That's good to hear especially since I know I sent pretty small pieces! I've started a couple cuttings too to see if the old mama roots are just tired or if the cuttings are so slow too. If memory serves, I don't think I've ever been able to get the hard peat ball off of the roots though they grew past that. Could still be a bottleneck in circulation there, IDK. If the cuttings start growing much faster than the mama, maybe I'll turn the whole thing into cuttings & kind of start over.

IronBelly: Thanks for your immediate response and the recommended link, which I've already checked out. When I arrive "home" this weekend, (more on that below **) I'll check out the University of Wisconsin and see if I can find out further information on the subject and either obtain a booklet from them or print out the information from the link you provided. A "Rain Garden" sounds like an interesting and worthwhile project. I am not certain that it may be entirely suited for our particular yard, since parts of our yard are rather "wet" during the spring - the moisture does drain slowly - at times. I don't know if it is because the water table is high and/or the ground is made up of heavy clay and/or if there are some minor springs around or a combination of several things. I'll have to ask my wife, Sue, who along with her former husband, bought the house many years ago. Speaking of Jock - time passes by so quickly - it must have been a few decades ago when I met Jock and saw his slide presentation. He showed one photograph of someone's house out on the edge of a city - I think or the country - the owner didn't wish to be a "horticultural drug dealer" any more (my phrase) and/or be over involved in the grass game (fertilizing, watering, grass cutting on end throughout the summer) and so removed the grass, etc. and planted prairie plants and grasses. Rather impressive when it finally came into full maturity. A "Rain Garden" project interests me for another reason. Sue and I have been thinking about putting in a small, hopefully inexpensive, water garden of some sort. Perhaps - a combination of the two might be something worthwhile to explore as a possibility. I'll have to do some extensive "homework" on this idea and see what Sue and I can come up with. As you indicated, the construction of this combined project, etc. or even a stand alone "rain garden" and finding suitable plants, etc. might be a "tall order in reality". I've been up to the Quad Cities a number of times - to visit and photograph the John Deere Headquarters; take a AVA (American Volkssport Association) hike; to check out the library at Augustana College, where I applied for a position shortly after graduation - see below ** - etc. Having been born and bred on the tallgrass prairie, I often miss its openness, but not, necessarily, the heat and humidity of prairie summers. ;>) ** FYI - I am a Librarian (MLIS - Rosary College - now Dominican Unversity, 1994) with the Michigan Department of Corrections and work in the St. Louis/Alma area of Michigan during the week and go home to Manistee during the weekend, holidays, and vacations. Did my undergraduate studies at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. (BA - History/Political Science, 1964). Again, thanks for your quick response and, especially, for your generous comments on my posting regarding the "Pro Gardening Auger System", which I have been using to plant bulbs and a few other plants before winter sets in. One or two folks in the Anitique Roses forum really got their underwear caught up in a bundle over my posting! Kind of surprised me in a way. Oh well. Thanks again and I'll talk with you later. Bill

Patty, it's almost as bad here, plus the awful deer infestation we have had since early September have made things worse. As of Dec, the only good looking blooms I have are on my two big Julia Child roses. Even the little baby Julia in back has a bud, though the deer stole the rest. All my other roses have quit blooming, or have frozen blooms. We will have lows in the teens in a few days, and that's got to finish off Julia. Diane Julia in December Evelyn in late November, eaten the day after this photo was taken Evelyn late November Augusta Luise in late November Boscobel in November Jude the Obscure in November Munstead Wood in November I think that's enough for now. But the only one standing in December is Julia Child. Diane

I'm getting this done just under the wire I guess. In last month's thread Woodnymph asked about my bookclub's reaction to Becoming by Michelle Obama. I didn't respond because the meeting was cancelled. We have met since then and I'm sorry to say that there wasn't much discussion about it. Most liked it okay but other than that, not much was said. Perhaps it had been too long since everyone read it. I've been asked to temporarily step in as chair of this club while the person in charge is recovering from an injury. I have a feeling that I may be asked to do this permanently and I have some misgivings about doing that. This bookclub read will be March - Book I by John Lewis which I have already read. I went on to read Book II and Book III. These are Graphic novels that I really enjoyed. The book one I think I already mentioned, is our Vermont Reads book for this year. Others for this month in my regular life This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger. A gem. In trying to give new-to-me genres a fair shake I read two other graphic novels. The Hound of the Baskervilles (A. Conan Doyle), my first and I think to be only Sherlock Holmes mystery. I liked the story very much but didn't know going in that Holmes was a flaming a$$. I also read GN of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I didn't find this particularly well suited for this format. It read almost like a Cliffs notes version. I own the complete book but haven't read it yet - I certainly will though. I've only read a half dozen GNs but think that some books are better suited than others for graphic format. It also depends on the illustrator. Conclusion: it depends. I just received a book in the mail called Ice: The Nature, the History, and the Uses of an Astonishing Substance by Mariana Gosnell. It was recommended I believe by Donnamira quite a while ago but I hadn't been able to find it locally so succumbed to Amazon. Just have dipped in a bit but have learned some already. Thanks Donnamira for that tip. I'll probably post more about this book later. There is more I'd like to add but this is too long already.