Okay, okay...I admit I was pouting a tad....well...maybe more than a tad. But I feel much better now!! ;-) Seriously though, I was beginning to think only the "regulars" received replies to their queries. So I wanted to let y'all know that I really was/am a GW "regular" that has just been gone for a bit. New job; stress; not enough sleep; so...no time to be on the computer for the last few months. ;-( But....like I said earlier...I'm back!! :-) You're welcome for the warning - I can be a pest with a million questions!! LOL Like...has anyone grown "dark-stemmed" hydrangeas? I bought two huge ones today at Lowe's on clearance for $6.00 each!! And they look really healthy! (I gotta stay away from that store!!!)

I have 2 Cuban Shaddocks. the one pictured above consist mainly of water sprouts that shot up 4 to 5 feet high and put on a few side branches. when the fruit started growing the limbs sagged to a spreading 6 feet diameter. The fruits will get up tp 8 inches in diameter and take 9- 12 months to mature. My in ground Cuban has an 8 foot water sprout and others not that long It is putting on growth now like it did last fall into winter. Once the tree went in the ground it just shot up and has no flower. I will not be able to protect a tree of this size so I will either cut it back or let it grow until it is killed. I am guessing it will reach 12-14 feet before killing freezes. My tree is in pure compost from leaves collected every fall. no perlite, no pine bark, or potting soil. When weather comes I will let the tree dry out some and it will weigh less than 60 pounds and I'll move it inside. I feed it 24-8-16 Miracle Gro with micros and I add 28-0-4 lawn feed. I feed with every watering. Because of the tree's size I could not put it on my roof so it only gets 6-4 hours of sun with the hours approaching four as the days shorten. Inside the tree will sit under my basemet light on a bucket that I can use to draw air thout the trees roots with. I do this with all my indoor trees. This way nI can feed them as if it is summer with no risk of root rot. All my trees have alway put on at least 2/3 of their growth in the fall through winter months. I don't know why.This is the light and wind maker that can make the tree dance on high speed. 6b Steve Cincinnati, Oh

Bob I think that most people get to many varieties and burn out on the associate problems and end up quitting. I know of several past people who lost power to their green house and lost 30 to 40 trees. They looked for more trees with advice from us and then left. These trees are expensive. If I decide to quit citrus I will let you all know and why. When I first started I posted a lot with picture and a lot of other people got mad and they let me know in very rude ways. I am still here and Better than 15 of them are gone. It is too bad because they were a real asset to the group Jay We eat them like an orange or mandarin. Gave away 1 each to 4 closest friends. It is well worth growing. I have eaten 45 fruits total from 3 different trees. Steve

poncirusguy6b452xx I have not much experience with citrus. You have much more than I and. I am just a newbie. I hope I didn't seem like I know what I'm doing because I don't it was just the luck of the draw and I admit I don't know what one doing