Here are some others not to forget: Griffeth Buck Vernon Rickard Paul Barden I don't believe Americans are dissinterested in things that were not invented here. We seem to be quite fond of things with European names like Krupps, Braun, and all those other coffee makers. We eat tons of ethnic food. Lots of us are tourists. When the Beatles came out many of us became Anglophiles and a lot of us still think the English cottage garden is the ultimate. We are a country full of appreciative people, IMO. I have never noticed anyone not wanting to buy a rose because it was bred by a non-AMerican. Excuse me for digressing. Anyway even with it's flaws I bet I could really enjoy looking at that book, Devon. I usually check the big Botanica's out from the library but have my easy to hold paperback copy which I enjoy. My library also has The Rose Bible and Antique Roses for the South, both of which were responsible for a number of roses in my garden. Linda

Kathy, your original post made it sound like you were putting the flats outside to germinate. If they have already germinated inside, you will have to harden them off to the outdoor temps, by putting them out for a little longer each day, starting in a shady area and gradually giving them more sun. Also, if you put seedlings outside that were started indoors and have lows below freezing, they will not tolerate the cold temps as well as a seedling that was started outdoors. Ellen, your asking a seed-a-holic where they came from, LOL? Uh, Pinetree, Heirloom Acres Seeds, Diane's Flower Seeds, Swallowtail, and Fedco. Most of the ones I have are out now at Walmart, Lowe's, etc., so you should have no trouble finding a good variety of herb seeds. I actually broke down and bought a thyme plant at Walmart today. I wintersowed it last year, and it is supposed to be perennial to zone 5, but mine doesn't seem to have made it, and I didn't sow any this year because I thought it would come back. If I sowed it now, it would be July before it's big enough to harvest. I know what you mean about not being able to have too many though. The oregano survived the winter, but I sowed more because I use it ALOT. I even tried growing basil in my kitchen windowsill over the winter, but the fungus gnats were horrible, and I finally gave up and threw it out. They left the parsley alone for some reason, and it still looks great. In a couple more weeks, I will WS basil. I'm trying at least five different kinds this year. I'll need it to make tomato sauce out of all those tomatoes that I hope to grow this year! Happy sowing and growing! Bonnie

logic wrote: "dreamgarden, great article....brings a whole new meaning to "what a tangled web we weave when we practice to deceive".... And there you have it in a nutshell. However, I can see why it is more comforting for all too many to simply blame the lowly homebuyer....as one can then continue to remain in denial that of the fact that in essence, our entire finance system is one HUGE scam. Thanks. The more I read about the subprime mess, the more I realize what a "shell game" the bigger interests are playing with everyone's money. Even UK chancellor Alistair Darling has joined growing calls for a probe into the role that credit agencies have played in the world financial crisis. Darling censures rating agencies news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/business/6995699.stm Its too bad the U.S. didn't follow Canada's example for insuring mortgages. "All high-ratio mortgages in Canada Ñ those with less than 20 per cent down Ñ must be secured by mortgage insurance, through, for example, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. In addition, Canadian financial institutions do not finance more than 100 per cent of a home's purchase price, and that value must be verified with a separate appraisal." marys1000 wrote: "Is there going to be a run on banks? Are banks going to fail? All my mother's money is in one bank." If you have all of your money in ONE bank, that could be a problem. I don't know if there is going to be a run on banks in the U.S. or not, but DH and I are NOT waiting to find out. We have already moved some of our investments into T-bills and CD's. The last time we talked to our banker, he told us we didn't have any sub-prime investments and tried to convince us to keep everything in the market. When I asked him to tell us which part of our portfolio was FDIC insured (or if he would be willing to support us if the market drops), he was silent. Never suggested T-bills or CD's either. I guess he is only interested in our "welfare" as long as he (and his employer) stand to gain. Now I understand why the Russians stuffed money under their mattresses after their banks failed so many times. Time-The Last Sacrifice- Dec. 22, 1947 The Soviets had spiraled into economic trouble similar in some ways to capitalist inflationary difficulties. The ruble, officially valued at 20 U.S. cents, was worth no more than three in actual buying power. Illegal speculation by bureaucrats, collective-farm bosses, store and factory managers and others had become a lively menace to state planning. Peasants, and some city dwellers, had also accumulated hoards of rubles largely because too few of the things they needed, or wanted to buy, were available. Never knowing when deposits might be frozen, they distrusted banks, kept their hoarded money at home. Rationing controls could not be lifted until this money was destroyed, and its destruction was Zhdanov's principal aim.

Damn. I have more cyperus alternifolius plants than I can shake a stick at. I would post, but you're too far away... :( I guess I could try sending you some rooted cuttings.... see how that works....? No harm in trying, if you want to risk it.