I am really surprised by some of the answers on here. They seem to be varied as opinions on future weather patterns. Someone even said concrete is "lime, water and aggregate"? I hope to clarify statements like these. Let me pre-emptively state that my occupation is as a Technical Representative for a large Concrete and Cement packaging Corporation. I also serve on two Technical Committees that write specifications on Cement. I will try to keep this response in Layman's terms, so it is easily understood for all that read this article. Cement is derived from taking ground Limestone and then kilning it at very high temperatures to produce a finished Cement product. When it is kilned, the chemical composition changes from its base raw limestone. Cement is then blended with Coarse (Rock) and Fine (Sand) Aggregates. Sometimes Fly Ash (Coal that has been burned and recouped) as well as Silica Fume (Derived as a by-product from the production of elemental silicon or ferrosilicon alloys in electric arc furnaces) are added. Often Air Entrainment admixtures are also added for better freeze thaw resistance as well as high range water reducers/Super Plasticizer's in the case of higher strength concretes or when you are attempting to beget a desire trait from the finished concrete. There are other admixtures that can be added but I won't get in to all the variations of mix designs. The last component is water and that is self explanatory. The Topic Question (Is Concrete OK near Garden) is best answered this way...While Concrete is in its plastic state; Yes the cement component is caustic to vegetation and will often cause a temporary deterioration in that vegetation. Of course you would not want to place concrete directly on any shrub or flower bed while in this state, but once Concrete has set, there may be a very minUTE leaching of lime that is contained within the cement matrix. This may actually add a benefit to the soil depending on the soil conditions where you live. And this was more prevalent in cements of old but is not seen too often now, unless host soils contain lime that leaches through (In the case of retaining walls). In fact Cement and Concrete are routinely used to encapsulate toxic soils nowadays by Environmental Companies to reduce the leaching of the numerous chemicals that were used in Heavy Manufacturing of the past. Feel secure to cast your concrete garden edging at the side of your garden. I hope this helps.

We do still use silver- impregnated dressings for some wounds. Aquacel Ag for an example. If your MIL has breaks in her skin, ulcers or wounds, it is reasonable to use a silver dressing, but you can get pre-made, sterile dressing or ointment to use instead of concocting your own. If the skin is intact, then no need to apply silver I believe. The goal now is to keep the skin intact. Cellulitis is not a surface infection, it is in the tissue below the skin surface. Breaks in the skin allow it to get in (and the bacteria can migrate to that area from other parts of the body too). Keep the skin moisturized and supple with a good lubricant (like lanolin) but not sitting in wet; if she has chronic swelling, ask her doctor about good support hose. There are chronic skin changes that occur with peripheral vascular disease, the skin can become chronically red or purple, rough, scaley, even hard and corrugated, and the lower legs swollen. And, yes, these changes can be in the entire lower leg, not just the feet. It can often look like cellulitis when there is actually not an infection (one clue -- if the redness and warmth decrease or go away when the legs are elevated about the heart, it might not be cellulitis). People who have PVD, who have had cellulitis before, or who are obese are prone to have cellulitis in the legs over & over. I am wondering about the pain, Konrad, does she have it always even when her legs seem to be okay? or do her legs always look like cellulitis? PVD will cause chronic pain, and believe it or not walking is recommended, if she can, but it takes a while to have positive effect. A specialist in PVD (not just any cardiologist or vascular surgeon) is a good idea.

Yes, I use them for everything in our bathroom. We have a very small bathroom that we recently redid with tile and marble countertops and porcelain tub. I'm very wary about using harsh cleaners on these things so I love the Norwex for this use. Because the floor is only about 4 feet by 4 feet, I do use the cloths on it instead of mopping. I've always been a wash by hand rather than mop gal for all our floors, but since I've gone back to work I sometimes use the micro fibre cloth on the end of a mop thing (don't know what that is called?) I'm curious though. I thought Norwex was a Canadian thing. Is it available more widely now? One of my collegues has a cousin who sells it and she uses their dishwasher detergent and some other cleaners too. She loves them, but I've never tried. If you are worried about harsh chemicals, you might want to look into it.

My wife and I just began using CS on house plants. Wow, what an amazing growth spurt in several of them. Noticeably different. However, still wondering how to determine how much to use. No, I didn't document ratio of CS to water. Altho, i know I didn't use all that much . . . FYI, studies show that plants 'know' how much silver to use and will only absorb what they need. see attached article about 3-4 paragraphs down the page unless you want to read the whole article: http://www.thesilveredge.com/gardeners-colloidal-silver-kills-plant-fungus-produces-larger-and-healthier-crops.shtml#.WkrXeFQ-eRt Sincerely Blessed by The Best (Yahweh) Keith and Mary