edweather: I'm with you on the Russets. All the potato dishes I love are far better with them: baked, mashed, French fried, scalloped. The only thing I prefer waxy potatoes for is potato salad. My family loves Russets so much that I used to take them on the plane with me when we vacationed in a cottage on the Florida panhandle. We could never find a decent potato in the little stores down there. (The beef was awful too! We're hopelessly Midwestern.) Of course, Homeland Security put an end to potatoes on the plane. terrybull: According to the sources I've seen (Washington State University, Maine Potato Lady) Nicola is a mid-season variety. Seed Savers Exchange says it is a late season that matures in 90-110 days. I thought late season varieties typically took more than 130 days to mature. Please report back to let us know how yours turn out. I have read that only a few late season varieties will grow stolons with tubers all along the buried stem, which is what you want in a potato tower. Potatoes are like tomatoes in that some are indeterminate and some are determinate. Determinate potatoes flower once and produce one layer of potatoes and die, so they are not suitable for a tower. Indeterminate potato varieties apparently flower continuously throughout the growing season (like yours, edweather?). Most potatoes are determinate. Some potatoes don't actualy bulk up until the weather turns cold. Russet Burbank is a classic indeterminate potato that takes 140-150 days to mature. If I ever do anything like this again, I'm going to look for a potato that takes at least 135 days to harvest. And I think I'll leave it in the ground as long as possible. Whoops. Looks like I'm dreaming again.

John, Thank you so much for the info. I'll definitely get on the citrus fertilizer this week. Key limes....that would be wonderful! I take it Meyer lemons are good? Hmm...now I want them to speed up so I can confirm! :) Incidentally, I have some surprisingly talented spiders on this property who cast webs from roof to roof and even roof to patio two floors down (WTH!?!). Inevitably, some are in between the leaves and branches of all the trees and bushes. I basically hate all bugs and I wash them out as much as I can with a jet stream of water -- but otherwise, I suppose they aren't doing any real damage? Meaning, I don't have to worry about eating spider eggs or anything disgusting INSIDE the lemon or limes after I wash them? I get itchy just thinking about bugs.

I love your story! That's really cool that Mr B puts up a tree, too! It looks great! ...old fashioned, front of a fireplace kind of tree! & then I saw your white one...that is beautiful...love the purple & brown ornies on it...looks great in your new DR! Maxi wouldn't cooperate for a Christmas tree pic, uh? LOL! Now, relax, sit back & enjoy! (I'm ready to wrap gifts now...& do some baking...it all comes tog, doesn't it) Finished up some more decor today ... a little at a time! ;-) TFS, maxi! Jeanne S.

Marie I'm going to reply here rather than by private message because this will be quite long and I believe there are character limits on messaging. First, let me reiterate: My remark above was directed solely at the tree in question, and not at any person. I, like many, used anthropomorphism, endowing non human entities with human traits. We say they are aggressive, invasive, thugs, beautiful, elegant, handsome, hard to please, easy to please, etc. Some of these descriptors have positive connotations, some negative. Since trees don't understand human language, nor can they read the written word, it means nothing to them, but it does to we humans. Now, as far as the word 'pansy'. As kids, my friends and and I would use the word in it's slang form, many many decades ago, as a pejorative of course, as we used many other words which today are verboten. The word 'wimp' it seems to me, is in very common usage. Just this morning I heard the commercial for paper towels, HEFTY! HEFTY! HEFTY!, wimpy, wimpy, wimpy. If you watch TV or listen to the radio you've probably heard it. It can apply to 'things' as well as people. I hear the word all the time, I never hear the word 'pansy'. When I saw the name Forest Pansy in the OP, I couldn't resist the play on words. I've never liked the name 'Forest Pansy' Maybe it brings back memories of the way it was used so many years ago. I spent some time trying to find some info about it. Apparently there were unnamed red leaved forms of Cercis canadensis in the past. The Forest Nursery, located in McMinnville TN selected out a red form back in the '60's, patented it and named it. AFAIK, the patent has expired. The 'Forest' part of the name seems obvious, the 'pansy' part? Maybe the color of the foliage reminded them of the deep maroon and black coloration of some strains of pansy. The nursery is still extant, I live about a half hour away from it. I love the internet. I enjoy participating on forums like this, exchanging info with peers and helping out newbies. I particularly like the challenge if ID'ing stuff, sometimes I'm right, sometimes I'm wrong. It's all good. But there is a downside to it all. We are reading the written word on a computer screen. We don't have the benefit of in person contact, of looking someone in the eye, observing body language and listening to tone and inflection in directly speaking to one another. A comment made in person may elicit laughter and slaps on the back whereas the same comment written and taken out of context may elicit a visit from Homeland Security. Marie, I meant no offense to you, or anyone else. I enjoy your comments, they are well thought out and articulate.