Minnie,i know you are talking about the Cardinal,but did you notice that eagle at the top?? I'm in the process of cross stitching that right now,have been working on it for about 9-10 mos so far and still have a ways to go.It's called "War Paint".Here's a picture of mine. Kathi

Ok first off the enabling part of this conversation lol. There are a few varieties of seedless excellent flavored mandarins that are currently being tested in Florida. Bingo , US Early Pride which is a seedless Fallglo, Seedless snack , Marathon and the low seeded Roe Tangerine and Aroema tangerine the list goes on and on lol . Something to look really forward to in the future definitely!!!! Amy I love the retirement thing , so looking forward to the gardening season . I love not having to go out early in the morning fighting the snow and rush hour traffic!!! . Amy I'm with you I would love to get my hands on a Daisy, who knows we might be taking a trip to Toronto in the spring. Amy I know you've always been interested with the Valentine but were you not interested in the Hirado Buntan Pommelo lol? Amy I've been battling Aphids off and on for the last month and a half . I've been spraying them with neem also when I water I spray the tree's down . I must admit even with the aphid problems my tree's have never looked so good thank goodness. How have your tree's been doing ? Your Moro and Shiranui look so nice !!! So Amy lol do you still have room for any new varieties ? I so don't lol . Jan the pictures of your Greenhouse would easily make it on to a cover of a gardening magazine, its such a lovely peaceful space !!!! Jan lol no flip flops and shorts yet, another month maybe . The maximum high temperature in the GH when the sun is on it has been running 70 to 73 F very comfortable. The night time lows in there have been running 44 to 45 F very cool , its just been so darn cold outside !!! Sugar loves it in there but when it hits around 70 he wants out , he's not to fussy about the heat . Jan lol I'm not going to enable you , I would not want to see you loose all that beautiful space for your table and chairs. Jan it's like I have two little guys sitting on my shoulders , one saying don't buy anymore and the other saying go for it which varieties are you still looking for lol? Jan there are so many that I feel the need to get from Brugmansia Quebec ---Ponkan , sanguinelli, Xie-Shan, Hirado Buntan not to mention the Nordman seedless kumquat from Phoenix, its killing me . Jan the next time you water give those tree's a good hose down that might help with the aphids and all that sticky stuff . Jan ain't it therapeutic lol, I know exactly that same feeling . Well tomorrow is the 1st of March which climatically is the first day of spring we are almost there Yippee!!!! Brian

Megan, Only pressure canners are safe for use as pressure canners. Pressure cookers are not safe for pressure canning. Instapots (regardless of what the manufacturer may claim in their marketing material) are not safe for use as pressure canners. People have to be extremely careful with pressure canning because any mistake can result in botulism---and there are no telltale signs to alert you that your food is contaminated---it won't look spoiled, it won't smell bad, but if you eat that contaminated food, it can kill you---and in a very painful, slow manner with much suffering involved. When and if the NCHFP tests Instapots and finds them safe for pressure canning, they will say so in writing on their website. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it to happen. The NCHFP is painstakingly cautious and careful, and for good reason---proper food preservation is serious business. The kind of testing they do is very thorough and can take years and years, and with big budget cuts over the last decade or more, they have to be careful about where they choose to invest their time and their research dollars. I've been canning my entire life because my dad loved canning, and I am ultra cautious and never take unnecessary risks because that is what I was taught (and correctly taught). Jennifer, I hate having to go to a party when I'd rather stay home, and I almost never commit to go anywhere if it involves leaving our neighborhood. The older I get, the more of a hermit I become....and I don't care. I spent a lot of my life doing what I was taught a good daughter, wife, mother, employee, neighbor, friend, etc. "should" do, and I'm at the point now where I'm going to do what I want to do. Time is precious, and I try to use mine wisely, which for me means choosing to do the things I like to do and want to do, and not just things I feel obligated to do. I hope you didn't find attending your friend's BD party to be too tortuous. Congrats on the sprouting plants---they always make late winter feel more like early spring. Nancy, Our first evening with a full house was pretty calm. The adult kids were moving stuff in, unpacking, etc. while I made dinner with the 9 year old in and out of the kitchen checking on its progress (I believe she was hungry!), and somehow Tim arrived home about a half-hour early so he was able to eat with the rest of us. I think he slipped out of work a little early after a very trying day---he may have worked through lunch. We ate dinner together and then everyone headed off in different directions to do things. It was just a whirlwind of activity for a few hours. While I've gotten used to quieter evenings, I didn't mind the whirlwind at all. Rebecca, Audrey is at such a perfect age. Pumpkin still is pretty playful and youthful, but I think he is 4 now and is starting to be slightly less kittenish. He likes to start things with the other cats, so he isn't a calm old man yet, though. I'm long past the seed acquisition stage. If I don't have it ordered and on hand by now, I'll live without it. At some point we have to stop buying more seeds (grin) and just plant the ones we have. I'm dreading the wind on Saturday, and we won't even get the worst of it, which is expected to remain a few counties west of us (where a High Wind Warning is in effect). I think our max wind gusts expected here are only in the upper 40s, but that's bad enough. I have no garden-specific plans today, other than just watering the seedlings. This is the longest. slowest start to the gardening season in ages, and the weather isn't looking much better for the foreseeable future either. Dawn

Beth I think you’re asking how long to keep the fruit on the plants for? It does take longer then one would think. I wish I could give you an exact amount of time, but I can’t. Some cactus fruit like my big Opuntia will take close to a year to ripen, but generally the smaller the fruit the less time it takes, but the small ones still take months. I can definitely say yours are not ready yet. If I had to guess they should be ready by mid spring (May). This is a total guess;). I usually wait till they look dehydrated and sometimes they’ll have a split. Here’s some pics from Desert Plants of Avalon The fruit below I wouldn’t remove yet. But this one looks ripe for the picking. Lastly keep the fruit away from rodents and birds because they will eat them. I know from experience and it’s such a bummer;).