I just got one of these last year. My research turned up that, while the tubers are perennial, the vines are annual. My plant lost its vines last fall, but the tubers remained firm, so I stopped watering it all winter. I resumed watering last month and new vines are sprouting and growing vigorously....

Hi; I live in Canton, Ohio. That's about fifty miles south of Cleveland and twenty miles south of Akron. The reason the location is important is that it puts me in the cloud shadow of the great lakes. From November to early March, we are lucky to get one or two hours of sunlight a week. Sounds like ...

I find that looking at a computer screen too long causes eyestrain. Eyestrain causes headaches. People working on an interesting project or problem tend to concentrate so hard that they forget to rest their eyes every so often. Maybe the fact that there is an interesting living thing close by causes...

I had a friend some years back who had to drink aloe juice for his ulcers. He did not like the taste very much. I've used Aloe vera juice for small burns often. It soothes the pain and sting of burns and promotes healing. Just cut off a leaf or portion of leaf, and squeeze out the juice. The drier y...

I'd definitely check out the roots. Also is that brownish area at the base firm or is it soft and squishy? Your soil mix may be too rich, and the young roots may be rotting off as soon as they form. With no roots to absorb nutrients it doesn't matter how much nutrients your soil contains. Also, with...

I live in northeast Ohio, where the sky is overcast from early November to early March and my windows face north by northeast and north by northwest. As a result, my plants receive direct sun only for a few hours in the early morning and late afternoon. These windows are about three feet apart on th...

I've had some good buys from Ebay stores and some not so good. You pays your money and you takes your chance. If he treats you right save the seller. If he treats you bad, dump him and never go back. In any case, quarantine your plants when they arrive from a new seller, because that is a good way t...

Very interesting, but if I were in your situation, I wouldn't bother with a greenhouse. It has been my experience that most cacti do better if they are on a bench out in the fresh air where they can get plenty of rainwater and dew. Rain water washes all the excess minerals out of the soil, especiall...

Don't do what I did. Last fall, I decided to plant a cactus garden in a hot dry bed with a southern exposure beneath white brick wall. There were several plants of yellow flowered Opuntia already there and thriving, which nothing else but tulips and gladioli seemed to do. Rather than use my head and...