Hello, Has anyone gained any insight on this topic over the past year? I'm trying to figure out how to set things up for the season and would like to move many of the containers off of the deck and out to the edge of the yard. The containers are multiplying so rapidly that space on the deck is becoming limited. Last year the routine was to add the fertilizer concentrate to the watering can, fill it inside with tepid water, carry it out to the deck and water, then repeat as needed until all the plants are happy. The new location will be on the other side of the yard, which is too far to keep running back to the house to fill the 2 gal. watering can. I'm considering getting an EZ-Flo fertilizer injector which feeds into the hose bib. Then 150 ft. of hose (I still have to measure that to make sure) and a watering wand should do the trick (can anyone recommend a good watering wand?). The plants are primarily conifers, maples, and chile peppers, and my concern is the water temp. As others have noted , water from the hose bib is cold even in the summer - will this have implications on the plants' vitality? I'm especially concerned for the peppers. Plan B is to get a reservoir (probably a garbage can, but it could be a rain barrel), install a hose bib near the bottom, and place this in a shaded location near the plants. I envision sitting the reservoir on a table for ease of accessibility. I might have to fill a watering can, I don't know if it would generate the pressure to use a watering wand. Fill the reservoir with water and in a day or so I'll have a source of water at ambient temperature. Ideally, one could add fertilizer concentrate to the can, but in practice though, the can doesn't have a tight lid, and evaporation will result in concentration of the contents. On the other hand, there's an adapter you can get for the fertilizer injector to allow it to function in low flow applications (think drip), and that might be applicable. Plan B requires somewhat more work, but does not have the cold water liability. Also, what with the reservoir up on a table, I wonder what will happen when that big storm rolls through. I'll make a decision soon so I that can buy what I need. I'd be really interested in any additional info on use of cold water in the summer. Also, I'd love any feedback on Plan A or Plan B, or any other alternatives. Alex

If you are interested and willing to search (Google or Bing), check out some of the articles on AGDIA, which is a company that makes tests for viruses and other diseases of plants. You can see the PCR and ELISA tests that are available for roses (and for many other plants.) Do you know the word "Synergy"? Not the new age version, but the science based synergy- there are some interesting plant pathology sites out there as well. Briefly, Synergy means that diseaseA has X symptoms and disease B has Y symptoms, but when a plant has diseases A&B, the plant will not have a simple mix of X and Y symptoms, but often will also have new (call them Z) symptoms that may be worse that the sum of X and Y. Where does that leave rose growers? It leaves rose growers wanting to keep their plants as healthy as possible so that no even more damaging symptoms appear. Years ago a simple study was done in California roses. Under optimum conditions, roses with a single virus (as tested for back then) produced ten to fifteen per cent fewer blooms. That, economically, was reason to keep the plants as clean as possible. And to the root to root transmission: Google Scholar papers by Giolino (author), roses, and the time period last ten years.

To stay on topic, nice layout. Now, to the comments regarding the ads: I have no problem with the links that I had to my posts. In fact they are very effective, because it's easier than trying to describe something visual. However, the ads with links to other sites that I have no control over is just wrong. The Gardenweb policy is that we can not put ads into our posts, but they are going to do it for me. If I was a small business owner, I would be quite upset if a competitor's ad came up in my post, but I wouldn't be able to link to my own website. This is garbage, pure and simple. If Gardenweb is against ads in posts, that's fine. If not, then just open it up to ALL ads, rather than just theirs. This is a new policy that they are putting in, and gardenweb is taking the chance that the people who actually provide the most/best information (not referring to myself, but others who have some tremendous information to share) are not going to be coming here. Then the people who are seeking answers will go elsewhere for their information. If you get bad answers, why keep coming back, and then their revenue stream shrinks even lower.

I asked my installer about the refrigerant charge and this is what he said: The charge is 12 pounds of R410A for the system and 10 of lines + .6 ounces per foot for additional line lengths. We do not test super heat or sub-cooling on a new Acadia system start-up. We do on any other heat pump or AC system we install. The Acadia system is unique in that it does not come with any refrigerant from the factory, only a nitrogen charge. Per Hallowell instructions (told to me from Duane Hallowell himself), we weigh in the R410A charge according to the manual and start the unit, no further testing is required. Testing super heat and sub-cooling verifies proper charge. We always run these tests on any other system because we do not take for granted that the factory installed the right amount or that some has not leaked out by the time we get the units. With Acadia systems, we would only test sub-cooling afterwards if we suspected a problem with the refrigerant system. Does this sound right because they treat me as if this were my fault!