I have the same shelf as zenman, but I don't use a heat mat. I buy the mylar blankets from the sports dept at Walmart. They are in a small box hanging on a rack and the cost is about $3. I drape this small blanket over the top shelf and attach it with clothes pins to cover down to the next shelf. I don't use any lights on the top shelf, and because heat rises, the heat from the lights on the second shelf heat the area above that shelf. The blanket holds the heat in and the tray with the dome cover holds the moisture in the tray. At the first sign of germination, I remove the dome and move the tray down under the lights and drop the lights down until they almost touch the plants. I grow in a building that is well insulated and will only add heat if the outside temp is below freezing. The lights create some heat, but I intentional grow tomatoes on a cooler shelf. Peppers, on the other hand, need to be on one of the open shelves that has a light under it as they will benefit from the extra heat that rises from that light. I also have my light fixtures plugged into surge protectors so that I can control all of the lights by just flipping a switch rather than plugging and unplugging cords. The sports blankets that I use look a little like aluminum foil, but are soft and almost transparent. When I first start the plants I use another blanket to wrap around the shelves because the silver color tends to reflect more light onto the plants (I think). Sometimes I remove it from the lower shelves and some years I just add a small fan to make sure there is some air movement on the plants. Later in the season, I remove it because I don't want the plants to be too hot, but I leave the top part covered and continue to use it as a germination chamber. I am attaching a picture, but the light wasn't on in the room when I took the picture so you have to look closely to see the top shelf which has no lights. I have watered from the bottom, from the top, and misted and I never have had damping off, so I can't say which is best. I would never mist if I wasn't running a fan though. Here is a link that might be useful: My shelf

Hello, Shiraz! That one question is difficult to answer. Bare-rooting is best *IF* you're re-potting during the optimal time of year (Spring) *AND* if you're replacing all of the old soil with a very differently textured medium. If the tree is very, very rootbound and the old soil is compacted, some have suggested that you only remove a couple wedges of the old rootball during the first year. Then, you remove the other wedges in the second year to make the transition go more smoothly. If you're switching from the current soil to a mix that is bark-based like the 5-1-1, then you don't necessarily need to remove all the old soil. You can simply tease the roots apart around the bottom and outer sides of the rootball, rough off some soil, and then replace with the bark mix. Josh

SusannahSB, Many tropical hibiscus can survive with only a few hours of direct sun. An environmental change will always results in leaf and bud drop. HVH has some good fertilizer products for indoor plants and great tips also. As for lighting, the wife and I put together a great set up for very low cost. We were able to sustain 20+ plants through last winter. If you get to this point, I can elaborate. Hope this helps, Ed Here is a link that might be useful: HVH

My pleasure :) There are different sizes of fluorescent lamps 2 feet and 3 feet. CFL would work too, just make sure that you get a reflector so the light goes down on plants and not the ceiling.There are reflectors that you could buy or you could try to make it yourself. The wattage of the bulb you need to get will depend on the size of your plant. The bigger the plant the bigger bulb you will need. here is an example of a CFL light fixture with a reflector http://www.greners.com/i/grow-lights/fluorescent-grow-lights/compact-fluorescent-fixtures/brite-wing-fluorescent-lamp-fixture.html and here is an example of full spectrum CFLs that you could use for your plant. Just make sure that you either go with 5000k or 6500k prefferably 5000k since it puts out more red light which will help your plant flower. http://www.growlightsupply.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=6_59_68 Please remember that these bulbs must be mounted horizontally. If you hang them straight down they might over heat their ballast and catch on fire. You could try to go with the 42 watt bulb but I see that these plants grow bigger so I would go with at least 85watt . If you have anymore questions just let me know