VT Sources

What are some good sources for nice, big VTs? I saw some beauties at Walmart in January like the ones GSkinner bought, and now I'm kicking myself for not doing the same. I haven't seen any like them since.

Sorry missed this thread and evidently a few other people did too.

Here's a nice affordably priced source for Big VFTs at this time of year-
http://www.flytrapfarm.com/index.html

Call them on the phone and let them know you'd be willing to spend a little more to get a larger plant.

Welcome to the obsession!

Wow! They sure have updated since I last saw them. Thanks for the tip.

I've been researching the entire plant kingdom since I was a kid, and I agree, there's nothing more unusual and fascinating than the carnivores... except for slime molds. They're equally quirky and totally weird, but I wouldn't want one in my house!

I looooooooooooooooooooove slime molds. My favorites are the Plasmodial slime molds. Those are by far the best.

Good grief, not another one; I thought it was just me. Yep, another plant that thinks it's an animal. There are some beauties crawling around some otherwise desolate areas that were cleared around my work place... yellow, pink and even lavender purple!

NOW I know what I'll do for vacation. I live in NC, I'm single and taking the next week off, so I'm headed for the flytrap farm. I hope I remember my camera. If I do, I'll post some pictures.

Nope, it's not just you. I am particularly fond of the yellow ones. I'd love for you to take photos of some pink and purple ones. We don't have any pinks or purples around here. Those Plasmodial slime molds are way cool. Which one is your favorite? I'm partial to The Blob (Physarum polycephalum).

Hey! Please try to get some Plasmodial slime mold photos from your work before you take off to buy VFTs. You know how Plasmodial slime molds can be. There one day and gone the next.

We are the Plasmodial slime mold capital of the country, or perhaps Louisiana is but the question is, what is the attraction Lauren?

The motility function of Plasmodial Slimes is just awesome. They are single cells that are capable of transporting themselves from one location to another. That to me is incredible in and of itself. Now add to this that it can sense changes in the environment and respond to them both positively (by moving toward a favorable environment) or negatively (by moving away from an unfavorable environment). This thing is sending chemical messages to find food sources. Blows my mind.

That, and you can chop them up and they eventually glom themselves back together again. They can also somehow detect food sources and head in that direction. So totally sci-fi BLOB! I don't know genus and species, so if I get a picture or two, maybe you can ID. I don't really go looking for them; they just sort of turn up.

I guess this is as good a place to discuss them... I doubt if we'll ever see a Slime Mold forum.

He he he. The Blob is truly sci-fi in the true sense of the word. I've never seen any pink or purple slimes up close and personal but I'll give an identification a shot. What the heck, nobody else is interested in these organisms other than you and me. Take good photos and get some close ups as well as shots of the area in which you find them.

So, how do you take care of a slime mold?
Looking forward to photos!

Slime molds take care of themselves quite nicely. Are you looking to trade some slime mold from Agrinerd for something you have? Tee he, couldn't resist.

I don't know that they'd cooperate!

Bad news. The repairs I had done to make my transportation safe for a long trip left me broke. Going nowhere, but at least I won't be wrecked or stranded on my way there. Maybe next year or some time in the fall.

Yup, gas prices were well over $3 bucks around here. They were down around $2.85 a week ago but they went back up.

Just as well...

Yikes, how "well" over three? In Houston and from my past experience driving through, Louisianna border, have better prices than most places, but still high. Yesterday medium grade was about 2.85 per- I hate paying that. In the past I always noticed that gas prices went up right after Memorial Day and stayed up until after Labor Day- like the consumer couldn't see that was profit motivated! Figured out the average price per gallon and gallons needed for me to drive to Calif and back- just under, by 80.00, the cost of 2 round trip air tickets! Oh well, who needs a vacation?!

I have to reply to Agrinerd's "plant kingdom". DNA testing has turned taxonomy on end. Slime molds are not plants. One generation of Protists has been fungi and the other generation had been plants or animals. Phytophthora (Root Rot) is a close relative of Macrocystis (Giant Brown Kelp). The free-swimming single-cell generation are very similar. The kelp had been the fastest growing plant in the world. It was capable of growing 20 feet per day. Now it isn't even a plant at all. Kinfdom Protista is stranger than anything sci-fi could come up with. Think of slime as a shape shifter in odd numbered generations and a mushroom in even numbered generations.

Oh I wish that I had marked the site but I did find a place that was selling fungi and molds to grow- nice housewarming gift don't you think? or how about a gift to the new grad? Lauren would probably like to give them out as gifts in the old folks home! LOL- you know how people hate those fruit cakes at xmas well I fear that Lauren will start a new and as feared custom sending slime molds for xmas gifts!!! LOL.

Hey guys, hubby came home from the airport and surprised me with a new dog. Bad timing for many reasons but last night while we slept; the "puppy" ate a cabinet door in my kitchen, cleared my counter tops (literally cleared them), and had a few accidents. He's a big boy and doesn't quite realize that counter top surfing is a no no here. Did I mention he found the doggie cookie jar on top of the refrigerator? He stood up on his hind legs and found the doggie cookie jar on top of the regrigerator and somehow managed to paw it down and proceeded to help himself to the contents amongst shards of broken ceramic. I had to do my lion taming routine and pry his mouth open to check for splinters in his gums from my cabinet door and then I had to push him over on his side to be able to check the pads of his feet to make sure there were no chunks of broken ceramics in them. Oh, it's going to get exciting around here for the next few months.

I'm thinking that April's site is sounding pretty attractive to me. After waking up to what I found in the kitchen... hubby should have come home with a nice gift of fungi and mold for me to grow but one of those doorstopper fruit cakes would have been perfectly acceptable too right about now.

OOOHHHH he does sound big! What sort of monster is he? Good lord are you sure he's a puppy? Are you sure he's a dog?

Here Lauren, I know this isn't a slime blob, but it was the best I could do on short notice

and this one, in better light.

April, you are too funny. Your shrooms are mighty attractive. Want to hear something funnier... Twinkletoes chewed a kitchen chair leg while I was typing something earlier. Twinkletoes is really a puppy. He's a Great Dane and he will continue growing to age 2. He needs to gain some weight and about 30-40 lbs would be good on his current frame but after that he will probably pick up another 3-4" at the shoulder and the weight associated with that height. He won't be as big as some we have had because he hasn't had the greatest nutrition in his life but he'll probably push 170-180. He isn't that attractive and looks like one of those blond junkyard dogs with all the body scars that you see barking and snarling with the dark brown muzzle that makes them look as if they are wearing a mask. Speaking of his face, I dig dab it with rubbing alcohol to get the red ink off of it from when he chewed up some of my pens earlier today. When I first saw all the red ink, I thought he was bleeding. Nope, he got himself a red pen.

Twinkletoes is now resting peacefully in his crate where he can't destroy anything and I am going back outside to get more plants in the ground.

I am guessing he is between 3 and 6 months. The teeth change from deciduous to coniferous*. In ancient time I had a friend that raised GDs. The tails of German 'Deutch Dogge' do less damage then the American ones. Also they do not chop off the ears in Europe. It is illegal in Pensylvania, but not enforced.
Permanent teeth are not as sharp as deciduous.

*In school I learned that ther were two types of trees. Now I know better. Some conifers are deciduous. Some non-conifers are evergreen.

'Dog' in English refers to all breeds, 'dogge' in German is a mastiff. Hound in English refers to to types on dogs. 'Hund' in German refers to all breeds.

Oh I am happy w/ my little iggie- she's about 7 lbs but she can run faster than a speeding bullet! She's about 2 1/2 and finally stopped being a puppy- thought it would never end!

Some places they do not dock the tails and ears of Dobermans- I think it's cruel but must admit when I see one that hasn't been cut it looks odd.

Hey UUallace, the dog is just over a year. These dogs grow until they are two but don't chill out until they are around three. As April1 would say, it's going to be a good dog in another few years.

Aprilbaby2, that's not a dog you have there at 7lbs is it? Every one of my cats weighs more than that. I have one over 20 and one that is now right at 20 lbs. Goodness gracious, what kind of a dog do you have? We have a cat door down to the basement cut out. The cats can get through their special door to get to their litter boxes and food but the dogs can't. This is a good thing because some dogs like to root around in litter boxes for snacks and I think you know what I mean. Why they do that is beyond me but they do.

We prefer Great Danes and Doberman with uncut ears. It looks more natural and softens their harsh outer appearance. Dobermans don't have strong tails like a GD so those might as well be docked or else they generally end up broken sooner or later. We don't care for docked tail on Rotts of Dobermans or any other breed for that matter. Twinkletoes already had his ears done when we got him or we would have left them alone.

I grew up with Dobermans. My family got them from Russia back when there wasn't so much paperwork. Ours were always slightly larger than their American cousins, their chests were a tad more robust, and they were blacker in that they had less rust on them. Their heads were larger but their eyes were squintier and people used to tell us our dogs looked evil. Our dogs didn't speak English so that was rather amusing when people would tell them to sit and they'd just bounce around oblivious like they were not only dumb but deaf. Rather amusing actually given our dogs were brain dead boxes of rocks that slept with cats (and us). Our dogs were very well trained... to sit and to smile and to give kisses. I like a nice box of rocks dog that is good with people.

Our new dog, Twinkletoes, is very good with people and cats. Those are his only two redeeming qualites. Trust me on this one... we are on day two and the honeymoon is already over behaviorally. My husband and I are cracking up laughing at what we paid for this dog given my Dad came over and commented that they should have paid us to take him. I was convinced before that in a former life he was a junkyard dog but now I know he was. We have a bungee cord on the refrigerator now. He helped himself to the contents and got the hirshey squirts. We are considering naming him Electrolux but Hoover was tossed around as was Kirby. My husband suggested Carpenter given what he did to our cabinet door and to our chair.

I got to hear him bark for the first time. He got spooked and barked. Rather impressive bark if I do say so myself.

April, here's a great fungi supplier that I bookmarked for carrying a bioluminescent mushroom.

UU, wow, Protists sound like they came from the script of "Deep Space Nine"!

I grew up mainly w/ cats then in my teen years we added English setters to the mix of racoons, cats, skunks, etc. this particular dog was a compramise, my DH didn't want any so I got a small one, Italian Greyhound- they look just like the big ones, only they are smaller- obviously. Inbetween the Italian and the standard one is the Whippet and while your Twinkletoes might find my baby less than a mouthful, she can run faster than the speed of light!

Where is the the fungi site Agrinerd????

Only Normans could own English Greyhounds. The peasants crossed Italian Greyhounds with Terriers and Poodles to increase size. There were of course clandestined use of EGs. Whippets and the new Bedlington came from the mess. Wealthy Romans usually kept a mastiff outside. On the door was a 'Beware of Dog' sign meaning do not step on the IG.
The Zimbabwean Zipperback (Rhodesian Ridgeback) is a type of Great Dane. ZZs and Standard Poodles only live 7 to 8 years on American Dog food. An Aussie Dr. Ian Billinhurst came up with a 'Bones and Raw Food' diet (B.A.R.F.). I do not agree with it. It causes occasional treatable problems, but it reduces autoimmune diseases, bloat, and can double the life expectancy. I cook for my dogs.

'librium
So your dog new Russian. My Caniche Enano (fraudulantly translated Toy Poodle) understands Italiano, Castellano and now English. I have to say 'No' in all three languages.

Yes, please, DON'T step on the IG!

UUallace, at least you are saying it in three different languages, I just have to say it 3 times (minimum) in english, w/ increasing volume and menace in my voice!

Nope, our dogs only speak English but you can toss in a few Spanish words if you're really mad and they generally respond. Those were my parents' dogs that didn't know any English words.

Regarding how many times I have to say no.....
no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no

I feel like a broken record. He got signed up for doggie classes today that start after the 4th of July holiday.

April 'no' in Castellano Spanish is no. In Italiano it is also 'no'. My son's first word was "da" which is yes in Russian.

Uh let me say this, Duh! on my part, I forgot that no is no in so many languages! wonder if duh is duh in those same languages! Silly me. I did no that da is russian for yes- I speak a few words of many languages, not enough to form complete sentences and those complete sentences that I do know do not always have a point- the old "I sleep in the inkwell" "I eat the window" and I have no idea why I know the sentences, only that I do. I am certain that they will come in handy at some point in time though- I am quite fluent in Canadian having lived near Toronto for several years. Tough language to learn. LOL.

You didn't actually spend much time in Canada or you would have said 'Canadian/Canadien'. The problem with Quebec's secession it would move east to its original location. New Quebec with a large population would be Ontario again. Quebec would regain Labrador (Population: 6) a.k.a. New-Newfoundland

Oh no I lived in the Canadian part and back then there was plenty of anti Quebec sentiment so the Ontario crowd was somewhat resistent to bilingual labeling...but I can make a boxed cake or jello (so long as it's Royal gelatin) in french!

Ugghh! Here it is...

http://sporeworks.com/

Sporeworks!

Merci beaucoup!

Another new addiction for moi??? I truly don't know whether to thank you or get you in my cyber sights with this cyber water balloon aimed at your upper torso. I see this as another possible addiction that my kids would love.

I grew up North side of The Straights / De Troit. The South side being Canadian/Canadien. In the French system water flows in one of the four cardinal directions. Woodward is perpindicular to De Troit which flows west. It is the French north. At Nine Mile everything reverts to the English North. Acadiens/Cajuns were expelled from Acadia/Nova Scotia and settled by the mouth of the Mrs. Sippi. The French system worked well along the river, which flowed South. As these neighbor hoods expanded and crossed each other directions lost all meaning.

Canadian/Canadien Protists
http://sja.ednet.ns.ca/fixed%20protista%20worksheet.htm

Glad to oblige, but make sure my back is turned before launching the baloons.

This has to be one of the strangest, though enjoyable, threads I've followed for some time now.

Forgot to mention to Aprilbaby that no in French is non. Close but no bananes for you.