My Sinbad is going back out next Wednesday. It was smallish last year when I bought it at HD, put it in a 1 gal pot, then late in the summer it didn't look so good, fed it, put it in a 5 gal pot, brought it in for the winter, fed it some more, give it a little Miracid half strength, not very often, and Osmocote, seems ok for now, don't know much about growing them. They will die here over winter in the ground. That begonia is huge. I hate to do it, I have one bigger pot size, but can you then cut them back? I guess I don't see why not, it just has such a beautiful form and blooms constantly. The leaves almost look irridescent. I tried to grow another kind from seed, too tricky, and I doubt they'd be good candidates for WSing.

To paige 16 Yes it is true that most of those items really have no place on current tables for most of us. I think that collecting is so important rather than just melting the stuff down. I have bought items in my set because they were available for purchase. I did not expect to have the number of place pieces or serving pieces that I have. That is why I am thankful that Ebay does exist. I am sure that it it did not, I would not have had the set that I was abel to put together. The writes of the silver books said it was a hard pattern to collect. It really would have been had it not been for Ebay. This is our history and heritage. It is beautiful art as well. Just remember that some companies have given up trying to reproduce some of the "vintage patterns". Its because those men that created those early pieces were craftsmen. Just think, the silver companies as we knew them vitrually don't exist any more. They have been sucked up into holes and are no more than another part of a holding company. The people that own them at this point really don't understand or appreciate good American Silver. The younger people are there just because it is a job. Replacements does think it is doing the customer a favor by buying their silver. They are not all that honest either. I have tried selling there and found that they do try to take advantage of the original owner but make pretty good profits off of what you have sold to them. Be careful when you negotiate value with some of the folks out there.

Oneida,,the heirloom collection patterns (someone else said different levels,,agree) Reed and Barton I've used for everyday for a long time and just great. QVC has got everyone beat on the price and size of the their sets. I got a fantastic deal via Costco,, and was so nice and heavy etc. Don't know if it will stand the test of time but we'll see. Oneida has outlets you know. If you are looking for the best deal on the best quality you might call one of their outlets and talk to a store person and see what you can get. That is how I got my Oneida set from the Heirloom category. Very heavy,,I like the continental size (bigger than the ordinary). Eventually it did discontinue but I haven't needed to replace any yet and one I happened to find on EBay and bought it anyway. Just a thought. Replacements.com can always get you what you want for replacing lost pieces.

thanks for the suggestions! i'm always unsure what this means about 'the roots get a chance to dry out'; leave it long enough and sure, eventually it will dry out! i mean, i my case the soil promotes drainage and the containers also evaporate water so if there is some sun, they will dry out (just worried about how long that will take!) nevertheless... agree that perhaps digging them up at this point is too much and too risky! will just throw a tarp over them for the weekend's rains :( attaching a photo regarding the winter: these are pretty cold hardy and i'm in their hardiness zone, or so the nursery told me! (zone 8). but i will be covering them with some felt blankets for the cold days and bringing out a heat lamp if needed! they're sheltered from the wind.