ok, 2 things. first, i should add that some thrip damage (they live inside the sheathe/unfurled leaf) CAN cause dried up edges on the new leaf and then it'll have problems opening and will become distorted. however, that did not seem to be the case with OP judging by pics. but the xanadu example was different: it does not get stuck ever, may be because there is no sharp tip? the leaf is round. but they do pock the leaf up while it's still totally inside. 2nd - what helps with dried up top layer (and i mean just a little dried up, still feeling slightly moist) - is mulch. you can use anything for mulch: gravel, bark, even shredded paper. i like to put a thin layer of long fiber sphagnum moss - since aerial roots love it on philos/anthuriums/syngoniums and also it's very easy to see when it starts drying, so you can rewet in time. that anthurium that kinks for me did not have mulch, it was new and very wet and so i needed to dry it up somewhat. but now i put sphag on it too. and will watch if this finally will solve the problem. i've had a 'greenhouse thrips' year - and been collecting pics of damage on various plants. if only smbody diagnosed it for me last summer !...would've saved me a lot of work. neem won't kill them, they just fester and then explode if you stop spraying for a week or 2. the only thing that works is systemic. and then you need sev applications and then using different systemic ...it's a total pain. but otherwise you can't really get rid of them. i've been spraying with neem twice a week - and also drenching soil ...for months...since last summer. but now after a good dosage of systemic i finally have a new crop of leaves coming clean. here's a leaf with dried up margin damaged by thrips(center one). those lighter stringy areas leading to the ripped edge are also thrip damage. also a few pock-marks here and there. This post was edited by petrushka on Tue, Jun 24, 14 at 11:24

Here is a leaf from 2011, That is a one gallon bottle to the left for a size reference. You can see an inflorescence growing to the left and under the leaf. I don't have any pictures of it as it currently is. It is in my studio so next time I go over there I'll try to remember to take one although now it is mostly a bare stem about four or five feet long with a couple feet of stem with leaves on the end. Which I think is a natural growth pattern for wild type philodendrons. Purp; Just cause you don't know about manual pollination is hardly a reason not to try. It would be interesting to see what you could do with this plant.

In for sure... Barb (rosepedal) - Haves list posted Norma (bigmama4ever) - Lists posted Regina (ladygreensleeves) - Lists posted Chell (chellflower) - Lists posted Dawn (dtm1966) - Lists posted Mariann (galium) - Lists posted Dee (gardendee) - Lists posted Getting ready to cave/May be... Frances (fcoffill) Melissa (hazelnutbunny) - Lists posted Thanks everyone for participating so far in the "get to know each other" activity. It's so much fun to read everyone's answers!! Regina, that variegated lipstick is a beaut! (P.S. I have variegated lipstick on my wish list...lol!) I think I have my husband sold on the idea that we don't need electric for the pond right away. BUT, we will need to get electricity back there somehow for the winter if I want to overwinter my fish and plants in there. Here in MN, I think that the pond would have to be 6 feet deep or more in order for it not to freeze to the bottom! I'm not sure what the exact depth is, but it would have to be very large and deep. Thanks for all the info!! Your pictures make me so jealous!! Beautiful!! Mariann, I think that people probably hesitate to give technical advice because they may not know enough to explain it well. I've been in the business for 11 years and have worked with varying degrees of users, some with hardly any computer knowledge. I've also spent a lot of time writing lots of time writing detailed user documentation. I guess it all comes with experience. If you ever have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask! :-) I don't have a greenhouse, oh how I wish I did though!! Frances, great website and awesome art too!!! Art is one of my many hobbies too, but I don't have time for it now that I'm in school. Now I only do paintings when I decorate one of my rooms. I wish I could win the lottery and retire so that I would have time to indulge in all of my hobbies!! :-) Thanks for adding the extra tip, that's a great one!!! BTW, everyone is encouraged to include a tip if they think of one!! I will be posting another tip early next week. Oh, I almost forgot...after reading you talking about the bulb planter, I ran out and bought myself one last night!! LOL. I used it today to get my new tropical garden planted and it's AWESOME!!! Thanks!! Barb, renting a trencher is a great idea and hitting all corners of the yard is a great idea too!! Thanks for the advice. The only problem is that we have an underground sprinkler, so we may have to dig it by hand after all. We don't know exactly where the water lines run. If we cut a line, it's pretty easy to fix them. Just more work! bluespiritartist, why don't you go ahead and post your full list and we'll see what you've got. If nothing else, perhaps someone would want to do a side swap with you! :-) And yes, we will definitely be having another tropical swap before the fall...hopefully more than just one!! Hi Heather (divahethr), good to see you!! Hope you're doing well. Chell, looks like you got a great box from bigmama!! And your greenhouse looks great, it's really coming along! Your rooms full of plants look like mine! I have that exact same mini-greenhouse in our spare bedroom. BTW, what ever happened to Redheaded Stepchild? She was great! So, after I ate dinner tonight, I got up the energy to get my tropical garden planted!! it's mostly bulbs so not much to see now. I can't wait for it to start to produce, it will be beautiful!!! I took some new pictures of my other gardens last night. I will get some pictures posted soon. No time tonight, I'm pooped and ready for bed! I don't know what was up with the forum yesterday, it must have been something major though since it took them so long to get it back up! LOL, I was thinking that lots of people were probably suffering from withdrawals like I was too!! Dawn, I don't think that you will be disappointed with this swap!! This group has been trading for a few months now and everyone has been very generous so far!!! I am so glad that you decided to take a chance with us!!! Good night! Amy

Gardenfanatic, IMO your philodendron is beyond the point of making it attractive again by propping vines up or repotting. I think you should limp this philo thru the winter as it is and not repot it at this time. In late spring, I would take 6 inch tip cuttings and pot them on their own or put several in a single pot. I'm assuming there is more than one growing point on the plant. Most philos of this type will have aerial roots along the stem, and these make for easy rooting of cuttings. Regarding the base of the plant in the pot... I would cut the stems at a point 4 to 6 inches from the soil line of the pot. You're forcing the philo start over with new growth. The plant is likely rootbound, you could fertilize it and wait for new growth or unpot and root prune it. This is basically cutting several inches from the perimeter and bottom of the root ball and repotting into the same pot or a new one of the same size with fresh potting soil. You could also wash all the old soil off the root ball with a hard spray from the garden hose, trim the roots back and repot it into a smaller pot, one that fits the size of the roots. From the looks of your plant you might only have a single stem to repot, it doesn't look like it's branched from the base. So now you have all those vines between the base and the tip cuttings to deal with. Obviously you could just toss them, or if you want more plants you could cut the vines into 6 inch pieces, take off the leaves except 1 or 2 at the top, and pot them. After rooting, new growth will break from the nodes along the sides of the stems. Be sure to keep track of which end is up, planting upside down won't work. Let me know if you need more info. By the way, who's that cutie at the window trying to see what's going on? Russ