Have to think that any kind of cardboard, even wrapped well, is going to get damaged by animal barn visitors. Do any kids come visit the barn without permission, who might wreck stored items or start a fire? Putting stuff into lockable plastic boxes is safer waterproof storage, Rubbermaid types, with the mothballs inside or scattered over the top. However plastic will not stand up to chewing by rodents or coons pulling on it. Tarping it is not going to add any protection. Dirt floor is NOT your friend, will have dampness all year around. Barn floor might even flood in seasonal rain or weather. We get flooding here when those terrific storms go thru, out in the barnyard ditch. I had two feet of running water with a pond of standing water at the neighbors yard, couldn't get all that water into the tube under the road. Took about 4 hours of runoff field water to finish draining and have the ditch water down to a trickle thru the 2ft tube, AFTER the rain stopped Friday. Have you checked out any of the rental units with locking doors at a building? Maybe one of them will hold all your stuff if well stacked. Still not heat or cold proof, not sure about mice. But again, scattering moth balls around might help, dog could not get into them. Any stuffed furniture tends to pick up a dampness, keep a moldy smell thereafter. Valuable things, antiques, might need much better protection, seal them in bags and tape loose ends down. Do get renter's insurance on anything stored at a facility. Sometimes it is not worth being cheap, when storing your nice things you will need later on. Especially if they will have to be replaced with damage or rust from poor storage location in the pole barn.

Fenworth, here's my rant about relying on Consumer Reports reliability ratings. While it is true that it's all we have, the methodology is deeply flawed, and the high-end brands have such a statistically low number of responses as to be random noise. You really have to take the Consumer Reports reliability and repair records with a huge grain of salt. It's the magazine's greatest weakness, I think. The data is entirely gathered by subscriber polls. There is no distinction for repairs needed because of 1) installation issues, 2) users need help, 3) so-called "infant mortality" when an appliance might fail early on, 4) shipping and handling damage, 5) common wear and tear, 6) design flaws, 7) other issues such as a power surge or natural disaster, 8) abuse, and 9) whatever else I can't think of at the moment. In addition to this, it should be also noted that expensive low market share products fair worse too. They simply don't have a large enough sample to be fair or accurate of a brand. This is why luxury appliances fair poorly in their eyes. All the poll asks if if your appliance has needed a service call. Period. I like CR, it's a fine magazine and I use their info when I make many purchases. But the reliability and repair ratings are the weakest part of the whole organization.

Hmmm...I could write up a HUGE list, I love my area thrift store. The best deals for this summer though... Pottery Barn decor for $1 each that I found in the catalog from the winter for no less than $50 each. A set of LeCrueset cookware still in the box for $25. A box of what the seller called junk...that ended up having an almost complete set of antique french flatware, several great ironstone pieces (my first ones - yay!), and more great antique and vintage kitchen wares than one could possibly hope for - for the bargain price of $5. OMG...I almost felt bad when I got home and researched what I bought. But I had to remind myself - one man's trash is another man's treasure...and this was a treasure for sure in my world.

I have a hard time resisting roses and mini's at the store are put there just to tempt me. I grow them all the time. What you need to know: They are own-root cuttings with very immature root systems. As with any cuttings I recommend growing them in the current pot until you see roots peeking out the bottom of the pot. Store minis are often grown in greenhouses, inside stores and overfeed to give you blooms. I slowly harden mine off. There are usually 3 or 4 plants in one pot. Once you have a decent root system you can try to separate them. Just be careful of the roots. Enjoy! The best companion plant to a rose is always a rose! Carlota