lavender

Rainbow Valley has a red and white striped peony at that little greenhouse they set up in the plaza on the B-line. Gorgeous but the price is a bit much.

You're welcome. That is a very well grown plant. I've killed a couple of them although my lipstick plants are doing well.

I've never used plants for summer squash but have had fairly good luck with them for butternut squash. They have to be protected though. In my yard baby winter squash plants are very attractive to squash bugs which really sets them back. They don't bother the ones that come from seed as much. Guess I'll go with seeds too.

Sounds like this goldfish plant. This is the one that really looks like a little fish or a pelican's beak. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://grinnell.unh.edu/blogpix/Nematanthus.jpg&imgrefurl=http://homepage.mac.com/davidmlane/iblog/C210362712/E20070419154550/index.html&h=387&w=516&sz=62&tbnid=V2OPi2Ecc2wJ:&tbnh=98&tbnw=131&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dgoldfish%2Bplant&hl=en&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&cd=2 http://www.selby.org/clientuploads/images/research/GIC/Plants/Nematanthus_gregarius_1974-0597-GA.JPG

It is either a lipstick plant (Aeschynanthus radicans) or a Columnea (sp). The latter are sometimes called goldfish plants because some varieties look like little fish. Not all though. The two are frequently confused as there are different varieties of each. Check out some pictures until you find yours always remembering that sometimes pictures aren't labeled right either. Lipstick plant: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://z.about.com/d/gardening/1/7/x/6/LipstickPlant.jpg&imgrefurl=http://gardening.about.com/od/galleryofgardens/ig/Winter-Gardening-Photo-Gallery/Photo-of-Lipstick-Plant.htm&h=333&w=499&sz=74&tbnid=gOBZBeby204J:&tbnh=87&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlipstick%2Bplant&hl=en&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&cd=1 Columnea: http://www.cambridge2000.com/gallery/html/P3075107.html And I'm not real sure about that first picture either. It is hard to tell from pictures.

Oh! Duh! I'm in the wrong thread. I thought Paul's tulip disappeared and there were pictures of birds posted that I couldn't see. Thanks for the reality check, Snellma. I think the red bush might be the flowering quince that VP is talking about.

Why can't I see pictures anymore? I didn't change any settings.

You will barring bad weather. I will forward the e-mail I just got. I asked for clarification. Apparently munchkins and mud don't mix on a school day.

I could use some help too. When I put the digital camera in macro mode to do a flower close up it always tells me I am too close. Half the time the pictures are fuzzy in that mode. I usually take them in the regular mode and then enlarge and crop them. I don't get what I want but at least they are focused.

Here is what one County Extension Service says about pruning:"Blackberries bear on last year's canes. After picking the berries, you should prune the bearing canes to the ground. The new canes (this year's) should be pruned to a four-foot height. This pruning forces the plants to grow side branches, which will bear next year's crop. These lateral branches should be cut back to twelve inches during the winter.. Trellises are not necessary as the canes are erect and, when shortened to a four-foot height, will stand on their own and make a neat hedge." I seriously doubt if you are going to need winter protection for the roots around here but mulching never hurt anything and will keep down weeds. The canes should be safe as well in most winters. They are probably your most vulnerable part. Since they bear on second year canes you must get the canes through the winter without freezing to get any fruit. I don't think you will have a problem if they are hardy to -10 unless you have put them in an area where they are likely to get dessicated by winter winds. Don't do that! If you have to pin them down after they go dormant and cover them with straw to keep them from freezing like I have to do with my hydrangea you are not going to be a happy gardener.

Me either. They should be moved in the fall. You might get away with it really early in the spring but moving them now is going to be a shock and I doubt that they will bloom.

get pics and we will have fun identifying them.

This is as good an explaination as any: http://www.minifarmhomestead.com/gardening/tomato.htm I wrote an article on it many years ago but I never tried it. I'd use cherry tomatoes that were determinate. The heavier tomatoes might break the plant and I don't think you would want a really long vine. Same problem, breakage. Keep it well watered and remember that tomatoes like sun. And no holes in the sides of the bucket. It will drain too fast and the roots will never get wet. Remember that there are hormones in roots that make them grow down. They are not going to grow up and fill the bucket. Unless tomatoes are different from other plants.

I've got a white one but that fern leaf one is less than common. I've tried to grow the pink pink fern leafs with no success. I've never even seen a white one other than in pictures. I wonder if they need better drainage than the regular ones?

Beautiful yard! I have never had any luck with the fern leaf bleeding hearts. They are so pretty. Our lilacs aren't even close to blooming. Must be warmer down your way.

I grow all of my tomatoes from seed so I don't know what you can get locally. Valley Rainbow will have them if anyone does. They even had some local heirloom tomatoes one year. I am guessing that they start their tomatoes in the greenhouse. Gotta get down there or maybe they will be in DuBois again this year.

They are beautiful and when I was trying to identify the one I bought I saw that they came in many different colors. Mine is finally getting a few new leaves. I hope it makes a full recovery when it can go outside. You know that the name refers to the Passion of Christ. The early missionaries used the structure of the flower to explain the Crucifixion.

Cherry tomatoes are the easiest to grow and the most prolific, at least in my experience. Taste varies but something called Sugar Snack should be sweet. Occasionally cherry tomatoes will split. There isn't too much you can do about this as it is mostly dependent on weather conditions. Give it a little fertilizer occasionally and try to keep it watered. Basically treat it like a flower. I think you have a winner! p.s. I looked it up and it is an indeterminate variety which means it will get fairly tall. While you can let it sprawl these are better staked because they take up less room, animals can't get at them, they are easier to pick, etc.

Lucky you, dead skunk! I had an old English sheep dog roll in dead skunk once. I sympathize.

You are braver than I am!

Gooseberries are self pollinating. Most grapes are too but not all. Raspberries and blueberries depend on the cultivar. Some are self pollinating and some are not. Cross pollination often results in bigger crops than self pollination. To cross pollinate you can't just plant two of the same variety like two red delicious apple trees. You would plant one red delicious and one yellow delicious. See?

You're welcome. It is hard to believe that my memory is better that absolutely anyone else's. I walk into the next room and forget why I went in there. ;D

I think it was a flowering quince.

Wow! I don't think a compost heap destroys fungus. Don't let that compost get near the raspberries next year. The good news is that these rusts are mostly plant specific. The ones that affect red raspberries won't infect roses, black raspberries, blackberries or other plants. If you have red raspberries you might want to read this. http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3210.html There is an alternate host, the white spruce tree. To complete its life cycle and survive there must be a white spruce nearby. Elimination of the alternate host breaks the cycle and eliminates the fungus. If you have red raspberries and this is the fungus you have, I lied, it is not systemic. That would be the black raspberry orange rust which VP has. You probably need to get it identified for sure. (You never mentioned whether you have black or red raspberries. I think red because that is what I have.)There are fungicides affective against some of the rust fungi.

I'll be there as much as I can. Kind of tied up this year with stuff someone actually pays me for. Now there is a shock! So used to working for the "fun" of it I can't cope. ;D We've got some nice stuff that we overwintered in the pots. Got any requests? I'll dig them up for you. (Literally!)