You are a thief and major law breaker if you propagate one tree! How dare anyone justify stealing. I spent 20 years on getting to the final patent issue and 30,000 USD for fees, attorneys, 3 years of secure testing and the patent was 2 years of time being issued. It is NOT just 'mother nature'! Then finding an honest wholesale nursery to deal with, negotiating royalties, travel expenses to nurseries, attorneys, testing facilities and even more attorney fees. I have years of research and now patent infringement costs as I will sue anyone, even those that make even one copy illegally. If you don't want to pay the extra price then don't buy it! The lawsuit will not be for a dollar either! Courts in the US will not care who you are and fines are large as are my attorney fees you will also pay. Also, most of the 'true fact, statements in this thread are incorrect. Read the patent laws if you are not too lazy. Honestly, after reading this thread I have no desire to release my other plants that I am going to patent. Most royalties are pennies and if you are so fortunate to hit the perfect tree, release it when the economy is good or no droughts, then you deserve the higher dollars! i didn't even mention the different countries require different "patents" $$$$ and countries such as Mexico and China steal the trees by not enforcing patent infringement so we loose out on many big markets. i don't steal from you. Try exhibiting some integrity and honesty towards all.

Jenniferemily I like your last thought the best. This would, I think, fit the aesthetics of upstate N.Y. the best also, no? As to salt tolerance, it's all a matter of degree. No conifer really likes it, and if that region has anything like the madmen/women who dictate salt usage here in Wisconsin, it's going to be a rough go. +oM

I don't get the light issue - if you make your curtains stack off the window, no light or view is ever blocked when they are open. That is the way I have all my curtains and rods made. I love fabric so wouldn't want to pass up that opportunity to add it as a layer somewhere. Curtains can be very simple and not cluttery looking. Also, unfortunately, there is the 'creep out' factor for me. We have a farmhouse (no longer our primary residence) embedded on 170 acres, long gated drive, mostly wooded, no neighbors and completely private. Just because you think it's private really anyone can position themselves to see in. Yes, perhaps a one in a million chance but still creeped me out too much to go without curtains or romans on every single window that could be drawn at night. I read that darn book "Red Dragon" (what they based those Manhunter movies on) way back when, and I wish I could erase it from my memory but can't!

We live on a busy (well, sorta busy) street on the corner of a residential street. The street is busiest during the commuting times. This is when all the people from the side roads take our road to the "main" road. During the off times and weekends our road is not very busy. We bought our house because it was a good price (because of being on a busier road) and it was EXACTLY what we were looking for and we were looking for an old (old!) house with a nice yard. Our lot is the largest in the area also and has trees surrounding the property and the backyard has a 6ft privacy fence. The back yard is like our oasis. We are big gardeners and we have plenty of land for that. We do get garbage on the front lawn but my sister also complains about that and she lives in a small neighborhood. When I complained about it one day she commented " it happens everywhere now". People seem to be stupid now and don't care where they throw there junk. The biggest thing I would like to change about my house is not the traffic but I would LOVE to have sidewalks. There are many walkers/runners and having sidewalks would be nice. I love the location of our house (close to everything that WE want to be close to). We used to live in the city and I loved it but my husband wanted to be out in the burbs. We almost have the best of both worlds (close to everything yet big lot and house ect.) If I could move my house to the city and had to deal with more traffic, I would. I like to be able to walk to stores. So, I know I would buy a house another house on a busy road if we knew it was a fit for us. Our friends purchased houses on quiet streets and they got less house, in a less nice area for the same money as us. It is a tradeoff and only you will know if it is a tradeoff you will be ok with. Also, I wouldn't mind if my street became busier if they put in deli's or little shops that I could walk too. I like the main street feel. We had little choice when we bought our house. The majority of old, historic houses are on main roads. If you are looking for a new house you will have more choices and the new house on a busy road may not sell easily. Once we find the right buyer (old house lover) I do not think they will have issues with the traffic. If we wanted a new build, we would NOT have purchased a house on a busy road. -renee