Search out molasses for organic gardening. You may want to add some dry molasses to your soil, or mix at a rate of one Tbls. per gallon of water and add some of the fish emulsion as well and water the soil with that. here's an excerpt - link at end to full article: (please do post what works for you) Maddie 'Why Molasses? The reason nutrient manufacturerÂs have 'discovered' molasses is the simple fact that itÂs a great source of carbohydrates to stimulate the growth of BENEFICIAL MICROORGANISMS. 'Carbohydrate' is really just a fancy word for sugar, and molasses is the best sugar for horticultural use. Folks who have read some of our prior essays know that we are big fans of promoting and nourishing soil life, and that we attribute a good portion of our growing success to the attention we pay to building a thriving 'micro-herd' to work in concert with plant roots to digest and assimilate nutrients. We really do buy into the old organic gardening adage - 'Feed the soil not the plant.' Molasses is a good, quick source of energy for the various forms of microbes and soil life in a compost pile or good living soil. As we said earlier, molasses is a carbon source that feeds the beneficial microbes that create greater natural soil fertility. But, if giving a sugar boost was the only goal, there would be lotÂs of alternatives. We could even go with the old Milly Blunt story of using Coke on plants as a child, after all Coke would be a great source of sugar to feed microbes and it also contains phosphoric acid to provide phosphorus for strengthening roots and encouraging blooming. In our eyes though, the primary thing that makes molasses the best sugar for agricultural use is itÂs trace minerals. In addition to sugars, molasses contains significant amounts of potash, sulfur, and a variety of micronutrients. Because molasses is derived from plants, and because the manufacturing processes that create it remove mostly sugars, the majority of the mineral nutrients that were contained in the original sugar cane or sugar beet are still present in molasses. This is a critical factor because a balanced supply of mineral nutrients is essential for those 'beneficial beasties' to survive and thrive. ThatÂs one of the secrets weÂve discovered to really successful organic gardening, the micronutrients found in organic amendments like molasses, kelp, and alfalfa were all derived from other plant sources and are quickly and easily available to our soil and plants. This is especially important for the soil 'micro-herd' of critters who depend on tiny amounts of those trace minerals as catalysts to make the enzymes that create biochemical transformations. That last sentence was our fancy way of saying - itÂs actually the critters in 'live soil' that break down organic fertilizers and 'feed' it to our plants.' From: http://www.420magazine.com/forums/general-cultivation-information/76723-sweet-organic-goodness-magical-molasses.html

This year I bought a dial and spray hose end sprayer and today is the second time I am using it. Makes spraying really easy, at least in my opinion. No mixing, I just pour the Bayer Advanced Desease Control fungicide in the container, dial the correct dosage and spray away. Any leftover is just poured back in the bottle as its not diluted. This made it easy to spray not only the roses but to give the bulb lilies a quick shot as I was going along. They can get botrytis (spelling?) a fungal desease and it was a very wet spring. As I have about 800 bulb lilies and saw a speck here or there, I did not want any fungus to get a chance to get started. And my Zinnias are always the wonder of the neighborhood as they never get mildew unlike others down the block. Of course its because I spray them also while doing my rounds. I really love zinnias but I never seem to have any of the fancy kinds. I usually have Peter Pan zinnias, Cut and Come Again, State Farm or Catcus flowered. One year I had this little short pom pom type but can't remember the name. I wanted to do a circle garden here close to were the terraces garden is and put all spring flowering bulbs and then zinnias for the summer but I could get to doing that bed. Its still on the list of plans and I will do it eventually.

Our back patio cement is chipping and was actually chipped when we purchased the house 8 years ago. We took care of more pressing problems first and now it's time for the patio. We plan is to build a deck over the existing cement patio. However, I need a quick fix. My niece just asked to have her baby shower in our backyard. I'm wondering if anyone can recommend something that's inexpensive that we can use to cover up this area as a short term option. I want it to look nice for the baby shower but don't want to spend a tremendous amount of money. The patio is chipped all away across the edge (closest to the bottom of the image.) My initial thought was to buy some type of large paver to cover the area but I don't know how it would be held up at the end where it's chipped.

Hiya! Well, I lean the most toward doing a backsplash in the kitchen, which would eliminate having to do a paint colour that is probably out of your comfort zone on the walls. That doesn't mean you can do a cool/gray tile, but I would look at a travertine which is a beautiful stone. This means that the remaining wall space will be a 'bit' removed from directly connecting with the countertop and might give you a wink more flexibility (but not tons...). You might need to listen to the particular needs of this kitchen and then transition out to your comfort zone in the other rooms, creating more of a palette - think of it on the large scale, rather than just this one room. OF the cool undertones, I would say that the cabinets, in a few photos, look like a neutral with a green undertone (like JUST barely). You could check out the likes of SW Gossamer Veil, it's a bit of a chameleon and might flex between the needs of your kitchen and your personal tastes. You could also look at BM Natural Linen, which is more of a tan that leans a wink grayish.