It will redden after first frost. Since you may not have a first frost, it will stay greenish-reddish - and more bitter than those that get frosted. It is a matter of taste, I like it equally, frost-sweet or bitter. In its bitter state it is medicinally a lot more powerful (helps your liver more). Radicchio is really optimal for zone 8 or 9, minimal frosts, but frosts. Michigan radicchio, around Xmas just before it keels over, it may be small because of the short season and cold temps, but it is the sweetest. There are self-heading varieties that I think have inferior taste, and I suspect that the tasteless heads you find in stores are of that type, grown somewhere near the Rio Grande or in Salinas.

Retailers that sell bulbs in the PNW have stocked Amaryliis, Crinum and the hybrid between them in the past - any of these might be seen anywhere somebody happened to take an interest, stick them in a spot where they were able to establish and persist. I have seen multiple examples of the first two in particular in various ordinary settings here over the years, although the local existing plantings of C. x powellii may have taken a hit in the 1990 winter. Nevertheless an old looking planting of what may be 'Ellen Bosanquet' near a large Central/South Seattle interchange is still there, near the north side of the building - where frigid winds blowing across the extensive area of pavement must have blasted the site repeatedly over many winters. (I recently saw what is probably the same dark pink cultivar near the house at Heronswood, but there was no labeling).

OK, so this person ONLY worked on the stairs. So that tells me the person who did the FLOORING is doing a great job...but the stair stainer is not. Who hired this subcontractor? The person who hired the subcontractor is the one who DEALS with the subcontractor. If the GC did it, then the GC gets involved. If the homeowner hired the subcontractor (ie. the Homeowner BECAME the GC) then the homeowner is responsible for the quality of the subcontractor. By the sounds of it, the subcontractor only 'roughed up' the poly on the stairs to give it 'teeth'. Then s/he applied stain/gel stain over the tread in the hopes that it would be 'good enough'. You (or the GC...whomsoever hired this person) will need to do a sit down with this person to get to the bottom of the situation. It would be STUPID easy to figure this out. An off-cut of RAW wood (the same species that is on the treads) can be coated with the same stain that was used on the stairs. Then it can dry. If they look IDENTICAL then the treads were sanded down to raw wood. If it looks DIFFERENT then you know you have an issue with what the subcontractor is saying versus what he/she actually DID (ie. subcontractor is falsifying his/her work/methods). A photo of the CAN of stain/product which was used would also clear this up very quickly.

Brown Blades Down Low. AKA BBDL. :-) So far, it seems the grass is healthy, but the grass is developing browner blades in the lower sections. This is not a disease. It's not a problem. It's totally natural as the grass grows in. Mine has it too, every late spring. While this could be the sign of a very early fungal infection, I don't see any other signs of it at this moment. It's much simpler than that. The grass looks too young to stand up fully just yet, but don't mow shorter. Longer mows will encourage slightly thinner grass right now, but longer roots on it. I'd accept the trade-off. " planted grass this Spring " Make sure to keep an eye on it, just like you're doing, as it's likely to need some extra care and watering this summer as things heat up. So far, you're doing really well but the harder periods are still coming...