My sincere condolences in the loss of your babies. What a heartbreaker. I've started putting a sticky note on the oven when I have bread dough rising. Lost too many batches to family members turning on the oven. They know there's a problem when they smell the dish towel burning.

Some people don't know this, but cuttings taken from older or woody growth are not the best, they can take a very very long time to take off. It is possible that that is what you started with here. Ideally, cuttings should come from neither old nor very new growth, but somewhere in between. I was in a round robin last fall and two of the varieties I took from the selection were obviously older growth. I hesitated because I knew they probably wouldn't be good, but I really wanted them so took them anyway. It has been about 8 months now and compared to the other cuttings I planted at the same time, one of them has just now sent out a vine, the other has grown maybe two leaves. So, for anyone that does not know, if buying, selling, or trading, old growth cuttings are not desirable!

You most likely have Fragrant Blue or something very like it. This was probably a batch of Blue Fame tissue culture that was labeled and grown... and this is one that went to all blue. It should have been culled. For the retailer, this means a loss, so either from ignorance or greed it was left on the counter. I did have one batch of either Blue Flame or Secret Love (more later) where about a third of them went all blue by the second year. Most folks call this a reversion, assuming the plant "reverted" to the original set of genes in the parent plant of Blue Flame - Fragrant Blue. Though the plant is likely to be Fragrant Blue, I've seen too many cases where the solid color plant turns out bigger or smaller or different in some way, so I never use the term reversion. Nonetheless - Fragrant Blue is an old, inexpensive variety while Blue Flame is newer and more costly. Blue Flame has about a quarter inch margin that goes from yellowish to cream through the season. btw - Secret Love is, as far as I can tell, identical to Blue Flame... BF came out of Shady Oaks tissue culture and was released by Naylor Creek... SL came from Europe. I'd get my money back - or at least get a parial refund. Fragrant Blue is a very nice blue hosta and well worth growing. Good powdery blue and surprising sun tolerance for a blue. The name has been controversial for decades. The plant is not fragrant - and to most of us, the flowers are not fragrant. This plant has none of the plantaginea genes that produce the lovely fragranced (usually large and white) flowers in hostas. The originator, Paul Aden, registered it in 1988. I think I've had it about that long and have never been able to detect any fragrance in the flowers. Sometimes... maybe... a hint... if I stick my nose in until there is pollen on my nostril hairs... maybe a hint. Some folks say it is there, but very mild. Most of us say... nawwwwww.... Nobody seems to claim any fragrance for Secret Love or Blue Flame.

Chase : Thanks for the Info, I might as well end this one at 150. Unless , If they want I'll start another " Baking or Cooking tips Continued " We will need a vote !!!!! Bri : I was sort of kidding at first but then I got to thinking about it. I could just put the jar right in with the Walnut media, then wash it off, when done. David: What do you think? Denna: I guess you can use the Tuna with Water and add some vegetable oil. Or better yet some EVOO. So they go out in Style. Thanks for your vote !!! Nina: I'll have to finish off with the Yellowjacket story. I had to redo the inside of a 1 story Kitchen, for a friend, who reminded me of Bill Cosby. This was in the Pine Barrons of New Jersey. It included redoing the roof. That had to be done first, so there would be no leaks. I put the ladder up and climbed to the top. Got on the roof about 5 feet from the side wall. It was cinder block with a Terra Cotta capping. The end was open (cement was missing ) I saw a Yellowjacket standing Guard there as others were flying in and out. NOW !!! As I moved around he followed me. SO I moved farther away! He came towards me like he was going to attack. Very slowly, I got down off the roof. I went in and told the owner about the Bee's. He said "I'll take care of them tonight , when it gets cooler out side " I guess it didn't get cool enough, because when we came back the next morning, He had about 20 bumps, all over his bald head. It looked like some took a Ball Pean hammer to his head or my Grandmother's Wooden Spoon when she was really mad. I asked what happened, in between us all laughing. He said " I went up and stuck a torch in the hole, Man they came out like Kami- Kaze's. I was down the ladder and in the house in 2 seconds. To top it off, he was re-enacting the scene and swinging wildly and hit a tree branch. GUESS WHAT !!! Bees came out of the tree, after him. We ran the other way, and jumped in the truck. We met him inside later. You guessed it ! he had more bumps on his noggin. He did get rid of them that night. Said he almost set the house on fire. Threw gasoline in the hole first. BUT! he didn't get bit ! Is this story, good as the tablecloth caught in the Zipper? Let me know if anyone wants this Post continued into another. Have the Title picked!!! LOU