Well I took a deep breath and I've decided to take it all in stride and do as much as I can and not worry about the rest. I just sort of had a panic attack about how much I'd LIKE to get done, which is so much different than how much I actually CAN get done. Yes the forsythia and early daffodils have been blooming for at least a couple of weeks now and I just noticed today that the redbuds are starting and my Mohawk viburnum is beginning to bloom. I alway go and look at it close up when it's blooming, the fragrance is heavenly. Between the viburnum and the nearby daffodils I have so much fragrance. I think I'll bring some inside to enjoy, it's been raining off and on for days and I want to smell spring if I can't be out in it as much. Here are some photos I snapped today, signs of spring! White Lady daffodils and muscari Mohawk viburnum flowers - I wish you could smell them! And, always a sign of spring, DH making a new garden area!

Gerard, it's this wonderful, precious group of people that keeps me coming back every day! Gardeners are nurturing by nature, but these people are above and beyond! I'm incredibly thankful that I stumbled in here one day to ask a question... because they not only answered me, they welcomed me into the fold and have warmed my heart ever since! From me to you, this is your official "welcome"! I hope you stick around! We share much more than just hippeastrum blooms and gardening tips... we share our lives and families, our pets and homes, and all the other beautiful things we enjoy growing and nurturing! Thank you for sharing your photography! The flowers are wonderful! If you only knew how painful and depressing winters used to be for me... well, that's in the past now... I look forward to winter these days... because I get to share it with this unique group of caring individuals, and their talents with bulbs and digital photography! Welcome! Pull up a keyboard and join us!

So, for the folks who are running their central AC on a small generator, there are some things to consider so you don’t damage your ac. Just because it’s working doesn’t mean it’s not harming your central ac. 1st you need to have a quick reading voltage meter your typical cheapie can’t read ms long voltage changes. What your looking for is when your ac starts what is the instantaneous voltage drop. If your seeing under 208V when starting your ac, your accelerating wear on your motor windings on the compressor. Your compressor takes a certain amount of wattage which varies depending on temperature. If your ac says 90lra at 208v you need 18,720 starting watts, to start the ac without a voltage drop. If your generator can’t supply the needed power, you’ll slow the engine down and bog the generator causing its output voltage to drop, and say it’s outputting only 185v starting the ac. That means your ac is now drawing 18720/185=101 amps, and for a longer period of time. at low voltage the ac will take longer to start, heating the motor winding on your ac significantly more, once the insulation degrade or the wiring melts in the ac your compressor is done, So it’s not that it can’t be done, but it will wear your compressor a lot more quickly. Also if your ac doesnt sound the same while running it’s because the motor is vibrating more due to a highly distorted ac wave form or high THD from the generator. This extra vibration will wear the compressor more quickly and if bad enough destroy the motor. So some things to keep in mind when running a central ac on a generator. something highly recommended for small generators is leave the ac running all the time to reduce starts which damage the motors and or install a soft start kit to reduce LRA. If the ac is noisy on generator power get a different generator with a low thd, make sure it’s grounded properly if needed and consider upgrading your ac run capacitor to a 440v. Real bottom line, a cheap generator can run a very expensive ac. But if it kills your ac you didn’t really save money by buying a cheap generator.

Rick off hand I don't know anyone that would be interested. Bob should be returning to the forum very soon, I know he is a fan of Pachyform plants. The Pachy seeds did real well Rick. A few had difficulty shedding their casings but germination was good on all except the Baroni. Those didn't come up but I am not fretting because I have a nice crop of newborns! Thanks again, so happy to try the different varieties. Tracy