Thanks for the positive comments, brom friends. Glad you enjoyed it - just sorry you weren't all there. LOL, Andrew, that 100% pay rise sounds good, but my maths is poor - what is 100% of $0? The alien hieroglyphics were most annoying. I now know that one should change the file to text only, when copying and pasting a Word document. The hieroglyphics substituted all the inverted commas, apostrophes, and dots...... which did not show in the preview. Lisa - I know nothing about why there weren't more Aussie hybrids available for sale. Probably distance to get them there would have been a hindrance. Shane Z was selling some of his hybrids, as was Peter T. I can only assume that due to restrictions on O.S. visitors' purchases, the sellers catered more for Aussies - the majority. And yes Gonzer, a splendid time was had for sure! Cheers, Kerry

Hi Dan, First time I've really had the chance to sit down at the computer for a couple of weeks, so I'll give it a go. I'm sure others will add to it, and if they disagree, then I get to learn too! 1. I'm not really sure if overwatering can be a problem by itself, but two things might happen depending on other factors: First is nutrients. If you continually flush all the nutrients away with tap water, then the plant will be starved. Then again, if you keep adding new nutrients with frequent foliar feeding or occasional slow release, then this should not be a problem. Second is drainage of the growing medium. If the drainage is too slow for the amount of watering and the plant ends up sitting in a stagnant soggy mess, then you can be pretty certain it will rot, especially if the air circulation is poor. If the growing medium drains very quickly and does not get soggy, I would be surprised if any amount of periodic watering would cause a problem - although it would be interesting if people have found otherwise. 2. Main cause of limp leaves is not enough light. Some Neos won't develop their brightest colours if they get too much fertiliser and their foliage might be more elongate than if starved, but if the light is strong enough for that variety, then the leaves generally should not be limp. I have an Aech. nudicaulis v. aequalis that gets its cup flushed with fresh 1/2 strength liquid fertiliser every 2 weeks or so and little other watering in its cup, but growing in full sun all morning it is compact and brightly coloured. This assumes that the fertiliser or growing medium (or gunge collecting in the cup) has a reasonable balance of nutrients. If the plant is short of potassium and calcium then you can expect limp foliage, and this will be exaggerated if nitrogen is high. I've found phostrogen brand "all purpose" to be good for soluble (N:P:K=14:4:22 plus traces except Ca), but I don't know much about slow releases - mainly because I haven't been able to get my hands on one yet that has a nutrient balance that I like - all the ones I see have high N. 3. If it is just the very bottom leaves going tubular every so often as each one reaches the end of its normal life, then that would be normal ..... um, did I really type that? Anyway, I hope you know what I mean. 4. Like just about everything else alive, broms need to get some copper. The fertiliser I use has Cu at .0055%w/v and seems to work well. 5. Re the orchid fertliser, there are some around with very high nitrogen. If it is one of those I would not use it, otherwise as for 2. 6. I can always find a few scale around out in the garden if I look hard enough, but I would only worry about it if it became obvious enough to disfigure the plants. A major infestation could certainly cause a lot of damage but this is not something that I've ever had to deal with in broms (orchids? now that's a different matter). If it did happen, I would suspect that there is something about the growing environment that is putting the plants under stress and weakening their resistance. If the picture involves limp foliage as in point 2, then insufficient potassium and/or calcium (or maybe other nutrients?) could certainly be suspected. Anyway, hope this helps. Best of luck with the brom growing. Cheers, Paul

- 6:22 PM: The Poolside Reception was already in high gear by the time I arrived. As I was following a group on over I took a view of as many people as I could. Many more attendees arrived throughout the evening, as some had just flew in or checked in at the hotel. The two bars set up at opposite sides of the area slowly began to see lines. With the flow of alcohol at an even rate, the levels of laughter got louder as time went by. The hors d'oeuvres flew in on large platters held by curtious hotel staff and they never seemed to run out. - Adjacent to the pool area was a short flight of stairs which came in handy with taking slightly elevated group shots. Everyone was in a great mood. Some attendees had spoken about how long they had waited to attend the Bromeliad Extravaganza. The weather for the reception was flawless, with the only irritation coming from a low flying aircraft or two, but many didn't seem to mind. - The first of many photos featuring the Keynote Speaker of the 2007 Bromeliad Extravaganza, Chester Skotak. He is standing next to his wife and they are with Vendor Eloise Beach and Attendee Jim Pearce. - During the Poolside Reception, a small silent auction took place and it featured some hard-to-find books and other interesting items. - Live music was provided and the musician performed just about non-stop and did an excellent job. Everyone enjoyed listening to him and some broke out into a dance or two, or three. - Three of the busiest people at the Extravaganza. The entire event would not have gone as smoothly without the efforts of Extravaganza Chairmain and Bromeliad Society of Broward County Past-President Jose Donayre, Society President Colleen Hendrix, and Society Vice-President Tim Hendrix. - The silent auction table gets worked over quite well by just about everyone, including myself. In the center wearing the gloves is Extravaganza Speaker Dr. Theresa Bert and she gives a rare book a good look over. - 7:02PM: Extravaganza Chairman Jose Donayre gives a welcoming speech to everyone at the Reception. He thanked everyone who traveled to be there and all the volunteers who collaborated to make the Extravaganza a reality. - A few minutes later, Jose gave the mic on over to Society President Colleen Hendrix. She welcomed everyone again and gave a brief run-down on the following days events. - A brief moment to capture two of the Extravaganza's Speakers a day before each of their seminars. Director of the Mulford B. Foster Bromeliad Identification Center Harry Luther and Dr. Theresa Bert. - 7:20PM: The sun begins to go down as the group shots continue, music plays in the background and the bars seldom see a quiet moment. Vendor Eloise Beach poses next to Keynote Speaker Chester Skotak, his wife and veteran collector and Society member Maureen Frazel. - The music became too powerful to resist so Extravaganza Chairman Jose Donayre begins to dance with attendee Sandy Roth. - They continue to dance for several minutes and neither seemed to get tired. - Members Maureen & Bill Frazel spent the night talking with everyone. They are very friendly and have a wealth of knowledge and experience. Ryan

The Bromeliads are kept outside in 6" pots. Label doesnt mention bromeliads at all but I know that Merit is used by many growers so I wanted to hear from someone who uses Merit granules on their broms. I only used 1/2 teasp scattered around each plant because I want to be cautious with my collection and not kill any but now I'm wondering if the 0.5 strength is strong enough to prevent flyscale. I have a feeling most brom growers are using the 2.5 strength as mentioned in the previous reply.