that's a very interesting subject. i have mostly tropicals indoors and some go out to ultra bright NE balcony outside. lots of variegation. i think indoor culture is quite different from outdoor and season to season and latitude - just all very complicated! what i found is that a lot of time recommendations for these plants are from southern growers ... for outdoors! (FL). bright shade in summer in fl = bright dappled sun on the window sill for me in NYC. seasonal light differs a lot too. so while i put my plants in some early sun, NE bright shade(no sun) outside in summer, in winter they stay in dappled sun west window or even full sun west. one example is crotons: early summer outside in 3-4 hrs of sun cooler temps is great! but then they really color up in october too - no direct sun, 60-65F. while hot temps over 80F and direct hot sun in july -aug totally bleach out the leaves. but indoors west partial 3-4 hr sun in winter does wonders for them. caladiums are similar to that. they green in too much shade and bleach out in too much hot sun. while take 4-5 hrs of direct eastern sun indoors in summer. i have many more: stromanthe triostar, alocasia african mask, etc - that are strictly indoors. they are supposed to be in bright shade only, but i keep them all in dappled , even direct early/late sun to maintain color/good growth indoors in winter and sheers filtered sun in summer.

Jack, I was thinking the same as you about the spines and form. I've seen the pic in Steens' book too, which seems to agree with your plant and Paul's. I don't know Roy Ford, but if he's an Aussie breeder, then it would seem more likely that the clone circulating around Oz would be the correct one. Being me, however, I always have to get to the bottom of things rather than to just accept majority rule! You know how it is. ;-) Sooooo.......... I looked it up in the registry. Here's the official description: "Broad leafed Meyendorffii type plant in deep green w/clear central variegation in white - most of plant overlaid by fire-engine red heavy glaze - cup red at blooming - striation w/green stripes in white areas." Now, look at the FCBS pic (in the link below). That matches the description perfectly! I actually ordered the plant based on that photo and was somewhat disappointed that it wasn't as glossy dark red, but I can see how under different growing conditions it might be. It does have an overall red cast, and the central pattern of variegation and general Meyendorffii look are as described (which can't really be said for the other plants I'm seeing here). I got mine from Michael's, of course, which is why I want to know where HDD got hers. Based on all of that, I'm feeling reasonably comfortable that mine is correctly IDed. Here's another photo which shows the mature form a bit better. It's a really nice plant, whatever it is, but I like the striated one too! Here is a link that might be useful: FCBS - Roy's Special

Hi all. Thanks for the nice comments. Dave, yes we are surrounded by a huge natural rockery on wich we could hardly improve.Our actual garden is only about half an acre plus another acre or so where our greenhouses are.We hope to buy some more land... I hauled all the rock myself from higher up in the mountains.About a ton per trip. Nice J.Hillier you've got there - thanks for the tip & photo. The lawnmower starting device flew to bits last summer so I decided to keep it running 'as is' until it gives up the ghost. B&S spare parts are hard to come by and replacement engines cost about as much as a complete new mower!!! Hi Sluice. The crop with the pink flowers is sage .I don't know the exact name, but it's bi-annual and is used in the perfume industry. I'll try and get a close-up shot together tomorrow. Kman The large Yucca is probably Y. rostrata ,but it is unusually large for that species.It also produces numerous suckers ,wich is also uncommon.It could also be Y. elata or perhaps a hybrid. It came up as a stray seedling in a Yucca schottii sowing about twenty years ago. The cholla is probably Cylindropuntia spinosior or imbricata.Many forms exist wich makes identification difficult.We got this one back in Britain some thirty years ago and it has always been outdoors!!! In front of it is Opuntia scheeri wich is also bone-hardy.The agave is A. parryi v. cousei. The (still) small tree with the silvery leaves is Elaeagnus angustifolia v. caspica (syn. 'Quicksilver' or Russian Olive).I'm trying to shape it into a small tree, but in reality it is more like a shrub.The mound-shaped plant is Erysimum 'Bowles Mauve' or B.M Wallflower. I just clipped away the hundreds of spent flowering stalks to encourage it to perform again.I will also take cuttings soon as it lasts only two to three years. Hi Dax. The arbor is made from chestnut timber wich has good natural rot-resistant qualities.I am training a weeping Himalayan cedar over it to provide some shade for that bench and the rockery.This may not have been a good choice as it seems to be extremely vigorous. More pictures coming soon! T.

Hi, Sarah. The cultural issues most likely to cause wilting are over-watering, under-watering, high temps, and a high level of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil solution. The later is usually accompanied by necrosis of leaf margins on lyrata, unless the high level of salts was due to a very recent fertilizing. If it wilted while the soil was still damp, your issue would probably be related to the effects of over-watering and/or the heat. Water and nutrient uptake is an energy driven process. It takes oxygen to burn (convert) the food (carbohydrates - from photosynthesis) into the energy that drives root metabolism. Too much water in the rhizosphere (root zone) means too little air means not enough O2 means the work of water uptake is compromised. The heat increases the rate of respiration increases water demand and exacerbates the issue. I would: Shade the pot to help keep roots cool if the plant has direct sun hitting it Use a wood dowel or bamboo skewer to test the soil, waiting to water until the soil is nearly but not quite dry. When soil is at first dry to the touch, there is still 10-15% additional water left that the plant can access - so a built-in margin for error. Flush the soil thoroughly the next time the plant needs watering by pouring a volume of water equal to the pot capacity up to 10 times, using room temp water; this, to rid the soil of accumulating salts. Then, fertilize the plant with a soluble fertilizer with a 3:1:2 NPK ratio. RATIO is different than NPK %s - ask if you'd like me to explain the difference. After flushing the soil, water on an as needed basis. Don't let the soil remain saturated for extended periods. I can also help you learn how to deal with soils that hold too much water, if you think that's an issue. I'll wait on your comments before I offer anything else. Al