have an old camper trailer bed I will build upon. 2 make it so my shevels out the front are on an angle so people can see what I have to sell. 3 Add lights, sometimes I like to keep the stand open untill dark, but then I have to shut it down in the dark. Also if I have electricity then I can put up some decoration using lites and the blow up scarecrow and such. 4 Keep it in sight of the house. Big mistake I made many years ago was to have it on the other side of the house. I lost money and cutomers because I wasn't able to keep things full. 5 Insulate, with the hot sun beating down on my old stand I couldn't keep and extras at the stand. 6 Make it easy to display other items, such as plants and fall decorations. I plan a stage, so I can Highlight new products or ones I need to push. 7 Look at others stands around you, ask the owners what they would do to improve. Also think about what you don't like about theirs. Good luck Tom

I was hoping you'd get an answer from someone like Marty DeHart (soeur) or someone else that might have a definite answer, but it doesn't look like they are checking the forum. I would recommend asking a local nursery owner. Someone like Mike Stansberry at Beavercreek Nursery in Powell could tell you for sure. You could also email Marty through Gardenweb. I think I know the answer (or at least some of the complexities involved), but I'm not sure. If you find an answer, please post what you found out here. I'd be interested in what you find.

I had two of them. Yes, I think it would be difficult to change the inserts and still have it look good, but that's just me. I can't reupholster a chair either. I stained my inserts. The stain did not take as dark as I wanted since the inserts are a polyester or something. Maybe you could try a thinned out paint?