Propagation: Propagation part VIII based on my experience

JB have you tried cross polinating some of your tropicals?
Doing cross polination is quite easy depending on the plant that is. How familiar are you with the parts of a flower?

Well, I can not tell if it is a boy or girl, so I guess I am not very familiar. JB

Sounds like a good topic for disscussion. I will be in and out all weekend unless someone else starts the disscussion I will on monday. Some plants are easier than others. Its all fascinating to me.
anyone wanting in on hostas round 2 please email me.
Dave

I would love to learn more about it. BTW, I have a new little hosta someone sent me and it is now planted and looking like it loves it here. I named it Davie Pugh. LOL I have no idea what species or family or what it is but I do adore it. Thanks Pughbear. JB

I got an email on eBay from someone asking me for a male KiWI plant. Was he pulling my leg or are their really male and female Kiwi plants???

Oh yes, I have no more knee high stockings. The ones I had are now on the peoney trees and the red peony seedpods. I hope I do this right. JB

Yes JB there are male and female of the kiwi . It takes two to tangle with those. LOL

JB, I don't think anyone can tell the difference in Kiwi vines until they bloom. The females are the ones that flower. ( I just told you everything I know about them. LOL)
The daylilies, I am experimenting with. I am simply selecting pretty ones and crossing them with other pretty ones ( okay, really I am just using whatever is in bloom at the same time LOL). I use a pair of long nosed needle nose pliers ( because I don't own a good pair of tweezers) and I take the anther from 1 bloom and touch the pollen to the stigma of the other bloom. Here is a great site for explaining it...
WWW.tinkersgardens.com.
As I said, I am completely clueless right now, but I saw my fist seed pod this morning and I have been doing the happy dance ever since... I can't wait until my hostas start blooming now. LOL I am hooked.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Linda

Linda, that link does not work. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!Help!!!!!!!!!JB

I will copy/paste this time...
OK, Try this one.

http://www.tinkersgardens.com/daylilies/hybridizingdaylilies.asp

maybe I had left something out earlier. Have fun.

Its a great how to.
Dave

Great info and sight is a for sure bookmarker.

Well our weekend has not been so good.

My sweet husband was laid off from his job on Friday. and at our age and with his medical problems (Marfan's Disease) it is unlikely he will be able to find a job here is Cleveland area. It is dead, men half his age can't find work so we don't hold much hope out that he will find something.

We are now trying to figure out how long we will be able to stay in our house before the bank forecloses... cause without his salary (my pay is a joke) we don't have enough money coming in to pay the mortgage. We moved here 6 years ago because his job back home in Kentucky went to Mexico and now they just lay him off. He was the only one and the oldest and close to retirement (just two more years). They gave him nothing. Other than you no longer have a job here and here I was getting ready to go to part time due to the fact that I'm not fully recovered from my sinus surgery and the A/C at work at really done a number on them since I returned... So needless to say, I'm staying full time until we figure out what to do.

Don't mean to bring a sad note to yall, I'm just at a loss on what to do.

He is going to file for his unemployment but that will only be enough to cover for his cobra health insurance (which we can't be without, as he has had two open heart surgeries in the past and who knows when he might need another one). We are going to go talk to a lawyer to see if there are any grounds for suing the company since he was the only one, but we don't think so and next we will talk to the lawyer to see about starting paperwork for him to go on disability. but either way it isn't going to be enough to cover the mortgage payment and we just can't see taking our savings to keep paying on a house that in the long run we will loose anyway. We hate to destroy our credit by not being able to pay for our house but gosh what are we too do?

If anyone knows of a company who would want to hire a soon to be 60 year old who is very dedicated and goes to work each and everyday please let me know.

He has an accounting degree and his job that he was laid off from was as a fleet account manager. He took in orders from companies that need vans fitted with rack and bins (like sears services van, the former DHL delivery trucks....) Please let me know.

This is such a terrible blow to his self esteem and I keep trying to tell him he has nothing wrong with him. It was the company (they were closely tied to the auto industry) not him.

thanks for letting me cry on yall's shoulder this morning.

Janet

Oh Janet,
I am so sorry things have went sour for you all. It is so hard to find a job anymore. Makes you wonder what people are going to do. I know at his age it is even harder. I am in that postion my self right now. Just holding on to my unemployment until I can retire which is this month but I can't get a check until Aug and I hope it last until then.

God be with you all and hope you see better times soon.
flowerfantasy

Janet, being the only one and so close to retirement sure does sound fishy. You might try it, but they might have a case for downsizing. But laying off one worker isn't much of a downsize. If you do see an atty., look for one who deals in EEO cases. Not just any atty. They probably will be designated in the yellow pages of your phone book.

Good luck, and keep us posted. Jeanette

Also, do not overlook the federal gov't for employment. They are suppose to be hiring 400 or so investigators for fraud in accounting, can't remember which agency it was, maybe the IRS. Start with Office of Personnel Management. Hopefully in your phone book.

Janet, you might also try Social Security on disability. With his health condition, it is possible to start drawing early. and if he does, his Medicare would kick in about 18 months after. My DH retired at 54 from the Union,on a 84 and out (meaning his time with the Union added to his age equaling 84)He was to the point of not being able to work anyway because of his messed up back. About 5 years later someone told us about trying for SS disability. We did, and he was able to draw early because of his back .I had a huge file from the Drs and that helped when I sent copies of it to SS. They did require him to go to one of their Drs, and a couple of Xrays. Didn't take but maybe a month after we applied. When you apply try to have lots of medical files to prove his condition and If your DH can draw early, it would be at full benefits. We didn't even need an atty for the SS. I agree, it does sound fishy if he is the only one layed off. Doesn't hurt to try everything, we did. Hope things get better really soon.
Lee

Janet I am so sorry. I remember very well at the age of 58 I was fired from my job as Public Relations and Development Director of Goodwill Rehab.Facility in Lanc. Pa.
What a blow that was, I was there for years, was a single Mom and had only one good eye. That did not stop them. I was makeing a good salary but I was also doing a darn good job. It was not a position that was directly working with the clients, so out I went.
It is a blow to your ego and really upsetting. I signed up for unemployment and started to write my resume. That is how I got to NJ. I went into a completely different field and was very happy. I understand the Federal Government has openings...there are openings in the computer and technical fields. The problem is, relocating costs money and that is no doubt what will happen. Good luck and God Bless. We will all by praying for you. JB

Great suggestions everyone.

And too all of you who have already/continuing to go this same time things, I pray the Lord brings nothing but good things to ya.

I will most certainly have him check out the government.

Thanks again yall. It is nice to have ideas and suggestions from this group.

Janet & Richard

Sorry for the delay. I got side tracked today. I will do my post tomorrow along with a new page for the dial-upers.....
I did notice flowers on my dragon tails hostas. its a cute little low hanging deep purple flower. I will try to get pics tomorrow as well. I did notice a bunch of my freshly planted seeds have sprouted and jumped up and say HOWDY... Anyone seen whats called tidy tips - Layia platyglossa ???

just beautiful.

Janet

Janet, I am sorry to hear of your husbands lay off. We went through the same thing last year at Thanksgiving. I will keep you in my prayers.

Dave, I love that little flower, I have tried to grow it several times, but never been successful.

I am crossing daylilies everyday now and I can't wait to see what happens. I have a few seed pods starting and different varieties blooming a little at a time. I will post pictures as soon as I get some loaded on the computer.

Hope everyone has a great day, I am feeding the birds and then taking the rest of the day off.
Linda

Linda: did you get any germination or did they fail right after the germinated? I have a bluezillion seedlings at the moment.

We are moving to part IX
Here is the link http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1000247/

Sorry if this appears twice, having trouble getting this to send! I have a question on the proper way to propagate Strawberries for hanging baskets and containers. I have the Fragoo Pink Fragaria x ananassa in a hanging basket and I had a few extra of those hanging bags with the slots in them left over. I thought I would cut off a few of the strawberry shoots and see if they would grow in the bags. A few have started to grow but most have not. Is there a proper way to do this?

Hi: On a plant like strawbabbies I like to leave the runner attached and get the new off shoot to root before cutting the line from the mother plant. How much heat are you using? what is your soil temp. The soil temp will play in the root formation. I like to help the new ones along by placing the plantlet in a new poy of soil. Some rpptong hormone might speed up the rooting sd well.
Anyone else have an opinion?
Dave

Thanks Dave for your reply. I finally got a picture of the hanging bag so you can see what I am trying to do. There are a few that are starting to grow! I am trying to take the shoots off of another hanging basket. I wonder if I take your advice above and hang small pots from the hanging main plant, plant the shoot and see what happens? I'm glad you mentioned the temperature, we have had really cool temps lately - highs in the low 70's and lows in the 50's. Should I wait until it warms up a bit more?

Instead of pots can you poke the new plants from the runners in the other holes? Then when they take root you can cut them loose from the mother plant.

Jeanette

Hi: I would keep trying but it is a bit slower (ok alot slower) for roots to form. Most plants like a toasty 68-72 degree soil temp. Nice pic
Dave

bump

Thanks to Jim for bumping all the previous threads ^_^