Hi H/W, Yes, skeeters are literally a pain. We have a salmon stream running through our property and there's a still pond part of it where they hang out and party in between taking chunks out of me for their dinner (husband never gets bitten). I am really personally opposed to DEET etc. and that definitely curtails my evening outdoor activities. There's some times when they seem to be worse. We have fish in the constructed pond that seem to take care of them and that is also moving water. We got one of those electric wasp things you hang out on the deck and it zaps a lot of wasps and a few skeeters. Every window in this house is screened and that helps too. The expense and bother of a fence were the very LAST thing we wanted to do. Since we plan to stay here we see it as an investment; we either forget gardening and surrender to the deer or fence in a portion of the lot we want to grow vegetables and flowers, leaving the rest of it to wildlife! We get black bears around here too and while they would just break down a fence they're not after the roses (go for fruit) Deer also leave a trail behind them (literally) that looks like it came from a giant species of hamster. Something else I don't want in the garden anymore. Nervy creatures, we caught one drinking out of the pond! (counted the fish and none disappeared through her slurping) There are some forums here about deer and one very funny one I read yesterday; the poster wants to nominate his resident doe for the deer Olympiad (she jumped a high fence and used his rockery as a salad bar) - so even a fence isn't 100% deerproof. Having visited a rose centre who have a deer fence grown over with roses that add another foot or two to the height works for them. A really thick rambler rose can withstand any grazing from the other side and their livelihood depends on protecting the 700 roses they have on their property. don't know the problem with the links. I just checked them and they were okay. Here's the URL's to copy and paste: http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/ccanadensis.htm http://ca.f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/sunshinecoastgardener/album?.dir=/bde2&.src=ph http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/reference/html_cheatsheet/

I found it! Finally! I am so excited, Blue! Now I know for sure that my taste and yours are in sync. I love everything you did. I love Azul Macaubus and that just might be my exotic granite for MY island. All your ideas for the island are so nifty. Mine is going to be lowered, too, because I, too, am short. In fact, the island and my L shaped baking center are both lowered. I'm (hate this term) a 'senior,' so I am having my DW raised--hate to bend over. Like you, will have the open shelves and the basket storage in island. My eating area very like yours, too, though I don't have the bay window. Do you like blue china? I have so much; lots of it will go on plate shelves indicated on plan. so many similarities but must run meet with GC. I'm putting my kit layout again so you can see what I'm talking about!

DLM, I could not agree more about many parents not being good examples and failing to teaching their children even the basics of fiscal responsibility. I recently retired from teaching high school where last year a new initiative introduced a course in personal finance to all freshmen. The administration was aware that few of our students had the opportunity to learn the basics at home, which became apparent by the number of students who could not pay for driver's education. The school worked hard to assist students in finding part-time jobs and cooperative education, both essential to a mostly immigrant, low-income population. This article came across my news feed yesterday: How does your 401K balance stack up? The key is to fund your 401K as soon as you start working. "Save early, often, and aggressively". It is shocking how many people approaching retirement are not prepared financially. Young people must take advantage of time and compounding to be able to be financially secure retirement age. Yes, that often means delayed gratification, not buying unnecessary items, vacations, etc., living within ones means, judicious use of credit so as not to incur finance charges, obtaining advanced degrees and certifications for career growth. There is no need for a financial adviser at the early stages of investing. In fact, it would be a waste of money. Professionals come into play later with a larger nest egg, homes, saving for children's needs etc. Your relative must trust you DLM. I'm sure you have been a good role model!

Awesome Skybird! I will definitely try the "liquid lightning" treatment. I will also be "winter sowing the seeds, well, actually my plan for the Abronia seeds is to artificially stratify the seed in the fridge for about two months, then give them the acid bath then "winter" sow them in March or April hoping the catch the last 6-8 weeks of our freeze/thaw cycle. I might try the more "traditional" scarification (sandpaper/emery board) on some of them, but all the resources I've found on this species has said that it does not seem to improve germination. If I don't get any sprouts of these guys this year, I am fully prepared to wait it out. I've had Palmer's penstemon seeds that I gave up on pop up the following spring in the bucket I dumped the cups out in the year prior. You are right though, SOMETHING triggers these plants to grow, since they do it all the time without any help from us. But, a few species of sand verbena are endangered (this one isn't) which could be a side effect of poor reproductive rates. Others, especially species and populations from the low deserts in California and Arizona, might grow and flower only once or twice a decade during "super blooms." It would seem even mother nature has a trying time with this particular genus. I love your story about the sweetgrass. If you ever feel like you want more, but don't want to wait, you can buy started plants from Prairie Moon, but I think the fact your persistence and patience paid off and you successfully grew what is widely regarded as a "difficult" seed is far and away more satisfying. I think that is part of the attraction for the sand verbena for me. Grasses are typically divided into two groups, the C3 "cool season" grasses and the C4 "warm season" grasses. From your description of it "looking dead" in the summer, I suspected yours was the former and it turns out, it is! Sweetgrass will actively grow in the cooler temperatures of spring and fall and go dormant in the heat of summer. I wonder if you tried putting it outside earlier in the year (like March) or even leaving it outside over the winter (it should be plenty hardy enough) if you would see more growth on it. According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) it starts active growth at soil temperatures of about 40 degrees. If you DO decide to put it in the ground, I also wonder if it would be kept in check by the fact your garden might not be as wet as it typically grows. The Maximilian sunflower that I got from you a few years ago has not spread in the "potters clay" (as you call it ;) that I have it in at my mom's house. It has formed a nice clump and spread MAYBE a foot out from that and I think I planted it in 2015(?). Sweetgrass would be a great plant to have out here, unfortunately I don't know how well it would hold up to the jackboot of rampaging cattails. I haven't found a single plant, even the ones often touted as "strongly rhizomatous" "not good for small landscapes" "could be invasive in a garden setting" that don't get out competed by cattails. Even the prairie cordgrass, which has some of the deepest, strongest and overall toughest rhizomes I ever ever encountered has been reduced to just a few small spots in their wake. Why I'm growing the buffalo gourd, I think it's a cool and unique plant. We're all used to seeing pumpkins or butternuts in the vegetable garden, but to see one growing out in the middle of the dry prairie sprawling in all directions with its huge, blue-gray leaves and big yellow flowers is not something people would expect to find. It's also beloved by our native squash bees (Peponapis pruinosa). While it does have vines like the dastardly bindweed, its a much BIGGER plant (if you look carefully at the second picture, there is some bindweed in the lower-left corner) and doesn't spread through rhizomes. Instead it had an enormous, tuberous taproot. It is edible, well at least it's not poisonous and while the stringy flesh is very, VERY bitter, you could roast and eat the seeds and they apparently just taste like pumpkin seeds. Also, don't forget that cactus are my favorite plants and I have purposely planted Yucca glauca on more than one occasion. I have gone a little crazy with my native seed plans this year. Trying to make up for my abysmal gardening year last year coupled with the severe onset of winter-induced cabin fever has lead me to have some pretty grandiose plans. Luckily most of my seed is stuff I've collected over the years and have on hand, but I have to admit I went a little overboard on purchasing a few as well (including ordering some started plants to hedge my bets). Now the only thing is carving out the time to do it. I think overall I will be winter sowing and artificially stratifying something like 25-30 different species (give or take a few). The thing is, I've never had very good luck with the whole winter sowing thing. My penstemons always wind up drowning no mater how fast draining I think think I've made my mix and other things always seem to sprout WAAAAY too early in their little "greenhouses." I also get extremely spotty germination with this method (which is one reason I plan on starting what will seem like a metric tonne of seed). But they wont be in little "mini greenhouses" this year. Last year I converted a bunch of the gazillion CRW tomato cages I have everywhere into low tunnels covered in landscape fabric. So I'm putting the seeds in starter pots/cups and setting them under these low tunnels. No plastic covering that will trap heat and trick seeds into sprouting to early and the weed fabric will let water from snowmelt and rain pass through as well. I will probably have to take a more active role in supplementing water since there wont be a true "lid" to contain the moisture though, but that should help alleviate the damp off which I have had problems with with winter sowing as well. But the fact is I don't have nearly enough indoor space to grow plants and all of it will be taken up by stuff that really does need it like tomatoes and peppers. Like you said, these plants germinate and grow outdoors in our climate and weather all the time without our assistance so that's what I'm counting on. Besides that, I have TRIED to start native grasses and perennials indoors in the past and while many of them self sow with reckless abandon in the garden, I have never successfully raised a single little bluestem or hummngbird mint or purple coneflower from seed inside under lights. All of them have keeled over well before transplant time. I, too, love starting seeds. Watching the creation of life from but a small hard speck is nothing short of miraculous. “Acts of creation are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets, but humbler folk may circumvent this restriction if they know how" wrote Aldo Leopold, "To plant a pine, for example, one need be neither god nor poet; one need only own a shovel. By virtue of this curious loophole in the rules, any clodhopper may say: Let there be a tree - and there will be one.” I do have to admit that taking care of indoor grown seedlings for weeks and weeks however is not my favorite part of gardening.