Ornithogalums??? Oh vetivert, you are bad, but Ornithogalum is the first thing that comes to mind when I think of spring chores and getting to work outside, usually in late Feb. Now I realize my question could have and should have been phrased a lot better. How about this? If the Bulb Forum members would submit their (own) pics of plants and blooms grown from bulbs for a new forum picture, what should it be? . Should it be open to anything grown from bulbs? Should it maybe exclude such things that have more 'specific' forums of their own, such as Lily, Tropical, and House Plant? Should it be an individual bloom, or as you suggested, maybe a still life flower arrangement of numerous delectable blooms grown from bulbs? Please 'scuse me for just having tunnel vision and tunnel thoughts of just Daffodils. At any rate, the folks who are having their spring now, can hopefully be trying to get some great pics. Ok...so when does anyone think we could/should start taking picture submissions? Should we wait until late 2010 so glads could be included by those in the US who grow them? Should we wait a full year (or nearly) so the members down under have an opportunity to have another summer blooming season, like for glads? hmmm...what is fairest? I guess before proceeding, I should check with the 'Powers that be' to see for sure if they would be willing to get the pic changed and updated with a pretty pic of our choosing. I hope lots of folks will give their input and in time, post their pics for entry. In doing a search here on the forum, it seems that Tulips and Daffs are the 2 things most often posted about. I imagine though that tulips are most frequently asked about, due to them having problems, or emerging early, or for not blooming a second season when they are thought to be perennials like daffodils. Here is a spring 2009 pic of a bouquet of Daffodil Show rejects. Hopefully in 2010, I can put together a much better arrangement and pic. Sue...hoping/planning to start daff planting today...maybe

The Lemon seedlings are doing wonderful! They're growing very fast. They did fine after I uncovered them. I think this was partially thanks to the fact that I mist all of my plants 4-5 times a day. I fear they'd burn without it, but they love the sun. About a week ago, I did have to give the wandering jew a haircut. You can't even tell now. I started another pot. I couldn't stand to throw away all of those stems. The bigger spider also has a few new shoots. All of the plants are sending off runners. Too many to deal with! Linda, along with the daily misting, I add a tiny bit of water to the soil. Although it's quick draining soil, I never let it dry. With the heat in the 100's, I have to water every day, so I don't know what it's like in your zone. Thanks for all of the kind words!

Probably the most important thing now is to make sure of your diagnosis. Pictures might help to make sure. Botrytis Blight or Gray Mold has a gray, fuzzy coating on older plant material. Spores begin the infection and can remain in the soil during the winter. At times the young center leaves turn grayish and hair may become abnormally long. Botrytis can kill the plant. First thing to do would be to isolate the plant or plants from your main collection. Increase air circulation to the area. Remove all fading flowers or leaves. Lower your humidity if possible. Keep room temperature even and warm. Do not over fertilize. Leaves of plants should not touch. You can use the homemade treatment as suggested above. One tablespoon bleach in one gallon warm water sprayed over foliage. If you have only a few plants affected just remove them and see what happens. If many are affected in your collection you may want to buy Benomyl. You can also purchase sulfer from the drug store. Put this in little pots around your plants. Check your rootball just to make sure this is not root or crown rot. Nancy

Ooh, yes we can chat about orchids too in the appropriate forums. ;) I am happy to help if I am able. You may remove one or more of the smaller leaves that are beneath the outermost larger leaves. I use scissors myself and cut it up close to the plant's main stem for the sake of being tidy. Remember to sterilize your tools before and after cuts so not to transmit viruses and pests (I use 70% alcohol). Then trim the stem short to about 1 or 1.5 inches from the leaf so that the stem closest to the plant isn't planted as it may produce flower buds instead of new plants. Most people prefer to cut the stem at a 45 degree angle so that new babies are more inclined to come up in front of the mother leaf rather than behind, but that doesn't really matter. I like to soak my leaves for about 5 minutes in a 10% bleach solution, then rinse thoroughly with distilled water to ensure I do not transmit pests like mites, thrips, mealy bugs, mold, bacteria, mildew, etc to the new babies. You may start leaves in a little water but be aware that the kind of roots made in water are not the same kind as produced in soil, so there will be an additional transition later when you plant. I much prefer to start leaves in my standard mix with 50% perlite. You may wick, bag, or dome leaves but it is important that they are not /too/ wet in soil (encourages rot) but merely kept damp and need bright light. For best results they should receive light for a minimum of about 8 hours a day and you'll have much better results with artificial lights than window. Many AV (and strep) varieties are difficult to get babies from limited window light but if it's all you have to work with, give it a try. No rooting hormones should be used as gesneriads are rich in producing their own. If you want to see lots of photos and articles on starting AV leaves, Google is your friend. There are tons of resources on this topic easy to find. Most leaves under ideal conditions will produce babies within 4 to 8 weeks. Some faster, many slower and it can depend on the variety, depth of stem, light, temperature, etc.