I wish I had an answer for you. This is tough.

Thanks Irina! You always have the answer, I'm so glad I found online forums. I'll keep watching, but I won't debud everything yet until I see them moving around.

Irina is a certified Judge, so she know a lot and have answers for everything!

Mz Polina... being a certified judge doesn't make me that knowledgable. Judges manual is 95 pages long. And mostly it is about the Show and the process of judging.

I think me being a half broccoli helps me understand the plant language... JUST KIDDING...;-)).

Nah... the secret is interest, reading and experience. If you are interested in plants, you read whatever you canput your hands on - if it is about plant biology - and you try to grow different things... nowadays you can find a lot of useful, scientific, practical info on google - as well as a great load of rubbish.

Regarding my interest - I always dreamed to study biology in colledge... and my practical mother said - AND WHO IS GOING TO FEED YOU??? And talked me into physics.

Physicists don't necessarily make much more. LOL

I cannot say the are filthy rich. But they are mostly employed - there are plenty of technical fields around. Botanists... end teaching biology and chemistry in a high school... and is a cruel and unusual punishment. God Bless Teachers - they go straight to heaven - they had their purgatory right here.

I actually know 2 high school science teachers and both of them can't wait to retire. Cruel and unusual punishment indeed!

The teaching field has gotten worse/more difficult over the years.

Teenagers and preteens are horrid. I was one myself. I understand that we do not severely discipline kids anymore... it saves them from psychological traumas... but it makes the teacher's job so much harder when the kids are absolutely sure that they can get away with almost anything... should be some balance... seems that class can look as a cage with junior monkeys throwing banana peels and feces and jumping from desk to desk. And suddenly the school is over and you cannot really throw banana peels in your adult life... what a shocking discovery...

Too many parents today are more interested in being their child's friend rather than being their parent.

You cannot be a friend only until your child is an adult. You need to be capable to say NO... and prevent a next disaster... We call dog and cat owners guardians now - and it means if your dog gets into a trash can and and obstructs his digestive system with who knows what - it is the guardian's fault - and a responsibility to shell some $$$$ for the surgery. Kids will actively search for these "trash cans"...

If your adult best friend will do something stupid... you are not going to bankrupt yourself trying to save him. Kids - you definitely will...

Plus - I do not see a desire in young adults to move out and build their own life... so many parents I know provide room and board for grownup kids, their girlfriends and their kids... while these mid 20 individuals spend their quality time smoking pot day in and day out. May be it is CO - the housing is unbelievably expensive - and pot is legal, available and will keep you placid no matter what...

Well spoken Irina,,,,,knuckleheads in Michigan just voted pot legal,,,,,can't wait to see what happens next. grrrrrrr Rosie

I have this theory that pot is being legalized slowly to control the masses a la soma. The climate is going haywire? Governments making questionable decisions affected future generations? Let's ignore that and focus on arguing over we'd legalization! And once legal (Canadian here) it will keep people pacified! Anyway, I'm going to put my tin foil hat back on.

$ is the prime motivator for its legalization. I just wish the greedy morons would design regulating laws -- like penalties for driving under the influence as there are for alcohol, for example -- before legalizing it.

I agree Paul and everyone,,,,,now if everyone will pardon me I will retire back to my cloistered and sheltered world of African violets/gesneriads/houseplants/sewing etc!!!!

Now about those pollen sacs,,,,,,,,,(disgruntled Rosie)

May be if we keep one female hemp plant ... the thrips will get addicted and relocate to it?

Great news! The rest of the buds are opening and I'm not seeing any more brown crunchy looking pollen sacs. The number of pollen sacs differ from flower to flower though, probably because this plant is young and these are it's first flowers. Another violet with purple flowers has also started blooming next to it and I'm not seeing signs of spilled pollen or anything suspicious. So Irina is probably correct in that it was stress while the buds were forming. I"m so happy to have violet blooms again in the house.

Now to get Petite Blarney to do something other than suckering and dropping leaves...*wishful look*

Great News!!!! Good for you!!!!! I can just see you doing the happy dance! Rosie

Getting back to thrips, did you rinse off the leaves, let them dry, spray on top and underneath the leaves, and repot in a clean pot and fresh potting mix? I do that. It works well. Joanne