Bob, there are way to many to pick just ONE BEST picture :-) Kylie, I am SO busy with trying to get everything ready for the vacation....Thinking about you a lot and the great time we had. Hopefully AFTER the vacation I will have a life again and can get in touch with you. Until then, potted up the Cuttings today because I do not want hubby to deal with cuttings in water. Hey guys, Kylie has the biggest smile that comes right from the heart. If I had not signed that waver, I would show you :-) Kristy how was it being back at work ? Rigo you just enjoy your children, the time together. The fresh veggies..oh man yumm. We are here when ever you got time to say hello. Lucy

Dinglehopp, I strongly suggest you email Pamela. Like I said, I don't remember now how I came up with her name, but she didn't have a Boule de Neige listed as being available. I just asked--do you by any chance have one? She answered that she had a small one going and thought she could send it to me in the later fall (I was writing in the early fall). I explained that in Kansas, we waited until spring to plant our new roses, and she wrote back that was even better and she could promise a good-sized one for sure for April. So that was all arranged through our emails--it was not part of a regular online order. Good luck! Kate

Glad your whale watch actually found some whales! Our winter breaks on Maui coincide with Whale Season in Hawaii -- best viewed from Maui and Big Island of Hawaii. Whales migrate from Alaska to warmer waters to calve -- and to mate. There are astounding breaches by bulls competing to impress the cows. Using binoculars, I can see a lot of 'showboating' from our condo's lanai. Last Christmas we took our son and his family on a morning whale watch out of Maalaea harbor. We were fortunate to have a calm day, with a sea like glass. The bay is a favorite 'nursery' for whales, and we were only out five minutes before seeing a cow, her newborn calf, and an accompanying 'auntie'. (Auntie cows aid with the babies and help keep too-eager bulls at bay.) Later, we were still in the water watching a pod of dolphins when a young bull came alongside the boat and then went under us to the other side. We could almost scratch his back! I don't expect to experience that again. (By law, boats must keep a good distance from whales, but a pilot can only cut engines and wait when a whale decides to approach.)

Hey, guys! Yeah, they didn't get as much attention as they have in years past. But now the timer is set (reset for daylight savings now), and all should be well. Isgen, this mix works great, and I've never lost a single seedling to damping off or other moisture-related issue. The only compromise is that it requires a little more work to keep consistently moist, but I solve that by putting plastic wrap over the pots during germination. I've made this seedstarting mix for years now. As for Jwala, yes I'm skipping it for the season. I have plenty in storage, dried and frozen. I'm thinking that I'll do a few extra Hungarian Wax peppers, and focus on making smoked paprika instead. In other news, I'm *still* waiting to see any germination from the new Bhut seeds that were sent to me by the same guy who sent me the Jwala seed. He picked up the pod in Assam, but he didn't know how it was dried...so that could be the cause for lack of germination. Either way, I planted more seeds in the pot, and I put a few in a paper towel as a germination test. Also, still nothing on the seeds in the greenhouse. Might be a bust! Josh