I had a brief affair with ceropegias in the 70's! It lasted a few years. I had some greenhouse space, provided by my university, where I had these plants along with much of my other collection. There wasn't that much available then, but somehow I built up a nice collection of a dozen or more. Today, from those years, I only have a few sp. including my woodii, which I've had all these years, along with a green leafed species like woodii, which was called carnosum (circa 1973), but from Sage's site, I think was/is mislabeled. Oh, and another from those days, still with me--smithii. I do hold onto plants. But, my favorite one is sandersonii. All it takes is one open flower to make this plant fantastic. For much of the summer it has flowers on it. When I got it, I was given a length of bare leafless stem--that is all this plant usually has (only the occasional leaf on a young new growth). I had no idea what to do with it, and I didn't have much faith that I would root it, since I have so many plants, they don't all get exacting care! So, I laid out the foot plus stem around and around in a pot of pumice and covered slightly. It rooted and grew, long after I had forgotten all about it. When I discovered it again, I didn't know what it was for a minute--this green cord running around other plants on the bench. I potted it up in a mix with a high pumice content. Now, I have it on its own little 30" tall trellis in a six inch pot. Be forwarned Argus. There is one problem with collecting ceropegias! They are twining vines. And, when they twine they don't follow instuctions. Invariably they hunt for the most annoying place to wrap and twine themselves. If you are not aware and not on top of things they will all twine together into the mother of all gordian knots. Then you will spend the next five years trying to untwine them (you thought the rubix cube was difficult....). A small trellis for each plant probably is the best solution. I forget how Sage handled this. The trellis needs to be anchored in the pot so you can move your plants around. You will find that some species are hardy in S. Cal. while others are too tropical--so read up. I grow mine indoors for the most part--in a greenhouse. Finding a small in-pot trellis is not easy. You might need to make your own, using redwood, or bamboo. Make them tall and narrow, since the vines only want to go upwards. Another solution that is very simple is to take a length of thick wire and make a hoop, then train the vines to grow around and around the hoop, with both ends anchored in the pot. But, you will need to be always winding the new fast growing stems, or they will soon find other places to twine. When I had my plants all those years ago, I had youthful hopes of hybridizing them. But, those flowers are really hard to figure out. Figuring out how to make a seed pod was too much for me then. Perhaps this is why there are so few ceropegia hybrids. One other thing--getting these plants at this time of year is good but don't expect much until next spring. For now you will be served well if they root out and establish in their pots before going fully dormant. If indoors they will grow a bit during winter, but outside I would expect them to shut down. At least up here in the SF Bay Area, they would go dormant. I would worry a little about keeping the tropical ones outside. Not growing in your climate I don't know how they will handle the cool nights and rain. They may rot. Good luck. Jon

Vivi, I am about to order a King Hickory sectional, but have not yet. I have checked out the quality of their construction first hand though. You can see in the link King Hickory uses solid or gold standard construction techniques. But I test out the furniture on the showroom floors to make sure the construction is solid. Two tests (of many) for "solidness" of construction are: 1. Lifting the couch off the ground by one leg. The second leg should lift off the ground almost immediately (1 inch maximum). The King Hickory does as well or better than every couch I have tested, regardless of price. Layered plywood frames on some other manufacturers have to be lifted 2-4 inches before the 2nd leg lifts. This amount of flex is not good. 2, Wiggle the arms to see if they are solidly attached. Again the King Hickory does great. Kiln dried hardwood, double doweled, and corners braced makes for a solid piece of furniture. I choose the loose box welted cushion. l wanted the flexibility of taking the cushions off the couch for more room when laying down on the couch at night when I have insomnia or when our adult kids come for a visit. Also the loose cushion allows you to easily have it refilled or reupholstered down the line without having to bring the whole couch or have the upholsterer make a visit. Flipping the pillow over is also a big plus if you have a tough stain. I am not affiliated with King Hickory or the furniture trade in any way. I am just a working stiff who values bang for his buck and quality construction. I will say the Smith Brothers pieces I checked out also seemed well built but a bit more expensive and did not fit our space. From what I read Lexington is rated A+ by the BBB and responds to all customer concerns. You will want to read and follow their instructions carefully before accepting or rejecting delivery (check for damage). The delivery company will reserve the right to fix any damage. Also their delivery times tend to be longer because they wait until they can fill a truck before they send one across the country. If you need a local store to hold your hand through the process they are probably not right for you. You need to know the exact model, fabric, options etc before you buy. But in my case they will likely save me $1,600 on a King Hickory factoring in delivery and taxes. $7000 seems a bit high to me for upholstery. But perhaps the larger footprint of your sectional and the premium fabric bring the price up. We chose the Bentley which is customizable. For 3 pieces (sofa, curved corner and love seat) we are looking at $3,400 to $5,100 with tax and delivery depending upon the retailer.

Came over here to see what's going on and saw my old post. It has been seven months since my DSIL passed away. I'm still talking to my brother at least a couple of times a day. His grandson just left last night from spending the weekend with him and he said it was rough seeing him go. The last week or so has been really rough on him and neither of us really has a clue as to why. I'm hoping when spring gets here and he can get out more things will look a little brighter for him On a totally diferent note, the strangest thing happened a couple of months ago. A car pulled up in his driveway and he went to the door. There stood a couple that my brother knows, but not well. They ran a local florist and my SIL knew them a lot better than my brother did. Anyway, they were on their way home directly from the man having been in the hospital. When he opened the door the man was crying. He told him, "I know you're gonna think this is crazy but I absolutely could not go home without stopping to see you. I promised that I would. While I was in the hospital I coded and they had to bring me back. During that time I saw (my brother's wife) and she told me, "You're gonna be okay and you're going to get to go home. Please, when you see (my brother's name) give him a big hug from me and please tell him how much I love him and always will!" My brother said that he and his wife were both just sobbing. Now, whether or not he actually saw my SIL, or not, is not important. As my brother and I said, the fact that this man felt so strongly about what he needed to do was a message from her. My brother was, of course, both saddened and comforted by what the man did. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of you going through the loss of loved ones - may you find comfort in your memories.

btydrvn, thank you : ) I think everyone has different needs, and want different 'styles'. I think yours is manicured, clean looking, whereas ours is 'quaint', and more on the casual side. And I agree, if you want less care, don't get fish! I hear you about fencing and the wildlife. Ours is in the city but close to the mountains, so not a true city atmosphere or neighborhood. Still, our neighbors are close, so we put in a privacy fence. It's not prevented most the wildlife, but the wild turkey and deer no longer visit, and yes, that makes me sad, too. We live in bear country, but have had no visiters to this house, thankfully. Austin, a 16" waterfall should be absolutely fine for bringing oxygen into your pond. Our single pump moved twice the amount as our pond holds, and therefore runs the pond through the filter skimmer and biofilter more than once a day. For your pond, 3 ft to 3-1/2 feet should be sufficient for goldfish (and good choice, there, as Koi are gorgeous, but very destructive to plants). Remember, you will most likely have to get into that pond at some point. You might consider digging out a shelf before your liner goes in) for some container bog plants (dragonflies love those). You just cut a shelf out with a shovel, you cannot add one really as the soil will be too loose and it might 'tilt' over time. Consider some type of cave for your fish, either a purchased one or one of your own making. They need protection from the sun in the winter when your plants are died back, and protection from the sun in the early spring when your plants are growing, and protection from wildlife. You need plants. They provide shade and much needed oxygen. Hardy water lilies, which you'll trim back in the fall and lower to the pond floor. They should survive and come back in the spring. The pond plants will keep your pond healthy, balance, and your fish healthy and alive. I strongly recommend adding plants first (lilies, underwater, bog) and giving your water and pond a full 2 weeks minimum to age. We waited 4 weeks. Then add your fish. Google how to introduce fish to a pond. Get them from a reputable breeder. Comets, shubunkins - any non-fancy goldfish (though I think those look fancy!) will be fine. If even one fish looks sickly, or swims sideways, do not buy any! Go elsewhere. That is nothing but heartbreak. Pond stones provide aeration. We have a couple we use all summer and winter. Water... your water needs balancing, which is why the wait. You can and should get a water testing kit... however, there are 2 schools of thought there. First, overfeeding can cause an increase in ammonia, so don't overfeed (get the food that koi eat, pellets that float on the water), and net up any left after a minute or two) and do test ammonia levels. PH levels - some people panic over those. Without going into massive detail, goldfish are hardy boogers, and I've have 2 ponds with extremely high PH levels... eventually we just put the fish in and they thrived. High PH levels are common discussion on another forum, and I wouldn't stress over that at all. It's only when PH levels go up and down within the same day that it becomes dangerous for fish. Most don't. Mostly, don't stress : ) Overwinter... Easy. Around the end of summer, you can add Pond Salt (google it) if you wish to increase the fish's slime, which is a protective coating. Not necessary, but nice. Lower your lily plants to the bottom of your pond if they aren't already there, and cut off all dead and dying pads, flowers, stalks. Add a couple pond aeration stones if you don't already have them. Start decreasing feedings as the temperatures turn cooler. When you pond water temperature reaches 45 - 50 F (7-10 C) and pretty much stays there or lower, stop feeding your fish. Nothing. No matter how much they beg, and they will. They will go into a sort of hibernation. They can get any needed nutrition from the algae in the pond. If is warms up to summer like temps for a brief period, don't feed them during your winter months. Even if they are swimming around more. Stay calm, if you can't find a fish or 5. They hide. They sit at the bottom part of the pond and barely move. You can get a pond warmer if the aeration stones aren't strong enough to keep an ice 'hole' in your pond. Again, even in hibernation, fish need oxygen. As the pond warms up in the spring, when it becomes warmer than 45-50 F (not the outside, temp, the pond temp) you can resume feeding... slowly at first, then your normal schedule. One last thing... never, ever slap your open hand on top of the water, never slap a board on ice to break it up, this creates minor shock waves, and yes, that can kill a goldfish : ) Do teach them to come to you when you feed them by gently tapping the water with a finger each time you drop in food at your pond's edge. Soon they'll follow you everywhere in the pond, mouths open, telling you they are starving! Lastly, gold fish won't starve : ) Enjoy your pond!