Hi, I have been very fortunate over the years to have a violet plant and supply store very near me. It's called the Violet Showcase. They have small white pots and wicking medium. I have been using the wicking soil for years. I could mix it up myself but I find it so convenient and less messy to just buy it from them.There is no minimum charge as far as I can remember. They have a two dollar handling charge. The minimum UPS is going to be between $5.50 and $6.50 for 1 lb. or less depending on how far it you live from Denver. Look at the bottom of the supplies catalog for the shipping form and UPS information. Even though I live pretty close to them I have had them ship stuff to me. By the time I drive my gas guzzler down there and back it is about the same to have supplies mailed to me. I will put their link below. I hope this helps. Larry Here is a link that might be useful: The Violet Showcase

This list may seem rather long, but I think you will find it useful. Many of the vendors stock a fairly limited number of varieties, so, when you make your mind up about which variety and rootstock combination you seek, you may need to shop multiple nurseries to find what you want. I would be surprised if many local nurseries knew enough about growing fruit trees to be highly useful. There is one very very knowledgeable guy, that's a regular in the Fruit and Orchards Forum, that lives in your area. I'm not sure of his screenname right now, but will try to find it. If I forget to give it to you, email me in a few days. Here are some good* mail order sources for various types of fruit plants: *Sources with poorer ratings are listed separately below. Adams County Nursery - various fruit tree types - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.acnursery.com/ Bay Laurel Nursery - multiple types of fruit and nut trees and plants - very good G.WD. rating - http://www.baylaurelnursery.com/ Big Horse Creek Farm - apple trees - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.bighorsecreekfarm.com/ Blossom Nursery - pawpaw trees & seeds - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.blossomnursery.com/ Boston Mountain Nurseries - affiliated with Arkansas Berry & Plant Farm and Pense Nursery - multiple types of berries and grapes - very limited, excellent G.WD. rating (warning! Arkansas Berry & Plant Farm has a very poor rating!)_- http://www.alcasoft.com/bostonmountain/ Boyer Nurseries & Orchards, Inc. - multiple types of fruit trees and plants and nut trees - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.boyernurseries.com/ Burnt Ridge Nursery - various types of fruit - very good G.WD. rating - http://www.burntridgenursery.com/ Century Farm Orchards - apple and pear trees - limited, excellent G.WD. rating, knowledgeable and helpful owner - http://www.centuryfarmorchards.com/ Cloud Mountain Farm - various types of fruit & impressive selection of other plants - excellent G.WD. - ratinghttp://www.cloudmountainfarm.com/ C&O Nursery - various fruit trees types - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.c-onursery.com/ Cummins Nursery - various fruit trees types - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.cumminsnursery.com/ DeGrandchamp Farm - blueberries - limited excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.degrandchamps.com/ Double A Vinyards - blueberries - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.rakgrape.com/ Durio Nursery - various types of fruit - limited G.WD. review - http://www.durionursery.biz/ Edible Landscaping - various types of fruit - good G.WD. rating - http://www.ediblelandscaping.com/ Fedco Trees - various types of fruit - excellent G.WD. rating - http://fedcoseeds.com/trees.htm Forestfarm - huge selection of plants - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.forestfarm.com/ fraises des bois - alpine strawberries - no G.WD. review, but my order was great! - http://www.fraisesdesbois.com/ fruit-tree.com Nursery - multiple types of fruit trees and plants - limited G.WD. review - http://www.fruit-tree.com/ Going Bananas - banana plants and corms - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.going-bananas.com/ Grandpa's Orchard, LLC - affiliated with Moser Fruit Tree Sales, Inc. - rootstocks and various types of fruit trees and plants - very limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.grandpasorchard.com/ Greenmantle Nursery - various types of fruit - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.greenmantlenursery.com/ Hartmann's Plant Company - various types of fruit (mostly berries) - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.hartmannsplantcompany.com/ Hidden Springs Nursery - multiple types of organically-grown fruit trees and plants - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.hiddenspringsnursery.com/ Indiana Berry & Plant Co. - multiple types of small fruit and berries - excellent G.WD. rating - https://indianaberry.com/ Ison's Nursery & Vineyards - multiple types of fruit trees and plants (specialize in muscadines, blueberries and blackberries) - very good G.WD. rating - http://www.isons.com/ Johnson Nursery, Inc. - multiple types of fruit - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.johnsonnursery.com/ Jung Quality Garden Seeds - multiple types of fruit trees and plants - good G.WD. rating - http://www.jungseed.com/ Krohne Plant Farms Inc. - strawberries and asparagus - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.krohneplantfarms.com/shop/ Lawson's Nursery - apples - not sure if this place is still open, the website is outdated - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.lawsonsnursery.com/ Leuthardt Nurseries, Inc. - various types of fruit (specialize in espalier) - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.henryleuthardtnurseries.com/ McKenzie Farms Nursery / World Wide Plants - unsure of products sold - excellent G.WD. rating - http://mckenzie-farms.8m.com/ Montoso Gardens - tropical fruits and seeds - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.montosogardens.com/ Morse Nursery - various types of fruit - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.morsenursery.com/ Moser Fruit Tree Sales, Inc. - affiliated with Grandpa's Orchard LLC - rootstocks and fruit trees for commercial growers - very limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.forfruittrees.com/ Nash Nurseries - pawpaw, hybrid chestnut, pine nut, etc. - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - no website - phone: 517-651-5278 Nolin River Nut Tree Nursery - persimmon, pawpaw, & multiple types of nut trees - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.nolinnursery.com/ Nourse Farms Inc. - berries and small fruit - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.noursefarms.com/ OIKOS Tree Crops - multiple types of fruit and nut trees and plants - excellent G.WD. rating - http://oikostreecrops.com/store/home.asp?cookiecheck=yes& Old Southern Apples Nursery - apple rootstock and custom grafts - no G.WD. rating - http://www.oldsouthernapples.com/ Peaceful Valley Farm Supply - various types of fruit trees and plants - good G.WD. rating - http://www.groworganic.com/default.html Pense Nursery - affiliated with Arkansas Berry & Plant Farm and Boston Mountain Nurseries - multiple types of berries and grapes - mixed G.WD. rating but newer entries are better - http://www.alcasoft.com/pense/ Raintree Nursery - multiple types of fruit trees and plants - good G.WD. rating - http://www.raintreenursery.com/ Rhoras Nursery - various nut and fruit trees and plants - limited, mixed G.WD. rating - http://www.nuttrees.com/ Rombough, Lon J. - grapes - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.bunchgrapes.com/ St. Lawrence Nurseries - various northern climate fruit and nut trees - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.sln.potsdam.ny.us/ Stark Brothers Nurseries & Orchards Company - various fruit trees and plants - OK/good G.WD. rating - http://www.starkbros.com/ Tomlinson's #1 Farm - antique apple trees - no G.WD. review - http://www.netreach.net/~tugger/apples/apples.html Trees of Antiquity (formerly Sonoma Antique Apple Nursery) - multiple types of fruit trees and plants - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.treesofantiquity.com/ Tripple Brook Farm - unusual fruits - very good G.WD. rating - http://www.tripplebrookfarm.com/ Van Well Nursery - various fruit and nut trees - excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.vanwell.net/ Vintage Virginia Apples - apple, pear, and quince trees - limited, excellent G.WD. rating - http://www.vintagevirginiaapples.com/index.html Whitman Farms - small-fruit plants and trees and nut trees - excellent G.WD. rating - http://whitmanfarms.com/ Woodlanders, Inc. - wide variety of hard-to-find southern plants - OK/good G.WD. rating - http://www.woodlanders.net/ Here are some mail order sources with poorer reviews for various types of fruit plants: Aaron's Bulb Farm, Arron's Fruit Nursery, Aaron's Nursery, etc. - see TyTy Nursery Apple Tree Nursery, Fig Tree Nursery, Pecan Tree Nursery, etc. - see TyTy Nursery Arkansas Berry & Plant Farm - affiliated with Boston Mountain Nurseries and Pense Nursery - multiple types of berries and grapes - very bad G.WD. rating - http://www.alcasoft.com/arkansas/ Autumn Ridge Nursery - various fruit and nut trees and plants - very poor G.WD. rating - http://www.autumnridgenursery.com/ Burgess Seed - various fruit and nut trees and plants - poor G.WD. rating - http://www.eburgess.com/ Direct Gardening - see Burgess Seed Gurney's Seed & Nursery - multiple types of fruit and nut trees and plants - poor G.WD. rating - http://gurneys.com/ Henry Field's Seed & Nursery - various types of fruit - poor G.WD. rating - http://henryfields.com/ House of Wesley - see Burgess Seed Inter-State Nurseries - see Burgess Seed Kelly Nurseries - see Burgess Seed Miller Nurseries - various types of fruit - OK to poor G.WD. rating - http://www.millernurseries.com/ One Green World (Northwoods Nursery) - multiple types of fruit trees and plants - OK/fair G.WD. rating - http://www.onegreenworld.com/ TyTy Nursery - extremely poor reviews Willis Orchard Company - multiple types of fruit and nut trees and plants - fair G.WD. rating - http://www.willisorchards.com/

Hi rmanbike, the keyboard tray pulls out, so your feet are under that - meaning, you are sitting about a foot away from the main unit, with the keyboard tray pulled out over your knees. That may not be enough room for a tall person or a person who spends many hours at the desk, I agree, but for our purposes, it is fine. Anyone know who might make this or if it can be successfully repainted?

eBay, I think, has hurt some vendors but the ones who have truly been devasted are those stores which have no online presence at all. (Sears, though not a plant vendor, comes immediately to mind.) Some vendors have been able to,make great use of eBay. I know one gent who caters to poison dart frog hobbyists. He has an online store but also posts items on eBay. He finds it amusing how many times someone buys one of his plants on eBay for 3 or 4X what they would pay for the same plant if they were to simply take the time to follow the link to his online store and buy it there. "the commercial growers we are lamenting were the for runners of the violet movement from waaaaaay back. And eventually no one will want to carry on the name." I assume you meant "forerunners"? ;-) Possibly. But then there is something to be said for a name that one can reliably associate with "quality". That can't be said for the "fly by nights"/"flash in the pans". Should a younger entrepreneur take over the business and name of a Lyons or VB and be able to develop new, "fresh" hybrids of quality, then there is the chance that some of those old names will live on. The ease of internet communication has been a two edged sword for plant clubs. On the downside, as has been mentioned, it is very easy to communicate with other hobbyists without ever leaving one's home. Also, one can leave messages at one's convenience. On the other hand, the internet has made it easier to locate clubs for those who enjoy face to face interaction. (And considering how lacking many of the "millennials" seem to be in the area of face-to-face interpersonal communication skills, attending club meetings in real time might be beneficial there as well.) A big impediment to the survival of many plant clubs is, unfortunately, the membership. In many plant clubs, the membership appears to be predominantly folks in their golden years. Whether this is the result of their having more free time or instead simply a greater interest in growing said plants, it can make the situation .... awkward ... for the young'uns. It is not unusual for people to be most comfortable around people in their own age bracket. Also, many oldsters are seemingly out of touch or intimidated by today's tech. This presents issues with building new membership. Whether one likes it or not, the reality is that social media platforms like Facebook have become -- in many cases -- THE means by which the younger generation discovers and learns about events and social organizations. If today's clubs wish to have a chance of attracting new membership (particularly of the younger set), having a good, up-to-date Facebook page can be vital. Not only should contact information, location and time of club meetings be regularly updated, but also any information about club events like speakers (and the topics they will be discussing), or dates, times, and locations of plant shows which members and would-be members might like to attend. And finally, there absolutely needs to an active presence replete with photos show casing things such as pictures of plants members have brought in for "show and tell," shots taken at shows, and even a photo now and then of things or people at meetings or the society picnic. (And, yes, when taking such pictures in the latter cases, try to surreptitiously include a bunch of folks in the photo so it looks like it is well attended. :-D ) Then there is the issue of attitude. If new people show up at a meeting, they must be made to feel welcomed. I have attended society meetings in which no one made any attempt to greet me and I actually would have gone the entire meeting without a single person speaking to me if I hadn't made the attempt to "break the ice". They were all in their little cliques. Needless to say, I did not bother returning. (Some of these same groups I have heard of late are bemoaning the lack of new members and are mystified as to why.) In contrast, at the orchid society I experienced years ago, a new person was greeted within the first couple minutes of having walked through the door. Whoever greeted them would welcome them and make some polite chit chat ("Are you growing any orchids yet, and if so what kind?" "How did you hear about us? Any problems finding the place?" "Today we'll be having a speaker talking about ____." Et cetera) Then the new person might be directed to the refreshments table or introduced to another member. By the time that person had left, they would have met and chatted with at least 4-5 members. It was a much warmer, welcoming environment. I joined and was a member until I moved to a city 2.5hrs away. As it is, not only do those members still stop to chat with me if we run into each other at shows, they also keep me on their electronic newsletter list and invite me to the annual summer picnic. Additionally, there sometimes is the attitude amongst the oldsters that they know everything and these new people -- particularly if the newbies are really young, in their late teens or early 20's, for example -- know nothing. And while this may indeed be the case, there are times the oldster couldn't be more wrong. (Though such individuals are rather rare, I have met people who had been growing plants since before they hit their teens. As such, they were already far more knowledgeable than one would expect for a person of their years.) Unfortunately, the aforementioned attitude often manifests as condescension which most on the receiving end will indubitably find to be a major "turn off." This is a shame on many fronts. Firstly, it can be the factor which causes the newbie to never return. Second, even if they come back, they will be far less likely to associate with those members which can be a loss to both parties. Even people as knowledgeable as Hyn or Irina, if they were to come across as snooty/condescending know-it-alls (fortunately, they don't), would certainly cause some people to ignore the advice they have to offer. For that matter, there is always the possibility that a newbie might actually have some worthwhile insight to give them.