Margaret, I do have 6 tomato plants from our cousin. The reason we never got deep into tomato raising is simple: there are almost no Chinese recipes which call for them! I took the bull by the horns today, and sawed off our first home grown artichoke. The stem was about 9 inches long, but that turned out to be hard as nails, even after cooking. For comparison, I simultaneously pressure cooked an ordinary commercial artichoke, expecting the taste sensation of the century from the fresh one. We could not tell the difference, and that shocked us both. Will be AFC from Thursday morning for a week. Last night two dahlias dropped dead, just like that, and I cannot figure out why! I do hope while I am gone that nothing else decides to give up the ghost . . . . Penny, NY ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.