Finally I completed reading the book and got a good understanding on Ivan's findings and practical advices as well and on the evolution of things. As in our time he was inspired by the latest technology, in this case the deep plowing technology as quintessence of agricultural science until he questioned it as being too complex and too expensive. He tried shallow plowing and early and continuous maintenance of the soil as guiding principles. Until he made first successes he was not at all accepted and even laughed at. This in my eyes explains the verbal attacks against current practices at that time in some sequences in the book. After his method has shown successes he started to explain the method why it works so well and refined it. I think this is a good example of finding a solution in supporting nature rather than try to be better than nature. The book contains a lot of details on the interaction of living and nonliving things, a description of critical success factors of plant cultivation and a very practical guideline on the how to. There are advices one can use right away like preparation of soil, seeding, weed management and other things which are good for the understanding, as the soil irrigation by dew. Looking at todays agriculture we are still on the way to regenerative agriculture. The technology on machines and chemistry enhanced further and the understanding of processes of nature enhanced further - and there is still the same question - Do we need all this technology? Let me give you some links which I find very interesting in this respect: Feeding the soil, building top soil Establishing the right milieu for plants: Fungi Bacteria Ratio Design of permaculture Regenerative agriculture and Humus built up The way we treat the plants and soil is of course dependent of the quality of the food the customer wants. So whether the customer wants food grown w/o chemical fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides. Respective trademarks in Germany are 'bioland' and for a biodynamics standard 'demeter'. This trademarks are very well accepted by the customers. Looking at the bare fields of conventional agriculture a lot of changes are still required, but I think we are on the right track. PS: Now Valerie I know that you are a man, but ... Could you let me know a bit more about you? Heribert

Katexna, If you are intent on moving this rose, I would do it now. The sooner, the better. First, you have to prune the rose down, you won't get all the roots to support the top growth, and it will die anyway. You should leave a nice portion on the bottom though, it will regrow this time of year. Which is good. Try to get as much of the roots as possible, which means getting as much of the soil around the roots as possible, so use a nice big shovel when you unearth it. It is going to be a job, it has established a great root system if it has lived 4 years without care. Make the hole nice and big and do ammend the soil if you can. DON"T FERTILIZE the rose at all this year. After you replant the rose, water water water every day unless it rains. If the plant is in full sun, try to shade it at least during the hot afternoon with something, even a containerized plant the is bigger, placed in front of it. I saw your pic of the rose, it is beautiful. No wonder you want to take care of it. Gorgeous pink! It will be in shock for about 2-3 weeks, but then it will start to put on new growth againm just in time for a fall bloom. Don't prune it again, just make sure it is well watered, that is all. Don't feed it, just shade it from the hot afternoon sun. Mulch it good also, it wll help it from drying out. Do it now. Despite the heat, you can cut it now and it can regrow a root system for the winter better now. GOod Luck to you, and post a pic when it starts to bloom again in September, please.

Wayne, here's the headline...Crystal power Palmtop Nuclear Fusion Device Invented By Michael Schirber LiveScience Staff Writer posted: 27 April 2005 01:00 pm ET The nuclear reaction that powers the Sun has been reproduced in a pocket-sized device, scientists announced today. Researchers have for years tried to harness nuclear fusion to power the world. But its cousin, nuclear fission -- the breaking apart of atoms -- is the only method so far commercially viable. The latest invention is not in the same league as efforts to build complex commercial reactors. The new device creates a relatively small number of reactions, and requires more energy to operate than it produces. The Real Deal (AP) - Previous claims of tabletop fusion have been met with skepticism and even derision by physicists. In one of the most notable cases, Dr. B. Stanley Pons of the University of Utah and Martin Fleischmann of Southampton University in England shocked the world in 1989 when they announced that they had achieved so-called cold fusion at room temperature. Their work was discredited after repeated attempts to reproduce it failed. Fusion experts noted that the new UCLA experiment is credible because, unlike the 1989 work, it did not violate basic principles of physics. "This doesn't have any controversy in it because they're using a tried and true method,'' said David Ruzic, professor of nuclear and plasma engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "There's no mystery in terms of the physics.'' -- Associated Press But the configuration is so small and simple that its creators think it may inspire unforeseen applications. "I certainly find it interesting that you can heat a cubic centimeter crystal in your hand, then plunge it in cold water and it will cause nuclear fusion," Seth Putterman from the University of California Los Angeles told LiveScience. Putterman's lay description greatly oversimplifies how the compact apparatus works. Specifically, Putterman and collaborators heat a pyroelectric crystal, lithium tantalite, from minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit to plus 45 in a matter of minutes. This generates an electrical charge -- 100,000 volts -- across the tiny crystal, which is housed in a chamber filled with deuterium gas, a heavy form of hydrogen. The high voltage is focused onto a needle-thin tip, which strips electrons from nearby deuterium nuclei and then accelerates them at a solid target containing deuterium. When two deuterium nuclei collide together at high speed, they fuse to form helium. The Sun also fuses atoms in thermonuclear reactions that create light and heat. The byproduct of the newly discovered lab reaction is a particle called the neutron. The scientists detect about 1,000 neutrons per second. Because neutrons are so penetrating, Putterman said that a hand-held neutron source might one-day be used to do geologic surveys or to look into cargo containers for nuclear devices. "Current neutron generators are extremely cumbersome," Putterman said. "They are about as big as a dentists X-ray machine, so you canÂt carry them into the field." Pyroelectric crystals could also provide a beam of ions for use as a microthruster in a miniature spacecraft. The research is described in the April 28 issue of the journal Nature.

I agree - this is a fabulous set of pictures of terrific bushes that turn me green with envy - particularly the rich blooms on The Crocus Rose, and the lush explosion you have from Charisma! Wow - I get a few scattered blooms that have a punch to them, but there's nothing to compare with that rose in a full bloom for visual impact. Oh, and speaking of green I honestly can't say I like the blooms of the Green Rose. It's intriguing, and as a lover of oddball roses I totally understand the appeal, but it takes a very well-grown bush like yours to highlight that the blooms themselves really aren't attractive en masse. It just looks deformed or something in sad need of deadheading at a distance, though the closeup photos I've seen have a style to them. Cynthia