Anurag - the thread about container soils and water retention was written with the hope that those reading it would come away with an understanding of how water behaves in soils, & particularly how particle size and other physical characteristics impact perched water retention and o/a water retention. It's up to the grower to decide what he/she wants to do - how diligently they want to work at reducing the amount of excess water their soils hold. 1:1:1, screened bark:screened Turface:grit is the most productive soil I've used, but I don't use it for everything. Veggies & plants I know are only going to live a year of go 1 year between repots, usually go in the 5:1:1 mix. All of my woody plants, housep0lants including succulents, and other plants I know will be in the same soil for 2 growth cycles or longer, go in the gritty 1:1:1 mix. The 1:1:1 and 5:1:1 ratios are guidelines, but they're good ones. They minimize the amount of perched water a soil holds, and the gritty mix makes a good run at maximizing the volume of water held inside soil particles while still offering additional adjustability. If you live in a rainy climate and you're using the gritty mix, you might want to increase the amount of grit and decrease the amount of Turface commensurately. If it's dry where you live, increase the Turface and decrease the grit - but make sure that the soil holds enough water to carry you through the dry days, but not so much your plant suffers during periods of prolonged rain. Shading the pots when it's hot is very helpful. High soil/root temps is one of the primary limiting factors for container growers. I like soluble synthetic fertilizers. There is no more efficient way to ensure your plants get what they need, when they need it, at the right ratio, and in a favorable o/a concentration. How you fertilize is up to you, but soluble synthetics make fertilizing almost foolproof, as long as the grower holds up his/her end of the deal. When you root prune, the object is to eliminate large roots that aren't attached to the trunk and are in unfavorable positions to make room for and increase the number of fine roots, which do all the work except anchoring and transport. You'll need to develop a feel for root pruning because all plants don't get the same treatment. Reread the thread about water movement in soil, and the one about trees in containers. Make sure you understand what's in those threads. If you do gain that understanding, it should make a significant difference in what you get back for your efforts. Best luck. Al

Just back to correct/update my link for this gingerbread doll crochet pattern.... Here is a link that might be useful: http://bellowbelle.com/GingerbreadDollPattern.html

Been to both, and been to VA Beach lots of times. For your needs, you don't want VA Beach--it's a prime hang out beach for college students. Not a lot of partying on the beach, but the main streets and some hotels can get raucus. Until we had kids, I greatly enjoyed VA Beach more than any of the others (Ocean City, Rehoboth, etc.). Now our needs are changing. To the Californians: This is the Atlantic. Beaches are completely different here. VA Beach actually has more waves than many of the other beaches because of it's location (at mouth of Cheaseapeake Bay). But it's not big surf country--that's why people go to CA to surf. The Atlantic is much rougher than the Pacific, but out on the ocean, not near the beaches (though there are exceptions). And it's neither dirty nor run down--it's just a resort town like most of the middle class resort towns on the mid Atlantic (they are all starting to look too much alike in my opinion). There are other types of beaches, like the Outer Banks (and Martha's Vineyard, I'm told) that are more about the beach and less about the beach attractions.

Wish his Daddy were alive to watch him grow. He'd be so proud of Drew! He is a real character let me tell you. All kids are, but this little boy seems to come up with more than both my other 2 GB's! Sunday we were sitting outside talking, he says to me "I think you have to be 11 to get a permanent". I said a what? I think you have to be 11 to get a permanent to drive. OHHHHH I see, well Drew I think you have to be 16 to get a permanent. He says yeah, 16 or 55! LOL He then tells me he is going to buy a pickup and drive it to my house and back it up in the driveway! He loves John Deere and Case IH tractors and cows and anything to do with farms. Wish we had someone on a farm so we could take him there and he'd be in his glory!