Oh, I see what you meant. Though modern DNA research has demonstrated a lack of China influence in the Portland pedigree --Chinas, apparently, were THOUGHT to be part of the Portland heredity. (I haven't spent a lot of time with Portlands, as on the whole they are not my best roses.) I suspect this author -- no horticulturist -- was TOLD that China influence was there, and so, believed it. BESIDE THAT, the early Portlands very likely were eventually crossed with Chinas. They crossed EVERYTHING with Chinas, in the early days. And why not? So SOME roses now classed as Portlands very likely do have a China in the Woodpile -- so to speak. JERI

Experts agree don't top your tree Around here I see old large water oaks die all the time from topping. Most tree trimming services don't care one bit if your tree dies or is damaged in future years, they just want the money. Over the last several years I've probably counted 7+ Large Water oaks die from topping and the entire tree has to be cut down by the end of the year. It's not smart for the people calling for topping, and not smart at all or just non-caring from the trimming service. And trees that can survive that are lucky will have a lot of weakness from the poor weak branch attachments, disease attacks, and rot can get in. Also the top trees that could survive are now like the infamous Bradford pears with all the narrow twiggy branches crowded on the stub ends and spit off very easy in a storm leading to more rot and damage. All this make the tree more and more unhealthy and they can decline fast. Why Topping Hurts and can Kill Trees: Why Topping is Bad Why Topping is Bad "Eight Good Reasons (NADF, 1989) to NOT "Top": Starvation: topping removes so much of the crown that it upsets the crown-to-root ratio and limits the food-making ability of the tree. Shock: the canopy of leaves casts shade on the internal branches. Topping removes the shade and exposes the internal bark to sun scald. Pests and Disease: topped branches have large wounds that cannot seal nor defend the wound from insects and decay. Weak Limbs: new sprouts develop at the edges of the cut branches, and are weakly attached. If the stub rots, the sprouts will break even sooner. Rapid New Growth: height control by topping is doomed to fail. The new branches grow fast and furiously to the original height, but much more crowded. Tree Death: some species, e.g. beech, do not tolerate topping and the reduced foliage may cause the tree to die. Ugliness: topped trees are so disfigured that they will never recover their original grace. Cost: topping can be done quickly because good decisions about pruning are not needed. But trees that die will need replacement, the ugly trees reduce property values, the dead stubs become liabilities, and more maintenance will be needed."

Jane, if you only have one feeder out, you might try a good mixture with black oil sunflower seeds stirred into it. Don't get the cheapie kind with those little reddish-brown "BB's" in it. I have never seen ANYTHING actually eat those. I get mine at PetSmart, and I really love the Stokes mixture that has no hulls in it. I feed it, black oiler sunflowers and safflower seed. Safflower seed goes into a feeder that doesn't have squirrel protection, because they don't really like it, but cardinals and titmice do. HOWEVER, no matter what you are feeding, there will be times when birds are not around for various reasons. I have hardly any right now, mostly due to a pair of hawks hanging about our neighborhood. And even without the hawks, birds often disappear for a few weeks now and then. One more thing...don't forget that WATER is probably even more important than seed in luring birds to your yard. You'll notice that most of Maureen's pictures feature her great birdbath. Be sure to provide several "baths" around the yard. They can be anything from decorative features to trashcan lids on the ground with 2" of water in them. I often turn clay pots upside down and put a clay saucer on top for water. Keep the water CLEAN and shallow, maybe even adding a rock in the center for birds to stand on. Good luck! Marcia

Congratulations! This is our first year with birds in our new house, so we're new too. We order them online also from drsfostersmith.com When our geriatric kitty was alive, we ordered her supplies from them, and they were always friendly, affordable, quality, and prompt. This year we first ordered 2k mealworms, then another 2k, then since we had a decent routine of feeding & cleaning, this last batch was 5k. We keep them in the fridge, except during weekends when they come out for their 'dinner'. The grocery store clear-plastic Salad clamshells work very nicely for punching holes in the top & top-sides, and make a nice worm-home in the fridge. We just pull the worm-homes out of the fridge, pick 20 or 30 worms out of them, then take them out to the feeder. Hope this helps !