I will try to phrase this so that I don't run afoul of ibiblio's rule against listing prices in our emails, but Timber Press is running a great deal on two of its most excellent bulb books. Through June 29, they are selling Buried Treasures by Jānis Rukšāns and The Color Encyclopedia of Cape Bulbs by John C. Manning, Peter Goldblatt, and Dee Snijman for half the list price. This is cheaper than you can get it from Amazon.com new, and it's even cheaper than any of their used book listings for either of these books. (BTW, Amazon's list price for Buried Treasures is $10 too high.) And on top of that, if you spend more than a modest amount on books, shipping within the U.S. or the U.K. is free. (In the U.S. you only have to spend $0.03 more than the sale price of the Cape Bulbs book to qualify!) And herein lies my problem. I already have both of those books (thanks to birthday presents from the spouse!), but there is another book from the list of half price sale books that I've wanted for several years, but it's not enough to qualify for free shipping. So if there is anyone in So. Calif. who is thinking about buying either of the above books, I'd like to send you the amount for my book as a joint order to qualify for the free shipping and get the book from you later. (Or you could have me do the joint order and come get it, or I could send it book rate which would only be a couple of dollars.) Of course the cost of gas to drive over and back probably is more than the savings on shipping. But book rate postage is really cheap. Anyway, mostly I thought I'd mention this deal for those of you who might have been considering getting these books in the past, but they were too expensive. Other books in the deal are: Armitage's Native Plants for North American Gardens By Allan M. Armitage The Essential Garden Maintenance Workbook By Rosemary Alexander The Self-Sustaining Garden The Guide to Matrix Planting By Peter Thompson Insects and Gardens In Pursuit of a Garden Ecology By Eric Grissell Plant Solutions for Every Garden By Nigel Colborn A Pattern Garden The Essential Elements of Garden Making By Valerie Easton Garden Your Way to Health and Fitness By Bunny Guinness and Jacqueline Knox Masdevallias Gems of the Orchid World By Mary E. Gerritsen and Ron Parsons American Azaleas By L. Clarence Towe The Curious World of Carnivorous Plants A Comprehensive Guide to Their Biology and Cultivation By Wilhelm Barthlott, Stefan Porembski, Rüdiger Seine, and Inge Theisen --Lee Poulsen Pasadena, California, USDA Zone 10a