O. Colorado is described as "frilled" and it looks pretty. I confess that I've paid very little attention over the years to the red Optimaras; however, it makes sense that we would get Pennsylvania with some regularity. Looking at the Optimara site, there are quite a few! Pennsylvania was a 6" plant and it has suffered from being cut down into a 5" pot and being quarantined, but it is coming along. The blossoms are rather small at the moment but I am hoping that they will get bigger as it adjusts. I like the dark foliage and it was a nicely shaped plant. It had a lot of blossoms, but I take all those off when I bring them home so I don't get any thrips. The blossoms kind of partially close at night. Maybe other ones do this and I just never paid any attention. It's been a long time since I had Millennia - at least I think it was Millennia. There seems to be confusion between Rita and Millennia now. I'm not sure what all was fussy about it but I do know it went solid in summer and turned back into a thumbprint in winter. It seems like a lot of the "box store" Optimaras have multiple crowns or suckers. There is a video on YouTube that is older of the Holtkamp Greenhouse and I think I see what happens. They just toss in a baby and then it gets shipped off somewhere and they don't worry about other ones forming. O. Pennsylvania had a bunch of tiny ones around it. I found one at a grocery store that I think is Harlequin. It looked like 3 crowns, but when I divided it, only one had a root system. The others are more like suckers and are in isolation with mom and should root. It may not make a nice plant but I get to try the variety for $2.00 and I can set a leaf if the others don't shape up. For some reason, I tend to forget that "Tiger" is a Fredette hybrid. It's probably her most popular one and gets big. I'm going to try to get one this year. I had a large one several years ago. I appreciate the recommendations too. I'm working on orders now since some places start accepting them early. I had been eyeing the Morgan's, but I don't think I've had the others. Ness's Crinkle Blue is one of my all-time favorites. Diana

Nell ~ Great thread. Wow, to have those vanilla crinums would be something else. Your yellow daturas are beautiful! I've had some of the double purple and white. Didn't plant any seeds this year. Not even sure if I have anymore, dang. I need to check my seeds. I also have the cereus. Noticed three buds yesterday and forgot to go out and look last night (had a headache), and noticed them early this morning so went out and took pictures, then DH took a couple from the shed roof later. Now they are all wilted and hanging down. I got my cereus as a 12"-18" piece from a customer at work a couple of years ago. Now it's about 30' up a slash pine tree along with Virginia creeper vines. Other night bloomers or vespertines (that's a lovely word), jasmines, and 4 o'clocks, maybe a couple of others. Here are some pictures of our cereus taken this morning, they were already closing up. FlowerLady A zoomed in picture. A zoom in on two of the blooms. This one was taken by DH from the shed's roof. He tried to get me to go up the ladder to take the picture but I said no. I do not like heights at all. There is something terrifying to me about going up the ladder and taking that step off onto whatever, with nothing to hold onto. He encourages me and I've done lots of climbing when we've done our building projects and roofing around here. The older I get the worse my phobia is. : -( Anyway, he was a sweetheart to take the picture for me. This picture shows the tree and how high from the ground the blooms are. I wish you could see the size of these blooms, they are HUGE.

Mine did not bloom yet either, was supposed to do it in June, but at least it lives and is growing. I bought it very small 2 years ago, did not know better. The first one had crown rot. Bernd

Thanks Randy - when I got Lovely Lorrie last year it was covered in buds and blooms - took my breath away when I opened the box. Thanks Niecey, Laurie, sorry! lol - I really loved Uncommon Roses and I'm so happy I went on a buying binge last summer and got a lot of roses from them - most of them are in pots due to space issues in the garden - but at least I have them! Smith's Parish was one of my very first purchases from Uncommon Roses (I got Charles de Mills & Fields of the Woods in that shipment as well) 4 years ago - my collection has since grown :o) - I'm an incurable Rose Addict! Leslie thank you. Aprille