Good link, gh! Eileen, once you learn some of the 'secrets' of plant propagation, you'll understand how easy it really it. To be successful, I mean! ;-) It's always better for the plant if they begin their new life in a solid rooting medium of some sort, rather than water. Yes, most plants are happy to root in water and we get satisfaction by being able to witness the procedure, but it's a struggle for the plant when you transplant those water roots to the soil. Here's another good link for you. Truthfully, there are lots of 'right' ways to propagate our plants. Do some more reading on your own. (Don't be discouraged if your cuttings don't 'take' at this time of year. Mid- to late spring is probably the best time for this plant.) Here is a link that might be useful: Click here for some more good info!

1. the homestead you should be bale to trim at this point. If you want to wait, you can but those are probably dead and new growth will cover them soon. Homestead can grow fast! 2. I'd wait just a bit more for your last 2 lantanas. you can cut the stalks to the ground- they are going to emerge from the ground, not the stalks. the stalks do offer some protection in winter, so you should leave them then, but no worries now. If they don't come back, look at it as an opportunity to try something new. You do already have some lantana. 3. don't know too much about magnolias, so i'll pass on this ones. I'd just say a big tree probably wouldn't be hurt by some fertilization, and most don't really need it. 4. Since your lilacs are small, i'd go ahead and get a big ball of moist soil when you move them so you be sure to get all the roots. You'll have to watch them this summer if it gets dry. If the hydrangea is small, go ahead. If it's bigger, you can do it, but be sure to water it a lot this summer- they are thirsty plants in the best of circumstances. i've always heard for hydrangeas they are happiest at 40-60% sun. which may be your partial answer for #6 as well. 5. i have other hibsicus but not moscheutos, and i never feed mine (i don't feed much but veggies, other than what they get in mulch & compost, truthfully). I would think rose food would do the trick. The year you lost a lot of foliage to jb's, that would stunt them, and since they are thirsty plants, the drought may have been enough to keep them from blooming last year. They need a good deal of sun, so if they are semi-shady that may be your culprit. Most hibs blooms on new wood, and i don't think they are an exception, so with the good conditions this year, you should see blooms. most hibs bloom a bit later than now, tho- they are warm season plants. Mine are just getting going. 6. No doubt the hydrangeas struggled with the drought! They are very thirsty- pat yourself that they made it through the drought! They typically bloom on old wood, and with the dry conditions, probably didn't set buds for last year. You should see some blooms this year if they didn't get frozen back with that hard freeze this spring. This is the reason the rebloomers who can bloom on new wood are popular- even with late freezes you get blooms, just a little later. I have a mini one that i cut back hard this year b/c it out grew its space and it's already got blooms! Yay- i like new wood types! I have a varigated lacecap old wood type and i hardly ever get blooms on it. Gets frozen nearly every year. Fortunately i like the foliage so much i just look at the years it blooms as bonus. My oakleaf seems able to shrug off everything and has bloomed every year, even the drought ones and late freeze ones, for many years now. You may want to consider adding one of these- they are definitely easier than the typical hydrangeas. White, conical blooms that fade to dusky pink and persist 1/2 the summer. Gorgeous wine red fall color on distinctive leaves. More drought tolerant than the mops or lacecaps. What more could you want? (me- blue color, but it ain't happening). :) hope that helps! tammy

Ok, that's a relief. But were you using the grill burner or the stove? When you said couldn't get the flame lower to drop to 11 I assumes the grill burner. Ok, so gauge reads 16 so it is accurate enough for now. Now the goal is to get it to read 11-12 (for your altitude) and hold it there for at least 20 mins. Learning to adjust the flame to control the pressure to the right level is the main goal of practice runs and the hardest thing to learn it seems. So you need some more practice. Keep in mind that the counter-weight will not be rocking this time - you'll be going by the gauge only so shoot for 12 and don't let it fall below 11 at any time. Climb up to 12 slowly and make very small changes in the flame at a time and then wait for the gauge to change. Second goal is to eliminate siphoning of liquid out of the jars. Was the water in your canner still clear when finished or did some of the color leack out of the jars? Amt. of water in the canner - some canner manuals say 3 quarts, some say 2-3 inches before inserting the jars. But corn has a long processing time and you don't want it to run dry so I suggest you use enough water so that the canner looks half full after you set the jars in it. That way you'll be sure of enough. Let us know how it goes. Dave PS: Be sure to double check your altitude as there are places in IL that are over 1000 feet. ;)

gracie: Yes, mine are a solid piece of plywood about 1" thick. This is what the backside of one of them looks like: I don't think the wood has to be anything high quality, but it should be strong. Perhaps you can ask cliffandjoann who have more experience in refurbishing furniture for suggestions. Pictures would really help as well. If you have any other questions, let me know.