One of my neighbour's have already decorated their house with flashing lights.

Where do you live,Shrubs n Bulbs? Lots of Hindus have decorated their homes for Diwali. No excuse for the poinsettias, though.

One house near here smothers the house with flashing lights during the 1st week of November every year - and no, they are not Hindu, just idiotic in my opinion.

Garden Nerd, it Makes you wonder when the M&S Nursery Started the Light Control to get a Crop of Points this Early....

Might be Divali, I guess, although it looked more christmassy than other Divali lights I've seen. Some Hindus round here, not many. I'll check again tonight.

Here in Harrow the council decorates the lamp posts in the shopping areas with Christmas trees (rather hideuous tinsel ones in bright colours). They do this in OCTOBER so they've got Diwali AND Christmas covered.

Marks and Spencers Nursery started the light control programme on 14th June 2005.
Hope this answers your question.

Tesco at Haverfordwest had Christmas puddings for sale from 1st September.

Best wishes to you all, we will all be worn out come 25th December. Must go I just remembered I need to write my script for Christmas Morning, how does it start. Good morning you are listening to Radio ??????????? Gerald.

Thank You Gerald, and Please may I ask were you got this Tip Bit From?

"Tesco at Haverfordwest had Christmas puddings for sale from 1st September"

Bet they were labelled 'Best Before end October 2005' as well . . .

Trust the tin shed in Haverfordwest (place of my birth!) to be in the forefront. No Xmas lights spotted in Leicester as yet, but I need to drive down Asquith Boulevard as the neighbours round there vie to drain the National Grid for 2 whole months each year. We've had a big Diwali light display all along Belgrave Road, the Asian shopping paradise, worth a visit if you're in Leicester and have nothing much to do!

Just a small question - if M&S have to start their day-length adjustment program in June, does that mean that they have to put black-out blinds on all their greenhouses to make sure the 'settas get enough dark?

I was about to ask the Same thing re Black-Out Blinds Garden Nerd
I guess one has to ask how many they would have to Black-Out?

Good Evening Everyone.

The pile of puddings is getting bigger, twice the price and half the size.

Poinsettias require 42 long nights (16 hours) followed by naturally reducing day length for 77 days to produce flowers and colourful bracts. The bracts should then hold good colour for 6 weeks. So for Christmas display black out should start about the 14th August.

Garden Nerd, I am sorry I did not get back to you about the Arums but I fractured my left leg in three places so have been really laid up for quite sometime, glad to say things are now returning to normal. We had frost last night and Arums Green Goddess, Kiwi Blush and Marshmallow did not turn black as they have for the last 2 years. The blackening has always been followed by complete rotting of the plants. I do really believe these varieties are not fully hardy so have now covered them with fleece. Arums Crowborough and White Sail are fully hardy down here.

Best wishes

Gerald.

Glad I don't have a job as official M&S curtain puller.

Sorry to hear about your leg, Gerald, that sounds a bit drastic, hope you're fully recovered.

You clearly have a veritable aroid paradise there, better than my few scrappy specimens!

Watched TV earlier, endless procession of Xmas food adverts, we are all going to be climbing the walls by the end of November, let alone December. If I were Prime Minister all Xmas advertising would be banned until mid-Dec.

Thanks Gerald re info and OUCH re Leg