Students Of Success

After a long, cold winter, you are probably anxious for the
first signs of spring. Springtime automatically brings thoughts
of flowers. Choosing the best flowers for spring can be
difficult and it is often confusing. Perhaps the most effective
way to ensure spring flowers that bloom each year is to plant
bulbs in the fall to mid-winter. There are of course flowering
plants that you can purchase from your local nursery, but you
will want to make sure any chance of freezing weather has passed
before planting and in many areas of the country, spring does
not arrive until late in the season and by that time you will
want to plants flowers in anticipation of summer. You always
have the option of purchasing bulbs that have been grown in pots
over the winter and are in stock in most garden centers
beginning in the late winter months. Here are a few choices of
flowering plants that are suitable to plant now and will produce
early spring flower:

Winter Aconite, or Eranthis hyemalis, will give you yellow
flowers approximately three inches in height and resemble common
buttercups. These particular bulbs may begin to flower as early
as January if you live in a warm area and you will get the best
results if you plant them in masses as they grow low to the
ground.

Glory Of The Snow, or Chionodoxa luciliare, produce flowers that
are bright blue with a white center. The plants will grow
between six and ten inches tall, making this particular plant
very handy for walkways, borders, and rock gardens. You may also
be able to find white/pink varieties depending on the area in
which you live

Spring Snowflake, or leucojum vernum, give you bell-shaped
flowers that droop from the green part of the plant. These
plants will be six to twelve inches in height and are white in
color with small green spots on the ends of the petals. You will
get the best results if you plant them in clumps and you can
expect to see blooms in late February to early March. As with
any other springtime bulb, they are best planted in the fall but
you can plant in the mid to late winter if you purchase potted
bulbs that have already begun the growing cycle.

Netted Iris, or iris reticulate, are wonderfully scented and are
most commonly purple in color, although you can also find light
blue and white irises in many areas. Irises are one of the
earliest blooming plants and you can expect a beautiful display
of flowers in early March. As with any other type of bulb, after
several growing seasons you will have to thin the bulbs from
time to time, as they tend to reproduce rapidly and could
actually begin to stunt the growth of the plants due to
over-crowding

Pai Gow Poker can be intimidating to the rank novice but it is relatively simple to play once you understand the basic rules of the game. This article takes a look at some of those rules and will help your understanding of this variation of poker.

Pai Gow can be an extremely slow game at times and may frustrate those used to a fast and frantic game of Texas Hold’em. There are a number of “pushes” which makes for a annoying game for new players. If you can understand the rules, as with any game, you can appreciate the way Pai Gow is played.

To start, place your wager. After everyone places their bets, all players receive seven cards. Usually a random generated number will determine which player takes the first set of cards. Players then try to arrange the best five-card and two-card hand. The five card hand is ranked just like any other poker hand.

The dealer or banker will then arrange the banker hand according to the pre-set rules known as the “house way”. The player’s five card hand is compared to the dealer’s five cards and then the two-card hands are compared.

During the comparison, the highest hand wins. If there is a match in both hands, it’s called a copy and the tie becomes a default banker win. If the player beats the dealer with both hands, he or she is very lucky because they get paid even money and then gets to pay the house or bank a 5% commission. If a player wins one hand and loses the other, then the hand is a push. The entire bet is lost if the player has 2 losing hands.

Here’s where it gets tricky. When setting the hands the two card hand can’t be higher than the five-card hand. If it is then it is an automatic loser. The joker can be used to complete a straight, a flush, or a straight flush, otherwise anything else the joker plays as an ace.

Keep in mind, the player can elect to be the banker on their appropriate turn. There are several advantages to the player being the banker which can vary by rules of the casino. The bank is supposed to rotate with everyone getting the chance to be the banker, co-banking is an option for those who perhaps don’t want to or can’t carry the financial responsibility for the hand.

David Walker runs free bets and UK poker websites. A free email course: “Seven Days to Better Betting” is available at both of these websites.