How exciting Maggy, two sheaths are opening and it looks like 2 buds on each! It looks like a dark red. I'll have to look back for the name. I still need to look those orchids up for you; just busy. Send me your wish list too. Once the orchid society is over tomorrow I should have time and also pretty soon the leaves will stop falling. They are taking a lot of my time. Still lingering affects of flu, the worst part it makes me tired, but who wouldn't be tired mowing and bagging leaves for 4-5 hours every day.

I'm wondering where all the other "buggers" are. It was a quiet weekend.

Cory

Hi Cory, it is exciting to see the buds forming. It is Lc Bonanza ' Etta Gray' x Blc Norman's Bay ' Royal bride . I think it will be pretty.
That flu leaves you very tired . Of course raking all those leaves doesn't help . You must be sore . Our leaves are deep on the ground and I am afraid we have neglected them. I didn't get the pond covered so I will have to clean it out.
There is Someone in Ont. Who listed these orchids for sale.( not sure if still available) and just wondering if any of them would be suitable for a new person like me.
1. Cymbidium ' Nut red beauty'
2. Cymbidium ' golden elf sun dust'
3. Encyclia Tampensis
4. Oncidium Gower Ramsey
5.oncidium Nanum
6Ascofinsetia 'Petit Bouquet'
7 phalenopsis ambotis
8 Sedera japoncia
9 hippodamia
Most of them seem to be small and of course I like the smaller ones.
I tend to like oncidiums also.
The ' Sharry baby' is scenting the whole house today.
I found a vendor 30 North of Toronto and they sell Carter and Holmes orchids and they cross various varities. My husband said he will drive me there on the 27 th if they will allow us to visit that day.
So guess what I want for Christmas.? I have never actually been to an orchid nursery. It would be very exciting( and dangerous)
Thanks Cory for looking at my list .Hope the leaves are done soon and you can get rest. Maggy

Cory is right. Where are the other 'buggers'

Hi gang . Cory you bad girl you almost made me choke on a piece of apple crisp . I was reading what you wrote Maggy and when I got to the last sentence well let's just say you caught me off guard with a mouth full of food . Thx Cory you gave me a good laugh after I finished choking . You still have the flu to is this week 3 or 4 . I am on week two and your so right it makes you extremely tired even writing this takes effort all I want to do is sleep . Cory is snow in your forecast and how are the trees doing now the ones you missed watering? That orange looked like it would taste good . Maggy how are you doing did you win at crib on Saturday . Maggy I am so glad you have your orchids to keep you out of trouble . It's so nice to have something to check out everyday . All the snow has melted but there was a nice cake of ice on the windshield this morning . It's pouring rain now the snow is just 25 miles to the north of us now . Thinking of buying a propagation dome with heating pad and try doing more cuttings just for fun something to do inside during the winter . Mikey duplex was hilarious loved it the clapping seen was very funny and so was the box of chocolates and the flu scene . It's not a great idea to watch a funny movie with a bad cough I was choking from laughing hard quit a few times . How is going buddy ready for winter ? Steve amazing job my friend I checked out your video great job looks really nice . XOXO everyone and mom

Brian

My God, I wrote a huge post just to get it wiped off last night from my niece when I walked away fro a few minutes.I was so frustrated, I had to wait to write anything after that..Sorry.

Maggy, GREAT growing on that orchid..Look at those buds..That is just so cool...I can't wait for you to see what they smell and lok\ok...I wonder what color they will be?
Mom is just amazed at how much you all care about her. She actually says that you all do more than the friends she has here, and that's not a good thing..She said to make sure you know how much she appreciates all of you here.

That frigid Artic Polar Vortex ha syet to get here..Boy, I think to think of how much my space heaters will be kicking so EARLY this year..What the heck? You'd think we are heading for the ice age again..It took so long to loose that stupid cold just to get it back weeks too early..I told everyone in the summer this was going to happen and everyone thought I was nuts until now.
Today was 59 and tomorrow 60 and Wednesday 65, then it's all downhill from there for days on end..Like winter won't leave for days..We still have weeks before it's the first day of winter.
I hope all our greenhouse temps hold up under these extreme early temps. It's a good thing that you got your space heaters when you did because they will be all sold out in a week or two.

Lowe's and Home Depot ran out in December last year and never got anymore..Can you believe that? That is why I was pushing you all to prepare weeks in advance)

Maggy, righ now my Mom is in love with my Chocolate Orchid, the on she puts next to her chair every day and the Brugmansia which I think everyone should own..My God, mine is waffing the entire house every night and I hate to think I have to cut it back soon and stick it in the cold dark cellar(.
Maggy, Salsa is awesome of course but don't feel you have too...It was so good!
I know how you feel about checking them out first thing..I love to go into my greenhouse every day first thing..Once the sun is in there and it warms up with wet leaves. oh so nice and confy and smells so good!

Cory, I am not sure if you will see this but I hope you get better too. I have been talking to you for days here and I think you are missing everything...I'll wait until you respond)
I must say again, that your orchid is amazing!!I asked earlier if it had a nice fragrance? Do you like it?

Brian, what's new? Did you make it through that snow? Now I hear you are going to have more? Is there any end in site or has your winter started weeks early and plan on sticking around? Hows the temps in your greenhouse now that temps are very cold by night?
Can you tell us how warm they are while outside temps are in the 20's or lower?

Brian, are you finally over your flu buddy? I hope so.I plan on going to the orchid meeting tomorrow night and to the gym tonight once I get out of work at 8. I will workout until ten and then go how shower and get up at 5 a.m just to do it all over again...lol

Brian, you and the snow..lol. I hate snow..Unless I am skiing on it of course..lol
Ok, makes sense that you would cover that. Good thinking with the vaseline..I shall have to do that to my next one..Do you like Brugs??? Do you own any? They smell soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooogood Brian!.
Never would of thought about using a blanket on top at night! I think I will get one buddy for those extra cold nights!
Duplex? So what did you think? lol I laugh just thinking about it...lol Clap clap.

I gave my mome a hug for you and she said she sent one back. Thank you..
I owe you a few pics here.

Steve, love the video..Hoping all is well with you and thanks for the tour. Not bad! I saw the figs there.lol

Gotta run friends, and have a great night)

MIke

Hi Brian, I laughed too when I read Cory's last line. Pretty funny.
I am doing good Brian, still have a bit of asthma but nothing too troublesome.
We had a good time Sat. Night. The men played against the ladies and we lost . These are friends my husband has know for years . Very nice couple and we enjoy their company. We went in the greenhouse after dark. It was nice in there. The trees are really happy. .
I am glad I have the orchids now to take care of . I really enjoy them when there are blooming. But can see that there are so many I would like. I agree you never have enough. Just like the citrus. I am so glad I found both.
Maybe a progagation dome and heating pad would work for starting cuttings. I have a heating pad but no dome.
Have a great evening my friend. Maggy

deleted

This post was edited by maggyby on Mon, Nov 10, 14 at 20:43

Hi Mike, isn't it frustrating when you write a long post only to lose it? I can never remember what I wrote and like you I need to go away for awhile before I start over.
I am so glad your Mom enjoys the ' chocolate orchid' tell her mine was really scented this morning and like she does I sat beside it for a long time. It is amazing. It is so good to hear she is doing better. Funny how much joy just a simple flower can bring . Sort of like a great painting
We were watching the news and they were talking about the polar vortex. We are all going to get the cold. I am so glad I got the greenhouse wired and the solar cover. We normally have warmer winters here but I think we can no longer depend on that.
I am glad I got my husband the automatic starter for the car. He has enjoyed a warm car in the mornings .
I am really enjoying the orchids ,especially the 'Sharry baby' and the twinkles
The oncidiums are my favourite. The flowers are small and delicate. It will be nice when my Cattyela blooms open. Can hardly wait .
Hope you have a great evening.
Let us know how you like the orchid society meeting tomorrow .Maggy

Mike . A picture of what my orchid will look like. Maggy

Well, I only got Steve's message and two from Maggy since Friday, and now I open this and see there was a lot of activity that never showed up until the past hour. I don't know if it is this site or my phone that is not working. Now I have to go back and read more carefully as I can't remember all the questions there was so much to read suddenly.

Brian, most plants are recovering but two citrus, a Tango and a W Murcott Afourer are not looking good at all. I hope they recover but nothing happening yet. Funny, they are related...the Tango is a seedless W. Murcott Afourer I read. Everything else is slowly coming back but they all took quite a hit. It must have gotten really hot in there. Then i had all that humidity i was afraid everything was going to get moldy. Things have evened out now and I am getting some orchids to bloom again but I lost so many buds it is just so sad. At least the plants are ok. We haven't gotten the cold weather yet. The weather report says it reached 31°F one night, but there is still no sign of frost. I could have left my plants out a month longer. I guess it is really coming Thursday though.

Maggy, those buds should open a dark magenta color I think and be huge flowers by the name of the parents. Both are well known prize-winning plants. I'll look up whether the cross has been registered yet and if it has won any awards. It should be spectacular.

Mike, I thought I answered all your previous questions. Maybe my posts are just too long the answers get lost in them. Anyway, winter rest directions for your Den. speciosum were in the newsletter I sent to your email. I'll try to send the Orchid Wiz info too. Do you think it will be too cold to send the yellow cc cuttings? Maybe they will get to you before the cold front hits. Cutting it pretty close though. Sorry I don't know if that orchid is fragrant. I still can't smell anything because of the flu. Brad had a you tube on brugs too that you might want to look at.

Maggy, that is a nice wish list. You should be able to grow them all with no problem. The cymbidiums have been bred so that they don't need as much cold to set buds as the standards do. The Sedireas are very petite and pretty and have a nice fragrance. The ascofinetias are nice too. Is that a pink one, I forget, but I think I have one. We seem to like the same plants. Maybe that is not so hard as we like them all:>) The phal species amboiensis may be a little harder but i'm sure you will do well with it. Hippodamia is a cattleya I think? It is quite exotic looking if it is what I am thinking. The encyclia can be treated like a cattleya, and you now have some experience with oncidiums. If your greenhouse maintains 60°F you can grower most any orchid in there. Wait until you see the nursery. You might want to make sure you bring a truck to carry all your purchases home. I love going to the orchid nurseries. I could spends all day there. You will have so much fun. I would think even your husband will enjoy it as it will be like walking into the tropics with all the colors and the humidity and the fragrances.

Mike, enjoy the orchid society meeting tomorrow. I hope it is a nice group. Most are. I hope they have a nice showtable. Tell us about the meeting. Do you know the topic or the speakers name? I might know who they are as you are really not that far from me. It might give us some ideas for upcoming meetings. We still have to book speakers for 6 meetings in 2015 yet. Maggy, what will the speaker's topic be for your upcoming meeting? We are always looking for different ideas.

Good night everyone!

Cory

Cory

I have gone several days with out notices and when I get the notice there is so much to read that I am unable to catch up. What I find helpful is to start a paragraph with the persons name, drop 2 line and write to that person. I end the paragraph. Space, space.

Maggy

beautiful orchid. I have only had success keeping flowers of veggies and fruit. something eats the stem and the whole flower dissapears. My food based flowers are not bothered until the fruit is ripe then something eats away at the stem and the fruit disappears. If anyone knows what might be eating the stems of my flower/fruit, I have the ears of Ross Perot. I am desperate.

High to all of you and have a great morning. I have had a tragedy here at home. The taker of my kumquat trees has stood me up and I am still stuck with them. I don't know whether this is a 'sign' or whether a higher power is punishing me. I woke up early and had time for a quick write.

Steve

Hi Cory, I just finished writing a long post to you and just as I got to the end.'poof' it disappeared. I am sure it is the garden web site causing problems. Frustrating.
I am glad your trees are doing better once your greenhouse stabilized. I have had a lot of problems with my tango as well. It was really pale and didn't do well all summer. It is a bit better now but still not great. The Clementine I bought lost most of it's leaves and I am not sure it will survive.
We are going to get the cold starting tomorrow. Right now it is 50 degrees and going up to only 54 . Once it gets a bit warmer I will open the greenhouse and spray the plants. I think I will need to turn the water off soon. I may have to water by hand if I can't figure a way to hook up something. I may be able to run a hose through the laundry room window if it fits the laundry sink faucet. Mike mentioned insulating the outdoor faucet but it needs to be against the house. Mine is on a post away from the foundation. Just little problems to solve .
I love the Catteyla that is starting to bloom. It is going to be so pretty. I can't believe how fast it is growing. It would be nice if it bloomed by the week- end and I could put it in the show table in Sun at the orchid meeting. The topic this month is increasing you growing capacities beyond just phalaenopsis . I will be very interested in that.
The list I gave you was one someone had for sale. I have not had a reply so perhaps they are sold. But I will keep the list as now I know I can grow them. It will be nice to go a little out of my comfort zone and try some new things. There are some wonderful plants out there to choose from. Makes it difficult to choose. If I had room and didn't have a husband I would have as many as you. It is a real nice addiction,same as the citrus. It is good to know I can put them in the greenhouse as long as it stays above 60 degrees .This will solve the space problem. I also have a grow light I could set up in the house. Always a way to get more plants right?
I am very excited about going to the orchid nursery in Dec. ( if they will allow us to visit)
Here is their website . They have some interesting things http://www.orchidsinourtropics.com I can hardly wait to see everything. They have won a lot of awards.
Mike should enjoy the orchid society meeting tonight. I am so glad I joined.
It is going to be a busy week end. I have rug hooking in Sat. And orchid society in Sun plus we are hosting a birthday party for his two year old granddaughter . We will have his son, their two kids . There will be 10 of us.
Well must go out to check the greenhouse now.
Have a great day Cory. Maggy

Hi Steve, nice to see you here again. The two thinks that eat my fruit are rabbits and the squirrels steal everything. Or do you think it is some kind of insect.? I live in the city and was surprised to see wild rabbits and raccoons visit my yard.
Sorry to hear no one is taking your kumquats. Why do you want to give them away? Do you not have room.?
Orchids are quite appealing and not too hard to grow inside. I think the one starting to bloom will be wite spectacular.
I saw your video. Nice work. Hope the cold spell coming doesn't damage any of your plants.
Have a great day Steve. Maggy

Maggy

I put a tape recorder out with the flowers and fruit. This is what I heard. Wow! that flower is pretty. snap crunch thump thump thump thump getting fainter as if a biped was moving away at high speed. The only difference with the fruit is that the noise started that looks delicious. I realized that the fruit came from ugly flowers. HOMMOSAPIANS are the culprit.

Steve

Hell all..I have just enough time to say thank you for hoping I have a good time..I have been straight out all day NO time to read or talk..BUt I will be back as you all well know..

Cory, if you are seeing this..I put a link on the bottom of the speaker and time..I will be back..

Then Cory, I have just come down with a serious stomach/gas issue..Just wonderful..Now I know how Brian feels in crowds..There better be a way I can escape if I should have any issues..They are all going to think I am weird if I keep leaving the room..Sheesh!

Thanks for everything! Hugs to all. I will fill you all in. I am a bit nervouse about meeting people I don't know. I hope there are a few young people there along with very experienced old timers)

This post was edited by meyermike_1micha on Tue, Nov 11, 14 at 19:56

Mike, you will probably find a wide age group at the meeting. When I went the youngest member was 16 (a guy) and the oldest a 92 yesr old man. All very nice people. We are all thinking of you and waiting for you to tell us how it went. Maggy

Hi gang . First off to all our armed forces hip hip hooray hip hip hooray job well done . Hi Maggy what a beautiful and emotional day here . There was so many people downtown really nice to see people backing our forces . There was a crane working on the lot beside were I work they flew a large flag during the ceremony touched me a lot . They really had a beautiful day for the ceremony . Maggy I think our beautiful day's are numbered now . Maggy Tango trees are a little finiky mine always looses a few leaves so don't worry it should do fine . Has your clementine lost most of it leaves if so don't over water until you see new signs of growth . Cory I really hope your Tango and Murcott come back to and they are very similar I believe the tango was developed from the Murcott . My Tango is coated in fruit really hope they ripen . Mikey are you going to a orchid meeting ? I think I read somewhere that the average age of the people attending was 85 and older and all women have fun lol . XOXO to you all and mom .

Brian

Hi Brian, Hope you had a nice Rememberance Day . Did you have the day off. It must have been sad at the ceremony in Ottawa .I didn't watch it this year. Went and played in my greenhouse instead. It was a beautiful day here and and I opened the greenhouse and sprayed the trees .tomorrow will start to get cold for us all.
Wonder how Mike made out at the Orchid Society meeting. I hope he enjoyed it. It will be a good experience.
Hope you enjoy your evening.
Steve you make me laugh. Maggy

Brian, we were writing at the same time. Nice picture of the Canadian flag. It is a very emotional day for many Canadians I usually observe the holiday. My father was a war veteran and growing up we always attended the ceremonies. This year it was too emotional. I cry just thinking about the little boy without a father.
I wonder why tango trees are so finicky .it seems we all have trouble with them. Mine is looking a little better. There is a big Clementine that is getting orange in there. Should be ready soon. The tree has not lost all it's leaves but quite a few .i will water sparingly.
Brian, you stop teasing Mike? LOL! You two are so funny.
Take care friend. Maggy

Hello all, our orchid society meeting went very well. We had a great speaker on terrestrial orchids. He brought some plants for sale which was a great opportunity to obtain plants not seen that often. Plus, he deducted his speaker fee by the amount for each plant members bought so his presentation to us was basically free and he drove all the way from Maryland and made a completely new presentation just for us. Wow! He started growing orchids when he was six years old in 1957 I think he said. He looks much younger than that so I guess orchid growing keeps you young. I find people who grew orchids since they were little children are always so knowledgeable and their presentations are always so interesting since they love the orchids so much. Of course I came home with a couple different Blettias, a pleione, a Monkey Tree and a mahagony anthurium. (Hope I got all the spelling right as it is late and I am tired from all the driving and road construction along the way.) We had a very diverse showtable and the speaker talked about all the plants on it giving a lot of information about all the plants. For such a small society we consistently have very good showtables every month. Our program chair woman has been negotiating with a local grocery chain store for raffle table plant donations and this month they donated a lot of nearly spent flowering plants for our raffle table so everyone went home with nice healthy flowering plants and we also raised a good sum from the raffle ticket sales to use for future speakers and orchid conservation project donations. Also, the founder of our society presented me with an AOS plaque award he had from a show where the society won best exhibit in the show. He wanted to pass it to me to recognize the work I do for our society. It is quite an honor, especially coming from him. He is an excellent grower, has collected plants when travelling from all over the world, and blooms plants only a very experienced grower could grow let alone bloom regularly. He is so knowledgeable. I am almost an imposter president in comparison to his knowledge and experience. I hope Mike's meeting experience went well and the members welcomed him. Our society is very friendly and non-competitive. We are a pretty wide range of ages and about 50-50% men and women. Most members have been growing for many years and help the newer growers with their plant questions. It is amazing to see what people are able to grow on their windowsills. Some grow under lights and some have greenhouses or sunporches. I have learned much being a member.

Steve, I also have homosapien critters swiping pieces and whole plants from my yard too. One day at my beach house a woman backed in her van and was loading it up with my large planters of various tropical plants. I often find orchids missing when I am summering them outdoors. Although I have lots of plants, I do realize when some go missing. I hope the takers know how to care for them and don't end up killing them. Do you go to the Cincinatti conservatory? Our speaker mentioned that is where his love of plants and orchids was cultivated at a very young age.

Brian, we took a few moments during our meeting to honor and thank our Veterans also. I didn't realize Canadians celebrated Veteran's Day today also. Nice picture of your flag. We flew ours today also.

Mike, I don't see a link to your speaker; it didn't seem to come through with your post. I hope you had an enjoyable experience at your orchid society meeting. I also hope you are feeling better. It is sometimes hard to go to a place that is not familiar by yourself so I hope you felt welcome there. Sometimes people get so wrapped up in their conversations and socializing they don't realize there are new people there. Don't give up; you will become part of the crowd soon. You are so friendly I doubt you will have trouble joining in.

Hi Maggy. It will be interesting hearing about your meeting too.

Cory

Cory

Hi Mike, How was the meeting last night? Good for you for going.it is always difficult going to new places and meeting new people. But you have such a nice personality that you will make friends in no time. I went by myself and I was received warmly. So we were all thinking of you and waiting for news of your experience.
Cory ,it looks like you were up late. Your meeting sounds like it was very interesting. Congratulations on you AOS plaque reward . It is very deserved and nice that you are recognized for all the work you do.
And you got new plants. I will have to look them up and see what they are. I would love to have one of those ' money plants' they are so awesome looking. You must be pleased. The lecturer sounds so passionate about orchids and how nice to come all that way to speak. I think orchid growers are most of the time very nice people. I was just thinking that here a majority of the orchid growers are men. I wonder why that is the case. Do you find that?
My two dogs are wrestling on the couch where I am trying to write. They are very playful today. Usually they just want to cuddle.
The cold spell has started. The greenhouse is set for 60 degrees but it is 64 in there now. I see a lot of the U.S. has really been hit with cold weather. It seemed to happen fast. I was going out today but the cold air makes my asthma worse. Have been trying to get past the wheezing but it has been hanging around for weeks. I may have to go on steroids which I am trying to avoid. How are you feelin Cory? Are you still having after effects of the flu.?
Brian has been a long time recovering as well.
I always enjoy your posts and hearing what you are doing . Thanks for sharing with us. Maggy

Hello my friends!!!

Boy, am I TIRED..I wanted to let you know how it all went..
The speaker was amazing! He was yound and had his own Greenhouse Buisniess dedicated to making new species of Phaphs and at time selling soem for 20,000 dollars! He has scientist and his own labratory to boot!
He is wealthy I tell you and travels the world...

There were plants for sale there but expensive!!

It was suppose to be held just 1/2 mile up the street, until I got there and so no one but one member out front calling to see what happend..That place had a gass leak and one had to be rushed to the hospital so they dispersed the group before I even got there.

The one lonley guy there had me follow him to a well know orchid grower to North Reading in the boonies to what I call a Mansion! His greenhouse was as quite huge! I walked in and met him and his thousands of orchids!! So many in bloom, an orchids paradise!! Warm, tropical, with some roots hanging over 3 feet long..Flowers all over the place..That place I could of pitched a tent..He told ne to do it.I almost did.

Then he humbly told me a few pointers and invited us into his home. Beautiful home in the woods surrounded by dear and the smell of marsh, eath tones..Oh, so nice..It smelled just like fall wet leaves..God I loved it.3It was mild too..
His home was so beautiful and his wife cooked afeast with tons of sweets..I never saw such kind people.

They wanted me to talk about myself and commented that I was the most handsome youngest guy there..lol That was kind of strange...Oh well, I took it. I aquired two new plants and I will share later, promise..

I wished I had my camera with me, darn it! But the onwer Bod said I could show up anytime and feel free to enjoy his plants..I am in heaven I tell you.

I will be back to see what everyone has to say, but in the meantime, I will show you a few pics I took today..I love these flowers!)

I promised these for Brian..But, YOU all should grow one of these since they are so easy to grow and smell so good at night!

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Then here is my Navel orange thick thrunk tree about to explode in blooms..

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Last but not least on of my FAVORITE orchids..It's a Neo and smells so heavenly..Like an expensive perume and clean soap in one..Took these plants outside since it was 60 degrees on my covered pond.

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I'll be back..I will see what you all had to say recently))) Hugs to you all.

Mike. What an incredible experience. You must have been thrilled to be in the greenhouse with all those orchids. Sometimes the most unexpected things happen. They sound like wonderful people. Was the whole group at this guys house? I can tell how excited you are. I bet you didn't want to leave.
It sounds like you have made a new friend already. What orchids did you buy?
Your pictures are wonderful . Your plants and trees look amazing. I am so happy that you enjoyed your evening. Maggy

Cory, of course I would LOVE cuttings from you yellowCC..I would love that.. I just had one piece of my varietaged one break off...I nice size!

E -mail your address so I can send them tomorrow instead of me having to go back and look for it, ok?

Maggy same with you..I just got your order today and I want to turn around without delkay and ship it in the a,\.m so it sits in the box with less time...

I'll be waiting....I will be back later to answer questions but I needed to get thos to you guys asap..

MIke

Thank you Mike, you are very generous and so is Cory. She sent me some big pieces of the yellow cactus and I planted then. The buds were still on them and they are starting to open. It is beautiful. I sent my address to your email. Maggy

Wow Mike, that sounded like a great first experience with that orchid society! I'm glad you did not miss it.

Nice pictures of your plants. One of our members brought a Neostylis Lou Sneary 'Bluebird' to our meeting last night too. Mine bloomed a couple of times this summer i think in response to those big temperature drops. One is sending up a spike now. Yours is very nice and full. That is a very pretty Brugmansia. I wonder how long you will be able to keep it blooming. I think you have to rest them finally? I forget as I haven't had any in a while. I emailed you my address, thank you. Your trees look great. I wish I had left mine outside longer, but I did not want to take the risk of putting them out again and not being around to put them back in a hurry. Mine are a bit sad looking at the moment and I am fighting the mealybugs on my phals and hoping I can stay ahead of them so they don't spread throughout the greenhouse. So far the FE is not surpressing them nor neem oil, soap spray, or alcohol. I was going out to get some horticultural oil, but never got out. I think maybe i see some spider mite webs too. Funny, as I sprayed all summer with the FE and had no sign of bugs then. It seems like it might be a tough bug year for me this year. Its probably because of the stress from the overheating and then 99% humidity buildup. Hope i can get it under control.

Maggy, it seems the men in our society like to grow the teeniest little orchids and the women go for the more floriforous larger ones. I would have expected the other way around. There is a lot of construction going on and the highways were closed down to one lane most of the way home last night so it took a while, plus I stopped at my sister's house to unload her van of all the society stuff we haul back and forth every month. Her husband had cooked a meal for me too which was very nice, so that gave me a further late start. I am having trouble with asthma too but mine is more of a cough and congestion. Probably all the dust i make when mowing the leaves doesn't help me much. Some is just the remains of the flu I think. I don't get as bad as you do i think. But I do find i get a little out of breath mowing which makes it harder. Maggy, it is a Monkey Puzzle tree not a Money tree. It can grow to 130 ft tall and 7 ft in diameter and I think live a 1000 years. Mine is only an inch tall though. My cousin planted one about 30 years ago now. I forgot to see how big it got to the last time I was there. Mike's plant pictures are very beautiful. Sounds like he had a great time at his new friend's house and greenhouse. Got to go check on the greenhouse now for a bit. Glad I put the lights in again.

Hello Brian, Steve, and Sissy. Also Veggie Girl and Trace.

Cory

Cory,

Are you kidding me? Of course I would LOVE some of that CC you have! You seem to have a true yellow one and very interesting..I have been buying and trying to find a true yellow, and the ones I spent so much money on open off peach...It mujst be the cool temps I expose them too or something...Yours looks truly YELLOW)

And who said that Spider Mites hate humidity...? lol Quite the opposite...I think they thrive in it, unless the temps are cool and the fan breeze is consistenly blowing the under side if the leaves which I do..

In talking to the folks last night about Mealy, they told me they are almost impossible to erradictae if you happen to catch them in a laspe of not spraying the F.E or if they are hiding in areas, which they do that F.E can't affect them..

They use Bayer Rose 3in1 pesticide on their greenhouse because it's the residue that kills ALL sucking pest over a period of three weeks..You may have to pull out the big guns..It's the only thing that works for them and Bob, the guy I met who own thousands of orchids back to back is all that he uses..He has no bugs that I could see..It's the only thing that kills his mealy hiding in pots, crevices, floor under the rims of pots and not just on the plants..I also had a problem with mealy because I just couldn't reach those tight places in the house with F.E, and I no longer have a one, not a one...It feels good to know that all ivasive pests are done with....You won't be harming the beneficial pests since there are none in winter, our benefit.
The ingredient 'Imidicloprid' is the key..
It will knock the socks of even the bugs in hiding..Saturate everything in your greenhouse from ceiling to floor and the plants in between to dripping...
Repeat in 3 days and then another 3..You should have no signs of any pest at all after that..Good luck.
I got my hose end spray bottle at Lowe's.

yes the orchid show was a blessing..That man Bob was so caring, hospitible, and just wanting to teach me.
He said if they don't like his way of caring for them, he throws them out. He grows everything that likes the same care of everything...No dry weeks on ends for certain ones..Noe needed cold periods for others..lol.
He grow all his plants in two medias...
One is half and half styrofoam peanuts and clay balls..
The other , I forgot..I have to find out and his orchids are thriving!

His greenhouse was very humid too..He has to watch for flowering turning brown and algea growing on roots and pots and media..That is a pain..Thank goodness I don't have to worry about that.Too much of a good thing is not good either I guess..

I could grow the Brug all winter, but they create spider mites out of thin air if left to grow all winter..So I cut them back to the stump for next year and rest them in my basement or now my very cold spare room and keep them just moist, never to dry out. They can take much abuse for sure. You should see the youtube video of them cutting their back..Wow.

I hope you are much better these days..I loved that meeting and I can't wait for the next. I want to help too. They are going to have a Holiday party in which I am invited and another show soon...It's fun really...I had a few members ask me if I had a any questions..How nice is that?

Cory, I got your e-mail..I will send that cutting tomorrow so you can root it..It's bigger than what I started with..lol I started with just one 3 segments one piece..That's it..They grow fast and well if happy.

Thanks for your kind comments and I hope you stick around long enough to see that Monkey Tree grow very tall)

My mom says hello and thank you.
Once again she was very sick last night...It's tiring.

MIke

This post was edited by meyermike_1micha on Wed, Nov 12, 14 at 19:38

Maggy.....right? I loved the meeting..I was always hestiant to go and I don't know why..Well, I can tell you why...I joined the Cactus Society here in Mas. and I never saw such a crappy bunch of people in my life. NO one took an interest to even get to know me, and acted like they did not even know me when I bumped into them at Logees' one year. Then to boot, I would walk in and I could sit there without so much as one person coming over to welcome me..I paid 20 $ to join that one and what a waste. Snobby, snooty and show offs..
I called them 'orickly people'..lol

Maggy, I wish you could of see this guys greenhouse!!! It was at least 30 feet tall with orchids as high as you could readh with a ladder..Wall to wall, smelled so good..So many Cattaleyas open and Brassavola, and Oncidiums! God, I was in heaven... Some plants had roots hangling more tha 6 feet long..lol
He uss hydrton and styrofoam in his orchids so he can water very frequently without fear of rot. I might to the same since I love to water often..I don't like this having to let them dry out thing, because then their roots shrivel and hydrating them all over again every time I water can be a pain..I have to water and rewater for at least 15 minutes for the roots to benefil on all my plants.

I am glad you joined yours too..It's awesome, right? Thanks to Cory, I would of never thought of it.
What a great way to cope with winter..
By the way....How does the front of your greenhouse look covered? It's not too bad crawling underneath it, right? Your hair gets wet though from the moisture if the plastic hits your head..lol

I like Brian's idea about using a huge blaney on the coldest of nights.I am going to try that when temps drop below the 20's, especially the teens to 0 or below which I see coming..((( Antartica seems to love playing with us these days.Sheesh.

Yes, the whole group was at this guys house and his wife was so hospitible..Good food and deserts! They were so welcoming..I have to call him tonight to thank him when I leave work.

I'll be mailing your orchid tomorrw for you. I have not even unpacked it..I am just going to change the labels and ship it off to you. I can try to squeeze a piece of CC in there, but rooting the variegated can be tricky..Or, I can always root one for you and send in spring. Let me know.

Thanks for liking my plants..Someone has too besides me..I love that Brug..Everyone should have one..It's only a small cutting that grew that big and flowered..Lots of fetilizer and water did the trick..I smells so good at night.
You like my Neboli!!It is one of my favorite, one that every orchid collecter sgould have, but on this one you might need a humidifyer..You should look into one..I Just bought on T.V, the shopping network..Top of the line on sale for 75 dollars! That will be for more comfortable breathing in the house. I can always go into the greehouse for relief if need be.

Hi gang . First Mikey I think Cory just insulted us , she thinks we have small orchids imagine lol . Second Man O Man your plants are so beautiful . The flowering tree at the top and please forgive me I forgot the name of the tree is really beautiful WOW . Is it an evergreen or deciduous ? Stunning . Your place must smell amazing right now !!!! Your Navel look at all those flowers !!!! . Personally I think the navel trees and Valencia trees have the nicest smelling flowers and lemons right after . You must feel like your in heaven with all these scents . Does your mom love all of these wonderful scents to . Sounded like you had a great time last night so glad I am very shy to I know exactly how you felt going. Mikey can you believe I still have this darn cold . Mine is exactly like Cory's lots of coughing and congestion although today I seem to feel a lot better , I think the end is near . We're do all you guys find the time to take care of all these beautiful plants ? How is your Mom feeling ? Please give her a giant hug for me and the same to you . Maggy sounds like a very busy weekend coming up sounds like a lot of fun though . Are you all going out to a restaurant or are you doing all the cooking ? It sure is nice to be able to sit in the GH and just enjoy all the scents . How is your asthma when your in the GH does the humidity help it ? Your going to have to take a picture of your clementine tree I am sure it is not as bad as your making it out to be . Cory my friend hang in there all of a sudden your flu will be gone . I went to bed last night feeling dreadful and when I woke up this morning I felt a lot better it's definitely on its way out . Cory I will ask you to were do you find the time just to sit down and do absolutely nothing ? Your plants look so terrific . Hi Steve are you going to try to grow vegetables in your GH all winter , can it be done ? Have a great night everyone XOXO .

Brian

Hi Mike, I too am glad you had such a positive experience. It is too bad you had a bad experience in the past That can be a quick turn off. But so nice that you went outside your comfort zone and tried a new group.Bob and his wife sound like such lively people . How I would love to see that greenhouse. Interesting to grow in a different medium. I would like to know more about that.
It is a nice way to enjoy winter. I also got invited to the Christmas party and I plan to go. It is a very welcoming group. When my husband went with me to the Orchid show some members wanted to show him all their prize orchids .
It is not too bad going under the solar cover to get in the greenhouse but as you said I get my head wet often. I love that cover. It is freezing outside and 64 in there right now
Thank you for mailing the orchid . I hope customs lets it through. So far I have never had a problem . If you could root the variagated c.c and send it in the spring that would be best I think.
You asked if i liked your "neboli " I am not sure what that is ?
Take care Mike. Let us know when you visit the green house again. Maggy

Greenhouse is doing good sorry I haven't took more pics yet. It is 48 outside and the greenhouse is 75 inside.
Trace

Brian, you are right! The Orange trees do smell so much better than most, more pungent, and then right after that the Lemon Meyer tree...How have you been? Has the snow melted yet? You must feel like you live in Antartica these days..Shesh..

I am shy too my pal...But everyone there made me feel so comfortable. I was taken back quite a bit. I called Bob on my way home and thanked him for his kindness.. I have a place to go anytime and visit him. He was very grateful for my call. He says I can even spend the night there..Wow.
I can't believe that you are still feeling that bug! Sheesh.
I hope it goes away soon pal...How cold did it get at your place last night? What did the temp in your greenhouse read at the coldest part of the night?
Brian, I wish you guys could of gone with me to Bob's greenhouse..I will take pics with my camera next time..

Small orchids, eh? lol Cory doesn't know that I have a few large ones..ha
Brian, please get better soon...Right now I am watching 100,,,,Don't they ever take a bath? lol

Good to see you again. Stay warm my friend and we give you huge hugs from here buddy.

MIke

Tcam..That's so awesome...I love how warm it is in there...So good))

Steve how are you. good to see you)

Maggy, I am so happy I did leave my comfort zone..I have been truly blessed to meet such nice people. Yes, i will let you know when I go back. Next time, I will tale pics for you guys...I can't wait for you to see what I see.

That's so nice that they showed interest in your husband. I love that. Oh, all those orchids that smell so good. I will take a pic of the couple that I got tomorrow.

The orchid with the blue purple flowers. I never get it right..lol Exciting isn't it to have such warm temps in there when it's so cold outside...Once temps drop into the teens and lower, then I start to worry..I keep praying that for some reason the electricity dos not go out and I keep asking anyone at home to watch the temps..What am I to do if they go down while I am at work 20 miles away>? I am going to teach my mother how to turn on the heat.

I am happy to see you feeling better. Yes, I will send your plant first thing a,.m..It should be fine,. I have actually sent cuttings to Germany, Romania, England and other out of the sates places. I think it will get to you just fine)

Lots of hugs since I am pooped..be good

MIke

Trace. I am so surprised that it gets so cold so fast down off Interstate 20.. I am near I 74.

sorry for that bad advice I gave you about keeping your plants out for another month.

Steve

Hello, this is an odd one. A split lip, and i thought it was light blue with a dark purple lip in the past. Now it is pink. It is Lc. Cornelia 'Kalapana'. I don't know what caused this. It lost 3 of its buds a few weeks ago when I had all the trouble with the blasting buds so maybe it got deformed then. And Mike, I didn't notice any fragrance tonight, but maybe in the morning.

Brian and Mike, in our society it is mostly the men that grow the ultra miniature orchids. Some of them you almost have to get out a magnifying glass to see them. They are hard to grow as you have to be careful they don't dry out too quickly. Its easy to miss them especially in a crowded greenhouse.

Trace, I'm glad your heater is keeping up with the cold front moving in. Is your greenhouse blue? I've never seen a blue one. The doors look blue in the picture. Nice!

Mike, what is a naboli that every orchid grower should have?

Cory

Sorry, don't know how I got three of the same post.

Cory

This post was edited by cory001 on Wed, Nov 12, 14 at 22:22

Thanks all hey Steve I live off interstate 75 LOL but I20 is close. Going to be 20s tomorrow.
Trace

Just for discussion sake, what is everyone's, who has a greenhouse or similar, plan if there is a power outage during the cold night?

How would you address this possible scenario - During a heavy snowstorm or ice storm the power is lost for 2 nights when the temperature is expected to drop to 10F or below.

Would you loose everything? bring inside? some other kind of back up plan? please share your ideas. This winter is expected to be a bruiser.

Hi Ryan, most people have a back up propane heater such as ' Mr. Buddy'
I haven't bought one yet but plan to soon. You can buy the canisters of propane or a tank ( will need adapter hose) . Worth the investment. One could lose all their trees rather quickly if they froze.
I see you have a nice variety of citrus. Where ever did you find them? Here in Canada we are rather limited.
Please feel free to join our discussions at any time. We have become friends here and you may see we talk about all kinds of things. I am quite new to Citrus but the others are very experienced and very knowledgable and helpful. Maggy

Good morning . I wrote a long post only to have it freeze again and lost it all. I seem to have problems only when using the citrus form. So will copy and paste.
Mike. Thank you for sending the plant. I can hardly wait. I will be checking my mail box next week. I am really glad you made a new friend. He sounds like a super guy. I bet you can't wait to visit his greenhouse. I imagine you will be visiting soon. I would love to see pictures. He certainly will have some amazing plants . It is good sometimes to do things that make us uncomfortable but often we are so rewarded for doing so. You deserve to have wonderful experiences as you are so kind and generous to others. I am glad it is coming back to you.
I am sorry to read that your Mom was sick again. It must be difficult for you both. I hope that she feels better again very quickly. Is your dad still with you?
We have snow today. Soft flakes falling. The greenhouse is staying warm so far . I still haven't put the piece on the west side of the solar cover, where it is about 6 inches too short. But in spite of that it seems to be holding the heat. The solar cover plus the insulated floor helps.
Are you going to use the Bayer's 3 in one on your trees. It seems there is a concentrate and a spray. I read that they are used differently. The concentrate in the soil and the spray on the leaves. ? Hope you have a great day my friend.
Cory your Cornelia 'Kalapana is beautiful . But then all your orchids are amazing. I wonder why it changed colour. It is still lovely . I too find it strange that men like the tiny plants and women the larger ones. I would also have thought the opposite. I see a lot of men at the society meeting. They are so passionate and very willing to share. I met a 92 year old Italian gentleman who barely spoke English but he wanted to tell me about the tiny orchids he friend brought from Hawaii. Apparently he put them inside a pop bottle,and put orange or pineapple juice in it , sealed it and these little orchids survived the long journey. I had never heard of that before.
It sounds like your meeting night was a long one. How nice that your brother in law cooked a meal for you. I bet you didn't have time to eat.
My asthma is acting up today. The cleaning lady came and brought scented dust clothes which gave me an mega attack.and then used concentrated cleaner on the floor with out diluting it. I had to use my nebulizer machine. I am going to do the cleaning myself. I told her today . If I can stop saving everything I will be fine as I tend to clutter My husband it organized, neat and tidy.
He doesn't complain much but I know he would like it if I were more tidy. He is such a kind and tolerant person.
Mike is so lucky to have found a new friend and he will be enjoying visiting that greenhouse.
Hope you are feeling better Cory. I so enjoy your posts and pictures. I was hoping my Cattleya
Would bloom by Sunday . I would take it too the meeting.
Take care ?Maggy

RyanLo, I have 2 natural gas Southern Burner vented furnaces. The thermostats run off the gas. My backup is an electric heater. In the past I have experienced a freeze when my pilots on both furnaces shut down as they blew out from a downdraft when the furnace came on at the same time the the exhaust fan came on , on very cold days (below 0°F). It is a kind of freak event, but it happened a few times and if I am not nearby and am unaware it was disaster. It took me a while to figure out why the auto gas shut-off kept tripping. Now I make sure the vents and fan are set high enough so they don't come on when it is very cold out. I also now have an alarm system that calls my cellphone (Freeze Alarm or Freeze Alert) to alert me to power outages, temperature drops, or too high temperatures during the summer. I can also call in and find out the temperature, the backup battery state, and check that the system is working. It is run off my land line house phone. I think they may have one that is wireless now, but you would have to have a wireless provider; maybe can run off wifi now, I haven't checked. If I remember I think the device cost $269 a few years ago. It is worth every penny spent as it has saved me from freezes several times. During cold spells something always can go wrong, especially in a greenhouse with the damp conditions that wear out equipment and electronic/digital devices constantly. I bought the slightly more advanced device that was available at the time. It was a lot cheaper than the SensaPhone. It is very easy to use and hook up. I also have a basic remote device that has an alarm and I can monitor the temperature and humidity from my house. I find that when it is really cold that device doesn't function properly. My greenhouse is stand alone and about 40ft from my house.

Feel free to join us here. We are all citrus tree lovers but also grow orchids and a lot of tropicals under lights and windowsills as well as greenhouse plus hardy trees and shrubs also. We have helped each other a lot and became friends and trade plants sometimes. I have often admired how well you grow your citrus trees and the diverse variety you have when I saw your pictures both on this forum and the Citrus Growers and Tropical Fruits forums.

Cory

Cory, I just wanted to tell you all the cuttings you sent me have rooted. The CC in soil, and the rest in water. How great it that. Thank you again. I am going to enjoy those plants. Hope you are having a good day. Maggy

Hi Ryan, most people have a back up propane heater such as ' Mr. Buddy'
I haven't bought one yet but plan to soon. You can buy the canisters of propane or a tank ( will need adapter hose) . Worth the investment. One could lose all their trees rather quickly if they froze.
I see you have a nice variety of citrus. Where ever did you find them? Here in Canada we are rather limited.
Please feel free to join our discussions at any time. We have become friends here and you may see we talk about all kinds of things. I am quite new to Citrus but the others are very experienced and very knowledgable and helpful. Maggy

My GH will go down to 10F night night after night after night and be safe. My house will remain cofortable up to 4 days lost of heat in 10F/30F nights / days. We have not lost power now for 50.5 years when the 4-3-1974 F-5 tornado removed every wire and closed every road for 10 days. It is not likely I will ever see this again It was my first and 4 more that same day when I saw my last tornado. Google Sayler park tornado 4-3-74.

Steve

Brian, we are having snow squals .it is pretty cold . I didn't go in the greenhouse today but when I do I will take a picture of the tangerine tree. Did you decide to get a progagation dome.? You could make one I would think using the cover off a BBQ chicken.....,I should try it I grew the clove trees in one of those little trays with a clear cover. They all grew..
Brian, my Cattelya orchid has started to open its buds . I can hardly wait abc I have a candy stripped flower opening on one of my named phananopsis. Pretty exciting. I may have something to take for the show table at the orchid meeting on Sun.
Can you believe that tomorrow is the start of another week- end. Don't you find the older we get the faster time goes. I have a busy week end but should be fun.
Next week I will be watching the mail every day for the orchid that Mike sent.
That will be so cool.
Have a great evening my friend. Maggy

Hi Maggy, glad all the cuttings rooted. That's just great! Sorry to hear you are having another bad asthma day. My sister had trouble with her cleaning service using products she was allergic to so she provides all the cleaning supplies and is much happier. I think they even use her vacuum cleaner as it has hepa filters. I am like you that i am more of an outdoor worker and I also collect a lot of stuff and do crafty and artsy stuff so it is hard to stay neat inside. I should have a cleaning service and cook to keep me neat and organized, but I don't. It would be hard for a very neat person to live with me with all my plants and stuff, but it is clean, just hard to find places to hide stuff away. Your pictures always show a neat and tidy house. I really don't like to use chemicals on my plants because they always set off my asthma too. I have tried the Bayer formulas with imidicloprid when I just couldn't get rid of one bunch but my bugs seemed immune to it even though I sprayed and drenched a few times as directed. I did not like that i smelled it each time I watered for a long time afterward, especially in the house grow room. I would not put it on my fruit or vegetables. The FE stinks, but that doesn't seem to set my asthma off. Maybe it is not as volatile? It was the only thing that cleared up my bug problems and my greenhouse was bug free all last winter, so I am surprised i am again having problems with mealybug on my phals. I may try horticultural oil on them again. The neem oil hasn't eradicated it yet.

I hope your cattleya opens for the meeting. They usually open the day after or fade the day before for me.

Cory

A more complete description on greenhouse workings

My greenhouse is made of glass and wood all of which I pulled out of contraction dumpsters. I have enough glass for a 500 square foot surface with 4 layers of glass. This will give me a 37 foot by 15 foot tall lean-to green house at 8 feet wide against the south side of my house .

The outside layer of glass is hermetically sealed. The 3 inside glazes breath some. The inside is kept humid. When the surface get cold the vapor in the air condenses and give the heat of fusion to the inside air. This keeps the inside warm. When the out side gets below freezing the vapor must condense first (520 cal./gram H2O) then must release another 80 cal. per gram H2O to the in side air thus keeping it warm inside. The outer glass surface is locked at 32 F until all the moisture on its surface is ice. The next layer of glass must go through the same, then the third layer must succumb to this solid ice frosty state, The frosty state of moisture on the glass will greatly decrease the amount of heat that can slip through. This alone probable guaranties my safety to 10 F for many days in a row.

I heat the growing medium with the south basement wall. The R value of it is about R-4, While the other 3 walls are R-150 Minimum an loose near 0 heat. I heat the basement to about 75 F. There are no ducts to heat any where else in the house. With living area walls at R-40 they loose heat slowly enough to stay warm with the heat in the basement just bleeding up. The warm basement wall keeps the greenhouse soil at 60 F min. My annual natural gas heating bill is under $200 .

If the temperatures drop below 0 F I will have to place out buckets of warm water to supply the needed humidity to power the gasses phase change heating system.

Steve

Hi Cory,
Yes, it is great that everything has rooted. I am very pleased.
My asthma is better now. I actually provided all the cleaning products and she brought dust pads that were heavily scented without my knowledge. I think she really wanted to be let go as she arrived an hour later, and did a really bad cleaning job. I had to redo everything. My house is not dirty but like you ,I do artsy stuff. I have a whole room full of wool , patterns,dye etc for my rug hooking. Then I love to be outdoors. I have all my gardening and rug hooking magazines and books . Then I have over 100 cook books and many cooking magazines. I used to do a lot of photography so I have all that stuff. You should see what I left behind in Halifax when I moved here.
I don't like chemicals either.I see some tiny bugs flying around the plants. Not sure what there are,they are really tiny. Don't know what to use. I spray with FE in the greenhouse.
I have had aphids in the house in the past and they are hard to eradicate .i have not had much luck with neem oil. Things are so much easier to treat outside.
My Catteyla buds are starting to open. It is going to be pretty I think. As you say it will likely open the day after or fade the day before the meeting. Also one of my named Phalenopsis is close to opening. Maybe I will be lucky and have one to show.
We haven't heard back from the orchid vendor whom we were planning to visit after Christmas. He and his wife travel a lot doing presentations and shows.
Well I think I will take the dogs out before they go to bed.
Hope you have a good night Cory. Maggy

You sound like me Maggy. We have the same stuff. And since we are always using this stuff it is always out. Between my sister and I we have to store all the orchid society stuff: coffee pots, paper plates, cups, knives and forks, napkins, tablecloths other kitchen stuff, digital and slide projectors and screen, display lights, name tags, showtable tags, potting media we sell, orchid clips, mounts and other supplies we sell at meetings, raffle plants, gift plants, orchid books and magazines for sale..... I could go on and on. I would love not having all that stuff around! Plus my office area is full of paper and supplies for the newsletters and other publications. I have no room left for all my own stuff. We greenhouse owners really need a potting house for all our greenhouse supplies too. They take up space in the greenhouse and are always getting wet but the orchid society stuff is in my garage and basement where my own supplies should go. So I've also got piles of pots, stakes, wire, string, baskets, etc just outside my greenhouse door that needs to be put away. I've got to find room in my garage for all my tomato ladders and poles I hang the orchids on outside during the summer yet and all my metal plant stands. There is no end to the outdoor work let alone the indoor work. I was mowing leaves in the dark tonight hoping I could get them all mulched up before the snow comes. Brian was asking whether i ever sit down and relax, but I really don't have time with all my hobbies. But that is my relaxation. My sister gave us two chaise lounges for the yard, but I have yet sat in one for more than 2 minutes. I always think of something I need to get done as I go to sit down. As you say, it is amazing how fast the week goes by. I can't believe it is the weekend already and I say that every week. I used to have to take care of the beach house too. Now I wonder how i did that and worked too. I must be getting slower.

I hope your orchid is open for the meeting. I have a few really big ones coming out too. I have a huge C. Big Ben 'Blue Mountain' with multiple spikes with 5 or 6 flowers on each spike. It will be so beautiful! So far no bud blast on this one thank goodness. You remind me I should get back to my rug making too as i haven't worked on any in a couple of years. I have lots of wool yarn to make sweaters too that I haven't had time for. Hurricane Sandy really disrupted our life. I am still trying to find places or new homes for the last of the stuff we were able to salvage. I had as much stuff there as i have in my regular home, actually even more.

For the little bugs, try s soap spray or alcohol. There is a recipe for a soap spray using Dr. Bonner's Peppermint Oil Soap and maybe alcohol and water on the Kelly's Korner orchid supply website. I use that or some version of it as my first bug spray attack. It works well but you have to spray often for a while to get all the eggs and babies. It smells good too and doesn't set off my asthma. The Rosemary or Lavender varieties also work well if you like those scents better.

Good night,

Cory

Steve, that is some setup you have made. I have thought about doing similar myself with some old storm windows. I just made a small space on my cellar steps to the outside to use to overwinter plants that need a cooler spot but not freezing. I made a roof out of things i had around to support a layer of bubblewrap to let daylight in and provide some cold protection. At night I pull over the wooden cellar doors to keep the area warm at night, then open the doors again in the morning to let in the sunshine. I hope it works. I don't know how you make all the calculations to predict the R factors and temperatures created by the phase changes. I am more hit our miss. I put a remote temperature monitor and alarm in there in case it does freeze in there, but I expect it will be ok as heat and light will leak in from the basement. Good luck with your new growing space. I am trying growing some greens under lights this year too. So far, so good. I am ready to harvest some already.

Cory