A couple days ago, the yellow woodsorrel was in glorious full bloom. Lots and lots of bright yellow pretty flowers with 5 small petals. The flowers seemed to appear very suddenly all at once everywhere--a few, of course, came in advance here and there over the preceding week or two, but the overwhelming majority bloomed all at once simultaneously. The flowers from the mass bloom a couple days ago are already diminishing, though. The stems of the yellow woodsorrel are beginning to harden and the roots are just now becoming a little woody, so when you pull the sorrel out, you can easily get the whole plant now, roots and all. The dandelions have been going crazy for about a week--lots of yellow flowers and white puff balls bearing seeds. My front and side lawns don't have that many weeds, but half of my back lawn (the northwestern half) has a large variety of weeds that I left alone last year, and purposefully did not remove. Last year I concentrated my weed removal efforts on the front and side lawns and the southwestern half of my back lawn. Things are looking up there. The weed count there is so, so much lower than in the northwestern half of my backyard that there's no comparison. So I'm pleased about that. Temps here have varied daily considerably from daytime highs in the 80's to 60's to nighttime lows in the 30's to 50's Fahrenheit. Was a very warm March--I think the weather reporter said the 4th warmest on recond in St. Louis. And of course, we had a very mild winter--I think also the 4th warmest on record he said. In mid-March I was surprised to see some of my zoysia producing seedheads. They're the single-spiked seed heads that zoysia is known for. In mid-March I only saw the seedheads in two largish zoysia plugs that I had planted last year. The larger of the plugs is about 18 inches by 15 inches, IIRC. The seedheads appeared only in a small area of the plug that was about 1/8 the size of the plug. I pulled the seedheads out to see what would happen, and within days new seedheads would appear again but only in the same smaller areas of the 2 plugs. However, this was in mid-March. As of the past couple days, there are seedheads all throghout the zoysia, not just the new plugs I planted last year. The front and backyard zoysia lawns are full of single-spiked seedheads--short ones. Last March, which was two months before I started reading about zoysia (in order to plant about 10 pieces of sod--4 big pieces of sod to wipe out a front lawn weed patch and 40 smaller plugs in the backyard to eliminate another weed haven), I didn't yet know much about zoysia so I let all the grass grow tall, very tall. At times early last year before I began reading, I would cut the zoysia only once every 3 weeks. That zoysia got tall and produced lots and lots of seedheads, which later got mowed down. I guess I incorrectly thought I wouldn't see any seedheads this year because I'm keeping the zoysia short, mowing at 2 and 2.25 inches, but there are the seedheads again, now on short spikes. I'll be mowing tomorrow. Zoysia seedheads are much prettier seedheads than those of bermuda. The single-spike seedheads of zoysia are actually attractive, unlike Bermuda's 3- to 5-fingered seedhead. Things are looking up for the eggplants too. We planted into 8 small styrofoam cups some eggplant seeds that my mother had collected and stored about 8 years ago, before my father came down with Alzheimer's around 2005. The 8-year-old seeds produced seedlings after about 10 to 14 days! There are now 10 sprouted egg plants about 1 to 1.5 inches high in those cups now, with healthy leaves. Don't you just love the taste of egg plants! Last year my mother transplanted to the outdoor garden young egg plants that she got from my uncle, but this year we're growing them from 8-year-old seeds! Would you believe my uncle is 94, doesn't have a trace of Alzheimer's and he still gardens and mows his own lawn! And he uses a walk-behind mower! (My mother is much younger than my uncle--big age disparity between the two. By the way, I'm exactly 45.) Finally, the zoysia has been really greening up this week. Whole lotta green in there now. I was worried parts of the lawn would be yellowish after last year's 2,4-D exposure turned parts of it yellow--that's why I bought the organic fertilizer this year (never had to use fertilizer before). But the zoysia is turning green on its own. However, I now have the fertilizer so I'll be using it soon, probably in a week or two.

thank you all for your replies. sub-irrigated container gardening is my best bet in the extremely hot and drought-prone climate in which i live. we also have dreadful soil conditions--a thick, impermeable layer of caliche underlies our thin, predominantly clay, alkaline topsoil. in addition, i have physical limitations that largely preclude in-ground gardening as a viable possibility for me (i have a bad back). regarding my potting mix composition and the necessary soil biology appropriate for granular fertilizer, i am doing a 2-2-1 mix of pine bark fines, sphagnum peat, and coarse perlite. i do believe it to have a suitable balance of wicking ability, drainage ability, and aeration for my purposes and in my climate. the granular fertilizer, espoma garden-tone, includes application instructions for containers on the packaging, so i probably wouldn't be the first person to use it in a container. as it relates to mineralization/"digestion", the fertilizer does contain "895 colony forming units" from a variety of microbe species. i do not know to what extent this promotes nutrient release/'digestion', but it certainly can't hurt. finally, i am inoculating my seeds with both endo- and ecto-mycorrhizal fungi prior to planting, which is good for soil chemistry and increases nutrient absorption by a symbiotic relationship. i think that is the most i can do to encourage a healthy growing environment without introducing compost or other dense organic matter that will weigh down the mix significantly and hold way too much water.

I don't know what is going on or what caused it, but it saddens me. 'The Purpose of this Forum' is to discuss growing orchids and sharing information. The Purpose is to help new growers and offer tips and information to more seasoned growers. That is the Purpose as I see it. The regular posters are really interesting, creative people who share a love of growing a complicated plant. Some can grow them as I do, very casually with not a great interest in finding out everything there is to know. I have always grown them (as is my style) with a relaxed attitude and not being shattered if some just don't like living with me. I have learned so much from the people on this forum, especially Howard because 'light' was never stressed in the books or literature I could find. Being a dirt grower for most of my life, it all came together when I added more light to my indoor growing. But I never did what Howard stated was necessary, I never went as far as Clara, but I did increase the amount of light shining on my plants. Much of my growing is based on my years of experience growing dirt plants. As Scott said, if you can grow a good tomato, put the same knowledge into growing orchids. You learn a lot by just growing anything for years. None of us know each other at all. We only think we know each other through our postings. There are personalities which tick us off, but we need to see through that to get to the knowledge they offer. I personally find some posters very funny, some irritating, some boring, some very interesting. I've been around this forum for a long time and have seen people come and go. I also was banned for years, but learned so much by lurking. Having met Clara and Howard made them so human to me. Their enthusiasm and knowledge was intoxicating. They were real people who shared the same passion (actually much more passion) than I did. Having Howard in my growing areas and hearing his comments and suggestions was beyond my imagination. He is a gentle, sweet, incredibly smart man who plays a mean piano. Clara is full of energy, more than you could imagine. She is a whirlwind who can 'charge' the atmosphere of any room. I see why her plants grow so well, she emits more energy than any light-bulb known to man. She is excited by these plants and loves them more than I ever could. Howard changed this forum years ago with his emphasis on light. This IS the most important point to get across to new growers. I know how it changed my growing experience and how it made growing orchids easier and successful. I didn't need to know the details, I needed to know that growing orchids indoors in Z5 required lights. I grew orchids for years and flowered them, including Dens and Catts with just window light. But throw in a few CFL's and you get flowers you couldn't get with just a window. Lights are the easy way to get the flowers we all strive for. Its the easy way to get the growth and health we all want. Its simple and Howard brought that to the attention of this forum years ago. Now no serious grower would consider growing orchids indoors in winter, without them. There are some growers who just don't have the years of growing experience to test out their theories. They believe they are correct in their advice, but anyone who has grown orchids for many years, knows their theory will eventually fail, at least with novices. Should new growers be allowed to follow information which will cause them problems in the long run? I don't know, but I do know that it is hard to read advice, which sounds good on paper, but just doesn't work and not say so. Many times I notice that forum members do not take the growing zones into consideration. Also, greenhouse vs window. Arthur always points that out in his responses, I think other posters should try the same. Indoor growing in the dark, frigid North does not relate to tropical growing. An example, which goes back a few years is 'sphag and bag.' In my opinion, it doesn't work. It may work once in a while, but most often it leads to death of the plant. The best thing that has happened at this forum is the advice to toss the plant when it reaches a state of 'little hope.' An experienced grower might be successful using a similar technique but they know what they are looking for and have a 'feel' for what they are doing. They also know that if it works it will be a long time before this plant is healthy and flowering. For new growers, the basics should be stressed. The basics are the same no matter what is grown. Plants need light, water and air. Those are set in stone. How you adjust those factors to fit the particular plant is where the experienced grower steps in and has the most of offer. Any ordinary houseplant will rot if overwatered and underlit. I believe the basics must be taught and some responsibility by the novice to research and learn these things should be encouraged by the more experienced growers. I think many of us forget what it was like to be a new grower, especially of orchids. Old habits die hard - I started out growing Dens in potting soil. They actually lived and I did get flowers on one, but I knew something was wrong. I found this forum and got my answers. I wish we could all meet each other as I did with Howard and Clara. A few years ago, after I was allowed to post here again, I remember some heated arguments with Howard about light. But what sticks in my mind the most, is that he was right. It worked and Clara has proven to me that it can be done in this cold, dim winter. I can flower my beloved Dens under lights which in my mind is a feat in itself. It works with just a few 24W CFl's. If I had a dedicated growing area, I would have a bunch of Big Bertha's. The advice given to novices should encourage good growing culture which will give them the best chance for success. Repotting a den in flower because it is in a tiny pot is not good advice to a novice. It should be explained that a den likes a tiny pot and that repotting now will most likely result in a loss of flowers and possibly set the plant back for a year or more. Sure it can be done, but for what reason? Should repotting a plant be at the top of the list of good culture? It is wonderful that we have so many experts on the forum and that they continue to share their experience. I am not an expert and never will be. But I know plants and I also know when poor advice is given. I don't think it requires experts to speak to new growers. They need to hear how they can get their plants to survive the first year and flower again. That is what ultimately hooks someone into staying with orchids. They need success. Calvin, you are so right. There is nothing wrong with disagreements and one should not feel they have to laugh it off. Flare ups are normal but no one should accept name-calling. How utterly childish. This has happened in the past and it always blows over. Howard, I seem to remember you pulling back once before. Don't even bother. Why should you? For someone who is not even part of this forum? I would like to know which orchids grow in swamps and bloom in Borneo with only 2 hours of sunlight a WEEK! Everyone is getting too sensitive...lets just all relax and get back to our plants. I think if we could all meet each other over a glass of wine and a table full of plants, this would never happen. We'd all enjoy each other and find we are more alike than we believe. This forum is too important to let such nonsense get in the way. Jane

Yesterday was the best day of the week to do the spraying as it was enough days after and before mowings, no wind, and this week the temperatures are in the 60s and 70s so everything is still growing actively. Might not be this nice next week. I hadn't heard back from anyone by then so I decided to try the Weed B Gon Chickweed, Clover, Oxalis as I needed that to address the violets and chickweed and it might work on henbit too. The other Weed B Gon covers more kinds of weeds but doesn't kill violets as well and the label says not to use it more than once a year. So I assume it might be more stressful on new grass as well. The Weed B Gon CCO has started wilting the weeds, including the henbit, and the grass looks okay so far. I mixed it at the recommended rate in a tank sprayer but just spot sprayed the weeds. The label says one gallon mixed up will cover 500 square feet. I used about 3 gallons over 7500 square feet. Once the weeds were wet I moved on and that's all I needed to get over the yard. Not all parts needed spraying.