Mike, Yep, I do know what your about to do, lol. If the soil has been wet this long, changing it sounds like a good idea for sure. I might even change the soil before it dries down too much. I like given all my plants just an inch, sometimes 2" of root room which helps the pot/roots drain better. I use "reg" potting soil with plenty of "Perlite" added so it drains fast as well, and that's pretty much it. I'm sure a soilless mix would work just fine too. Believe it or not, I don't re-pot or transplant that often at all, sometimes not for a few yrs. I figure, as long as the plants looks healthy and happy, I'll leave them be. It's normal to lose leaves at first (not all at once) from the light and maybe humidity change, but new ones will be growing in at the same time to replace them. They could also be smaller/thinner, but still look good. Once it molts (can go on for weeks or more) you should have minimal shedding afterwords with the right light/water. They can literally go from an ugly duckling, to a swan! Keep the soil on the moist side (I usually water weekly) and the light bright (indirect mostly) and you and your fern will be golden! I'm sure you already know all that though:O) Billy Rae

Rick - I see no damage in any of the quickwall items that were left outdoors. I just had a few that were supposed to hold water and 3 of those I purposely left out full of water so they would go thru the freeze/thaw cycles our winter offers. (gets down to -10 for a few days most winters but can also race up to 50 a lot of days) . They all did fine - still hold water all summer. My surprise is that they hold water at all. Why in the world would a thin walled quickwall ball hold water? I don't have much experience with any of this but the same ball made from concrete and mesh seems to leak like a sieve but the quickwall ball that is open to the weather has to be emptied after rains - I have left the water in it for weeks and it never leaves - it seems very waterproof to me. Life has so many mysteries. Laura

Hey Kyle...Well, I 'think' summer is finally here. The last few days, temps were in the 90's.. My energy level rises when temps are 80F and higher. Spent the wkend doing outdoor cleaning, and brought some plants outside.. Now they're predicting, starting Wed, temps are suppose to drop in the 40's! I'm glad I was some help to you. There's many online nurseries around..the thing is finding one that sells good-size, pest-free plants..I LOVE Ebay, too.. I also count on Gardenwatchdog. There's one seller who deals with tropical trees..don't know if I should name the nursery..it starts with a G, second letter, R, ends with a T..he's been ripping people off for years..I can't believe he's still in business..This guy has more Negatives than Positives..a LOT more. Some people spent over 2,000.00 on plants from this seller..never got their trees or refunds. For the most part, IMO, most online nurseries are safe. Regarding the woman...yep, you have to be subtle when giving advice. Some people might feel offended..Is she the same woman who gives you free plants? Wow, I thought, like McDonald's, Home Depots were everywhere. lol. I hear some HD's, 'usually in warmer states,' sell all types of tropicals, including citrus..It seems HD's in MI, WI, IL, etc, sell the same, old plants..Very seldom do they have anything unusual. Oh well, Do you have a local gh? Gh's that sell tropicals/succulents? Most nurseries, that were in business 100 years or more, recently closed their doors. We have two left that sell rare plants, but their prices are on the high side. I guess if a person wants a plant bad enough, they'll pay. Don't want to mention the plant, yet, but I'm hoping to win a plant on Ebay..got another day to wait.. :( lol Did you find any plants you want this weekend? Toni

Cup Plant is a common name for Silphium perfoliatum. Rosinweed is a common name used for several Silphium species (i.e. Prairie Rosinweed, Whole-leaf Rosinweed, Rough-stem Rosinweed, Starry Rosinweed). This is a good example of the confusion that can arise from using common names. As others have said, the second plant is Silphium perfoliatum (Cup Plant). The first plant looks more like Silphium asteriscus (Starry Rosinweed), to me, because the phyllaries are not closely appressed, and some are more pointed than typical of Silphium integrifolium.