I typed a response the other night but evidently I didn't hit submit! Funny you mentioned Salvia Miniata - I just started a couple cuttings of it a few weeks ago. Hadn't really considered Salvias in the rectangluar pots. I was considering puttiing a feeder out front anyway, esp if the Rufous come back this year. Are you seeing any now, Tom? I have had 4 different ones - but none really staying to overlap more than a day or two. I had one adult male, then an immature male, either an immature one or a female, and today another immature male. This is all since 8/29. They tend to stay a week or so then move on. Did you find homes for your Paw Paws? I didn't get your email for a few days and posted I think on the Hummingbird site but didn't hear back. I might be able to find you a Camphor if you are still interested.

lol EXPERIMENTS! I love these sample-of-one 'experiments' too. Maybe our findings are unreliable and swarming with confounds, but sometimes we can catch the whisper of something informative. @ (Paraphrasing) "Is it okay to encourage my Hoya to grow aerial roots when all its hard work will eventually be lost?" I've had this thought a lot, and here are the conclusions I've come to. Usually, I'm experiencing this situation with a cutting. And it is my belief that the aerial roots are able to provide additional support to the plant (however temporary) that justifies their having been grown, despite their short life span. Second, aerial roots can't help but make people feel excited about the visible exuberance of their plant. And that makes us more engaged with it, which is always good. I once lost a whole group of cuttings because I just wasn't in the mood for more plants when I got them. I know that sounds terrible, but sometimes people are depressed. Anyway, it is never good to not care whether a cutting makes it or not - I think they can tell. >_> So, I say, aerial roots are good for my excitement, which makes them good for the plant. As crazy as that sounds. @ (Paraphrasing) "The plants don't care much for the humidity - or at least could get more light outside the bag, which is more valuable." I do think that it's coincidence that your unbagged Hoya is blooming and your bagged one isn't. Because 15 days just isn't long enough to determine whether one plant is going to bloom versus the other. In other words, I bet if the blooming plant had been bagged it would have bloomed anyway. As you say, there are size differences, etc etc etc. I hear you, regarding choosing between high light and high humidity as, usually, both don't coincide (in our homes). But I seem to experience an equal performance boost with both high humidity and high light. What is most interesting is putting plants that are reaaaaally stingy growers in an aquarium, because some of them will take off like that was all they were waiting for. It's not always easy to predict, by looking at them, which ones these will be. Currently I keep my caudatas and patellas in the aquarium. Plants definitely bloom more in the aquarium. If I take them out, sometimes they stop. :( :( I think there's also a confound there, though, because they send down water roots and become kind of semi-hydro. @ "warmth vs. light" I am interested to see the results of your study! I am too lazy to provide heat except for under rooting plants. I used to have it in all my aquariums, but never replaced the water heaters after they died on me. The aquariums are still warm from the lightbulbs tho... @ "what should I do for the buds" Ha - I think this is one of those areas where people's buds crash and then they look for something to pin the blame on, often drawing illusory correlations. My advice is stay the course, just like you planned. I've never had buds drop because I sprayed water or anything else on them. I try to avoid spraying insecticides on them, of course, but its happened by accident with no reaction. I do think that plants consume a bit more water when producing their buds, so, you might want to be a little more watchful of how fast they dry out. But you still want to maintain the usual drying out period and not keep them soaked all the time, like suddenly they have become African Violets. @ "Are SRQ sales 'for real'? Yes, they are for real! The normal prices are a lot higher, because Joni grows a unique collection of Hoyas primarily consisting of species that would require time to track down, luck getting in on a group order, or expensive import costs. Obviously, the cuttings included in a bundle are probably not all going to be the rarest of the rare in her collection - but rather her best performers. (Which is a self-selection bonus in itself, if you are looking for easy-growers.) But, honestly, if even 1/3 of the bundle were particularly exciting, you'd still come out ahead. And if you're just starting your collection... go go go go! I've watched noobie Hoya growers place their first orders with Joni again and again (and been there myself) and people's first orders always look exactly like these selections anyway. So chances are you'll receive something close to what you'd have picked out in your first couple purchases, anyway. Except cheaper. YAY p's. (shouting) CONGRATS ON BUDS!

"Logan L Johnson(NC Zone 7b/8a) on Thursday at 7:23PM You could apply a basal bark herbicide, and since the neighbors don't care, they won't notice until the trees are dead." This advice is illegal and a good way to end up with a criminal record. Wonder if Gardenweb tracks poster's IP's for targeted advertising and turns it over to the authorities on request. Or if the OP has a public history posting under his real name and that of a business he is associated with. Be careful Logan. This is a silly way of getting yourself into trouble.

Well, the under stairs plan is dead in the water. That wall is load bearing, and we would have to frame the opening with a beam. I don't think we are going to go that far. I am also realizing that we don't have enough counter space or prep space. I'm considering changing that double patio door to a tall window and single patio door. Then I can wrap around that corner and get space for countertop appliances that desperately need to be near the sink.