C thanks. I looked at the link but that image of the scotch bonnet tehre looks more like an habanero than a bonnet! anyway there is a lady at the union sq farmers mk on weds and sats that sells heirlooms for $3 each. I got those. And yesterday I found 4 starter plants Scotch Bonnets on Nostrand ave close to ave D and Newkirk ave for $2. The Jamaican Scotch Bonnets seeds have not srpouted yet but thoes I got from the Haitian vendor that said were from Haiti sproted in 2 days. Those were mostly red and greens. Off the J train there are a lot of Mexican stores with Mexican chilies. The Wst Indian markets in Flatbush have a lot of Chinense types but they are just usually marked as Hot Peppers. The ones from Jamaica and Haiti were really hotter, I could feel it just by opening them. Anyway will see what comes. I am near teh L train Montrose stop, Graham ave. Where are you? I am planning to overwinter plants under lights. I do not really have a yard so it is windowsill growing,although I was considering of putting a crate on the roof with some plants in it. maybe. But I live in an apt building so maybe the landlord would not let.

They are more like a mashed potato than a banana. here are some excerpts I've copied from the web: "Back at home we enjoy 'mangu' regularly as the basic carbohydrate component for a variety of meals, and especially when we are having a 'full Dominican breakfast'. For many parts of the world it is perhaps more likely that mashed potato is eaten, but we think this simple plantain recipe, which is raelly a regional variation of mash using fresh young plantain, or even young green bananas, is even better! Season the mangu with salt to your tasteand the mash is ready to eat! You might also like to add a grinding of black pepper to this plantain recipe, although this is not so commonly used in the Dominican Republic. This plantain recipe is very commonly used as part of a typical Dominican breakfast. You will often find hotels and households serving mangu alongside other breakfast items such as fried eggs, fried salchichon (Dominican sausage), fried salami and even fried cheese! So when you visit the Dominican Republic you may be surprised to see that most Dominicans are actually quite slim considering their great love of fried foods to start the day!! You will have noticed that we call the plantain recipe outlined above a basic recipe for mangu. This is because it is possible to enrich it or make it a more up-market product by adding grated cheese to the mix whilst making the mash. Some people also like to add lardons (small strips) of fried bacon (along with the tasty fat rendered from the meat whilst frying!!) to add even more flavor...and plenty more calories too!!! We hope you enjoy inventing your own variations on this basic recipe for mangu!" Hope this helps- yummy michaelp

With the shade in the pictures I don't think you will be successful with anything but St Augustine. It will grow great in that area. If you can find even a small piece you can plant it and it will spread to fill the entire lawn. I would start to improve the soil by putting down organic fertilizer. What I'm talking about is something like alfalfa pellets (rabbit food), corn meal, or whatever ground up nut, bean, or seed you can find at a farm supply store. It needs to be ground up. That's the only real requirement. Apply at a rate of 15 pounds per 1,000 square feet (7-10 kilos per 100 square meters). Whatever organics you find can be used as your only fertilizer from now on or you can use chemical fertilizers. The organics will make the most improvement for the first application. If you use that now you might not even want to change the grass, because it will help that much. Give it 3 weeks to go to work and then reevaluate. Watering: Deep and infrequent is the mantra for watering. This is for all turf grass all over the place. Deep means 1 inch all at one time. Put some cat food or tuna cans around the yard, and time how long it takes your sprinkler(s) to fill all the cans. Memorize that time. That will be the time you water from now on. My hose, sprinkler and water pressure takes 8 full hours to fill the cans. Your time will likely be less. I like gentle watering. As for watering frequency, that depends on the daytime air temperature. With temps in the 90s, deep water once per week. With temps in the 80s, deep water once every 2 weeks. With temps in the 70s, deep water once every 3 weeks. With temps below 70, deep water once a month. Note that you have to keep up with quickly changing temps in the spring and fall. This deep and infrequent schedule works in Phoenix and in Vermont, so it should work for you. The reason for deep and infrequent is to grow deeper, more drought resistant roots and to allow the soil to dry completely at the surface for several days before watering again. If it rains, reset your calendar to account for the rainfall.

Combine that with people who may have underlying heart disease, combined with maybe diabetes and other factors, and maybe the number of deaths is not that unusual given the number of tourists. Gsciencechick, I think you make a valid point, and somewhat agree with what you're saying... but I also wonder why nothing like the chain of events this year have seeminlgy ever happened before (unless we just haven't heard about it?? people have been going to the DR for years). Also, if these deaths were simply overstimulated tourists who are eating & drinking too much on vacation, with or without underlying health issues - I would think there would be similar stories coming from the other areas where all inclusive resorts are popular - Jamaica, Cuba, Mexico, etc.