Mary it is amazing what a child remembers from the days when they were helping their mom's ..grandma's :-) garden. I do remember so much from my mom :-) Deb I am so glad you liked the little thank you pictures. ha ha ha you know. I was only a mailcarrier for 7 years but I did learn that it is a crime to open mail not addressed to you roflmao. No it would have taken the SPECIAL suprise away when we all gathered to open the package :-) As for the shells I want to build a congrete wall with soil build up above the ground high enough so I can plant a tree and know that it has soil to grow on and not just rocks lol. So the shells will get stuck on the outside. Think it will work? Kristy it was real good that Maddy got a bear from Deb. That meant that I did not have to share the one I got from Lucy Lou lol Yes thank you, feeling good enough not to have to stay in bed all day. Lucy

Ednam, if you mean the insides are firm and ALL of the outside 'skin' is mushy they are as good as dead. Mind you I never did save the one that got the same thing so anybody who has had success with this is better to be heard. Mine usually dry up a bit at the tip during the process of rooting. In the meantime, there's always a chance to try some things I did do if you have firm skin left somewhere on the lower part. A few tips that might help but won't hurt. You can put them back in a cup of water having cut off the mushy part as Mike advised. If there wasn't any good sized nubbies before you put them in soil it's ok to take them out of the dirt and grow some more roots. Although I doubt it's for lack of water as they'd dry up. Keep the water around 70F, which means away from drafty windows to. Make sure the chlorine is out of any water used. Shake a container of water and blow over the water, keep a little distance and smell the water. Keep shaking until you don't smell the chlorine. You can leave water out to open air for 24 hours and the chlorine will leave it. To speed things up on a larger amount of water, bucket or aquarium etc, use a blender. Make sure no electrical parts can get submerged...better you just hold on to it and whip the water around, taking a break whenever necessary. If you're going to put them in water, place about 1/2 in water, (don't know what size you have or how many nubbies are on the lower portion but it'll matter as far as how much water the plant will be able to absorb, therefore if there's a lot of nubbies you won't need so much in the water no less than 1/4). Try to keep at least 1 branch eye up out of the water, it's easier for the new branch(es) to grow out of these but not necessary. Place a sandwich bag (drape saran wrap) over it loosely. If you seal it you will get all of those white nubbies all up the stem growing roots. My experience with sealing them: mine looked like they had chicken pocks...real bad. Then it shriveled quite a bit when re-exposed to air, and hardened the branch, still don't know if anything is going to come of this branch. Make sure they are right side up. The angle left where the branch used to be also shows which way the branches were growing. Or viewable as a thinning branch. Hope all will be well...Anybody else? -Sandy

How funny you guys are "down to" six! I'm "up to" six at a time, and broke down and brought out the old cheap feeder I had before I got one that was ant and bee resistant. Then two feeders weren't enough, when I swore I'd only have one, and I got another to space them out in the yard. Just yesterday, I saw two actually feeding together peacefully, at a truce. And if I saw six at a time there were probably more perching in trees, that I didn't see. Tomorrow night's a cold front. We'll be down to the 60s (it's been high 80s all week). I'm expecting that will shoo them away. I was watching them sipping tonight and am bracing myself to see nothing tomorrow. But don't worry, the feeders will stay fresh and the flowers will be blooming at least another month and a half!

Nancy - It is nice to have so many seedlings reblooming this season. David - I hope your Linda Gluck seeds bring you some fantastic offspring. I've made a couple of crosses with it. I just hope the heat doesn't abort the pods. Maryl - I knew you would appreciate a pink post. Pink Aloha will probably bloom for another week here. I wish that one would rebloom. It never has here. I'm sorry Pink Lemonade Party and Shores of Time didn't work out for you. They are both really pretty pinks. Sherry - In Search of Angels is a wonderful color. It's never multiplied very well for me in the past. Maybe it will in its new location. Debra