nanners, I placed one order with those folks, well over 12 years ago, and vowed 'never again'. I did not get any of your aforementioned varieties, however. I did get 'Black Giant' mulberry, which is nothing more than a non-descript row-run M.alba seedling, producing bitter little fruits that are anything but giant - but they do ripen from red to black. It worked well as a diversion crop to draw birds away from the cherries and strawberries, but it's going bye-bye this year. I do have a buddy in NV who bought a number of figs from 'em and actually got some decent plants, though I don't know if he got Patrick's Supergiant - I know he had 'Mystery X', which he sent wood from one time. Another buddy, in NJ, bought one of the 'Cannonball' black walnut seedlings. Still hasn't borne nuts yet, so who knows - will seedlings of the Cannonball tree produce nuts that are as big - and are the nuts themselves really big, or do they just have a really thick husk on them? Then, even if the nuts are big, what's the kernel %? He sent me some scionwood from it a couple of years back, but who wants to graft an unproven seedling BW - especially one from an outfit who's just as likely to have sent you just a run-of-the-mill BW seedling as one that actually descended from the 'Cannonball' tree(if such an entity even exists!)? Cold-hardy bananas? I suspect they're just Musa basjoo. Hey, I've got one growing here that was sent to me by a friend who's got it growing in MI!

Hi Johnathan, no I haven't tried any fruit tree but next spring I am going to try a few palm tree in my home made box, I had so much good luck with my tomato plants in these home made box who knows what I will try next. I did make one box, well maybe not a box but a 5 gal bucket in to a growth container and put a Chinese Elm in it. Man it grew faster then I thought it would at lest I think it did it was 2" when planted in May come October it was 2 and 1/4 foot . I was going to use it for a bonsai but some one offered me quit a bit for the bucket and elm that I could not turn them down. Very dumb ...I did not get any pictures, I took picture of my tomato containers but not the elm......O-Well! Rick

Mike mangos do very well in containers in the GH. Make sure you get a grafted dwarf variety. They are almost as easy as papayas. Some varieties do better in pots then others. I still think the flavor of container grown fruit up north is inferior to inground and container trees grown trees from down South but it's fun to be able to pick fruit off your own tree. I got rid of most of my fruit trees a while back so that I could devote more GH space to flowering plants. Years ago there were few varieties available in the grocery store and they weren't that ripe or tasty but now I can get a wide variety of ripe mangos at the Asian markets. Have you taken a look at the Tropical Fruit Forum? You can get a lot of good info there.

Had a laminectomy 2 years ago to relieve the pressure on my sciatic nerve. Had never experienced pan like that before. Holy cow! Suffice to say that there was great relief after the surgery but, like they say, once something is broken, it's never like new again. The excrutiating, disabilitating pain was gone but to this day my left leg is still numb from my buttock fold to my foot! I can walk without a limp now and am grateful for that. I have terrible days and my nights are the worse but for the most part I do ok. Aleve and Motrin are helpful. I also walk as much as possible (which kills me but I do it anyway) and I make sure I stretch my hamstrings and calf muscles. I was a Physical Therapist Asst. for many yrs. and know that the one best thing you can do to keep your back healthy is to have a strong core. Find a way to work on those abdominal muscles. They support your back. I also know (from experience) that to some of us, abdominal exercises aren't easy to do when your back is killing you! Good luck to you all with your back discomfort!