Peggy, I live not very far from Minneapolis and so we obviously get more rain in the part of Minnesota I live in compared to where you are at. You may be able to grow some species I can't grow here. I have tried these and either the cold or being cold and wet at the same time killed them: Opuntia imbricata, Agave utahensis. Agave utahensis may only be hardy to -10 degrees F. Opuntia imbricata survived one winter and its supposedly hardy in Michigan which is a slightly warmer zone than here. The spot where all my cacti and succulents are isn't elevated but it has been amended with sand and also rocks on the bottom of that to allow better drainage. There is at least a 1 foot layer of just rocks at the bottom. I figured its better so it drains through instead of using well drained soil with a clay or poor draining soil below. Bath tub effect if you know what i mean. These have survived: Opuntia polyacantha, Opuntia compressa/humifusa, Echinocereus viridiflorus. I also tried Pediocactus simpsonii and I know for a fact it wasn't the cold that killed it but probably because it wasn't always watered well in the summer( it grows high up in the mountains where it usually gets adequate rainfall) or else it was the summer heat. Pedio's don't mind cold they actually grow alot in the springtime, what they hate is heat especially humid heat. Your best bet is to start them from seed yourself and especially not provenance information. The Opuntia polyacantha that i started the seeds were collected from Alberta, Canada so they are obviously cold hardy. Im suprized they survived though since it is also a much drier climate in Alberta than the Twin Cities. The Echinocereus viridflorus was collected from Hot springs, South Dakota. Opuntia compressa from New Jersey. It said cold and wet no problem but one year one plant either got damaged from a winter storm or something it rotted. I took a pad and planted indoors in March and replanted it in a pot and put outdoors in the ground in May. I think Opuntia polyacantha is hardier. I never tried Escobaria vivipara but it would be a good one and its similar to Echinocereus viridiflorus except it would have the pink flowers. I mean they are the same in size and belong to the same subfamily: Cactoideae Opuntias are less evolved and belong to Opuntiodeae.

Dan - OK. From what I remember from lit class (which was one of my fav. Classes because we chose to explore fokelore and mythology) I believe Tom Bombadil was a free spirit that liked to explore nature at his own pace and was created by a father (don't remember his name) from a doll his son had . He used the character to create poems that are kindda "middle-earth". He was also mentioned in the new movie Lord of the rings, it was somewhere at the end when they were talking to gandorf(sp?) Gardenmom - I posted the other one before I looked at my list I may not have a passionflower left. I will have to see how much it grows from now to then. I will def. send one if I can get another cutting from it. I will leave you down for it just in case. But wanted to give you a heads up in case. Almost forgot..... **I am out of everything else previously listed *** NEW LIST: - Primrose - Pink (3 offers - maybe more I will let u know) - Vvarigated philodendron - Campion Rose Also will be posting some bulbs in a couple days :-) Keep fingers crossed on my dahlias. I may be able to share.

Here is a list of screen names of all whom have contacted me...PLEASE CHECK AND MAKE SURE I HAVE YOU LISTED. Flwrs4ever sueirish poisondartfrog flwrs1 ishareflowers highalttransplant kamiljablo spookycharles wishdesign danette1980 stpehiinalta cottageflowers lhmkc grannieb vikingkirken candycow aproditelaughs riley17 daffodilady booberry85 nikkineel daisy_lee medontdo msmacgyver playintheyard greenthumbgrows peaches20 wenders67 carolynp micyrey carolinam quiltingfox mommyto2 ncgardengirl dirt_under_my_nails anadarko_rose dimples31312 nuthatch_mo ggwrn luvgardening2 dirtdiggin lisa627_ohio_z6 kimsgarden hmle2217 ptp813 nogmo jaleeeisa botanicalboi plant-one-on-me chellflower divahethr markcase1964 crisann margarita10 kiddo proudgm_03 debdov colcol wipe_yo_feet pumkingal scooter_wv puffie sheriannricherson velsgarden chitownladyd wind_red wishdesign danette1980 stephiinalta cottageflowers nlb52 threas zena2008 vic_zn5 michiganmama pife sunset_in rbrady spacetomato suze62 stevenwayne kerai mao_tse_mom isamae carol57078 seiko mpmom ilovefarac dirtduchess misskimmie dirtygert paulan70 vikingkirken dawnbrn intelkid appaloosa909 lindalana andreaz6wv kellycomposter plantman50 sybilkrizinski keeversgirl gimpytwice soonergrandmom retsec angelady christieb199 agirlsgirl greenbug fcofill james-in-lapine seedmama pseudacris_crucifer justonemorehosta louisianagirl patrushka daisy_lee dan_the_mail_man goldfishliberator princess_ariel thinking_stomach taz56 votetrapper shropshire_lad elf7 w9yards november_sky lois ohsillyme godsgardener morguegirl dancinginthegarden girlgarden2007 gmom2_6 boys pufftrinket crafting4goddess tergov erin_2009 piksi_hk hummy1 auntnawnee ak110682 chemocurl jworth gammy2 maemae0312 bonechickchris jas_il deeS perennialfan273 diggingdevil GROVESPIRIT PLEASE DO NOT POST ON THIS THREAD ANYMORE, GO TO THREAD 3...AND POST WHEN YOU MAIL, OR RECEIVE, AND KEEP CHECKING IN, WE WILL BE PLAYING SOME GAMES !!!!!!! HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU ALL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you would post a picture of the platter with also a picture of the back stamp, you will get more accurate information.....and likely more of it. For example, Mason's back stamp has evolved over the years....as to type of crown etc....so in order to give you an assessment someone needs to find a website that tells when that pattern was produced.....and frankly you could do that your self. The way you have posted someone has to have 2 browsers open and flip back and forth between the pictures and your descriptions. Off the top of my head, without any research, the platters are of no particularly high value....but for the Mason's. That's a jewel!