Lucky, my computer has a creative version if spell check so I blame any weird words on that . Glad to read you got a light meter. When you said you trimmed a leaf, I thought you meant you removed a healthy leaf. Thanks for explaining. The definition of too much light depends on your environment. My plants in west facing rooms with floor to ceiling windows instead of walls and intense afternoon light all have foliage hugging the pot or draping down . The blooms stick up straight and tall. That is normal for them in that room. They are one foot from the window. Others are three feet away because when the light shifts, the rays hit at a 2 foot spot which is too strong. The same varieties on the opposite side of the house with normal windows and bright morning light have leaves that are larger and stick out straight in a wagon wheel. Their blooms come out sideways from under the leaves . The nursery is in a north room with floor to ceiling windows. It is the right amount of light for them in my bright calif environ. They get only a little bright light. For you in Arizona with more light , heat and humidity, it will be necessary to move your plants away from windows during the summer months. Just keep in mind that light rays slant into the room at different angles throughout the year . A spot that works in winter won 't work in summer . My brightest rooms with the windows instead of walls have white curtains that let light through. The normal widows have blinds. Also, you and I are all the way west , with the most intense light, least amount of clouds and longest hours if daylight. Whatever optimara writes is probably based on their Tennessee environ and Violet Barn is on the East coast up north . They are probably writing for growers under lights or much different light conditions. Glad to hear you have more time for plants , me , too, hit crazy - busy for a long while. Joanne

Lucky, It looks like you have a ton of tiny green plants coming up. As advised by Aegis, best not to disturb anything. You can cut off the dead portion of the parent or just gently tear it off. If the leaf deteriorates, it doesn't matter, the plant is big enough to not need it. If the other teeny plants in the pot are from the parent leaf, then allow it to remain. If they are from the seed you sowed, then they are not dependent on the parent leaf, so you can remove it. The "rule of thumb" for when to remove plants is when the leaves are at least the size of a dime. You can wait until they are much larger. However, with a whole flock of babies, you might as well wait until the teeny ones grow, because removing the big one is going to upset everything else. Great photo! Joanne

Pennyrile, yes I have had slow to sprout seeds later sprout when I planted something else in the potting soil, but it is usually easy to tell which seedling was the slow starter because it will come up in a different place then where I planted the new seed. I always dump the potting soil I am going to reuse in a big bin I use to store it and mix it up so usually the seed will be buried really deep when I reuse it. I have even had slow to sprout seeds finally sprout after I transplanted the new seedling out into the garden. Your comment about packed for 2009 brings to mind a question. Was that seed actually produced in 2008 for sale in 2009 or is it old seed from previous years that was tested and repacked? The reason I ask is I asked Armstrong if they had any year old seed they were selling at a discount and they said no, they send all unsold seed back to the vendor. But what does the vendor do with it? Do they throw it away, or test it for germination rate, put it in a new package, and resell it, or maybe sell it to cut rate seed companies, or mix it with some fresh seed and resell it, or what?

I am a big fan of the cheaper garland then I decorate it up according to the room it is in. I like the fact that for most add-ons all you need to do is lay the add-on down and then twist two sprigs of garland over it. When I use it outside I will cut real greens and just twist them into the garland - I do the same thing with the cheaper wreaths This was a $1.49 cheap 14" wreath with real greens added and my own bow - you can do alot with plain garland and wreaths..... Lynne