Custom object creation and reference counts

I've been rewriting my embedded Python extension for PHP5 so that I can take advantage of ZE2's spiffy object handler system. I've just gotten most things working, but I noticed that my custom object destructor is never being executed. I ran the following through the debugger a few times: $p = new Python('foo', 'Test'); And compared it to the execution of a "native" PHP class: class Foo {} $f = new Foo(); The difference appears to lay with the reference counts on the resultant store object. With my Python class, an additional reference is added to the store object, so zend_objects_store_del_ref() never drops the reference count to zero, and the destructor is never invoked. It looks like this code from zend_execute.c is responsible for the added reference: if (PZVAL_IS_REF(value) && value->refcount > 0) { ALLOC_ZVAL(variable_ptr); *variable_ptr_ptr = variable_ptr; *variable_ptr = *value; zval_copy_ctor(variable_ptr); variable_ptr->refcount=1; break; } In my case, 'value' is a reference (PZVAL_IS_REF(value) == 1), and in the case of the native PHP object, it isn't. zval_copy_ctor() calls zend_objects_store_add_ref(), which increments the store object's reference count. Two questions: Why is my object being treated as a reference while the native PHP object is not? 'variable_ptr->refcount=1;' resets the reference count of the variable's zval to 1, but the underlying _store_object's reference count is still incremented. What will ever reclaim that reference on the _store_object? I'm still finding my way around the the "new" ZE2 way of doing things, so please be gentle if the answers to these questions is obvious.