Kelly - I have the same issue here in Central Florida. I have small white-veined and use it when I do find cats but you are correct in that they are slow growers here in this hot weather. I find they grow faster in the fall when we start to have cooler days and nights. I watched a female lay eggs on Sunday on my Calico Pipevine and I know they won't survive unless I move them. I have successfully raised 2 cats on the most tenderness, smallest leaves of my Calico but that meant hand picking leaves and raising the cats indoors (well, on my porch). To then release them to know that they will only lay eggs again on the Calico (if they are females/found a male as well), I find it rather useless to go through the effort. However, there must be some form of host plant around as I see them pretty routinely in my yard. I wish I knew what it was and where it was. I have tried Virgina Snakeroot to no success - so, I guess its survival of the fittest in this case.

Hi Kate, We have three of Festiva Maxima, but they were just planted last October, so I've not seen them bloom yet. We ordered that one and three other varieties--Edulus, Jules Elie, and Shirley Temple--from a large bulb nursery in North Carolina that's a zone warmer than it is here, so they must be well-suited to heat! (The place is the www.terraceiafarms.com/.) The others they carry are Felix Supreme, Karl Rosenfeld, and Sarah Bernhardt. (I'm assuming that the one they call "Edulus" is the same as the variety that's usually called Edulus Superba.) I've seen Sarah Bernhardt before and it looks wonderful, but hesitated on that one because a peony book I have recommends skipping it because it has to have support when blooming. Anyway, we're just getting started with peonies and it looks as if there are a good many that will work in zone 7. If the winters continued being so cold as this past winter, we could probably grow lots and lots more peony varieties... but I'm supposing that we'll be back to warm winters and droughts soon enough. Our camellias loved the rainy weather and unbroken chill of this past winter, and have done the very best they've ever done. Thanks very much for posting, Kate! Best wishes, Mary

Those old botanists were not exactly politically correct. The first Greek noun referenced in that epithet ("cyn-") has an even more unsavory aspect: it flowed into English many, many years ago in a form I will NOT wirte ANYwhere that is the most derogatory appellation for a female (human) that I know of ....

Hi booeyschewy, Before I move out out Florida (Delray Beach) last year, I had these Garcinias in my collection: Garcinia acuminata Garcinia brasiliensis Garcinia gardineriana Garcinia intermedia Garcinia macrophylla Garcinia madruno Garcinia praniana Garcinia magnifolia Garcinia Mexican variety Garcinia laterifolia - Achachairu They were all easy to grow, except from Garcinia acuminata. I couldn't find any good source to buy these trees anywhere so they were all grown from seeds. I don't think any of the Garcinia species can handle freezing temperatures very well. Boson