Patrick said: "And I think it could be helpful to many of us here, to talk about the specific N-P-K nutrients (and other nutrients) common in soil." I became interested in soil nutrition after learning about "Producing High BRIX Plants". The technique is easy to follow, produces very good vegetables, and can be duplicated using fertilizers other than what the BRIX people offer for sale. They too endorse Steve Solomon, Elaine Ingham, and other people dedicated to organic gardening. However, after deeper research into their fertilizer I realized that they (BRIX) too had fallen into the conventional trap of advocating a limited usage of minerals (elements) for feeding plants that N-P-K synthetic chemical advocates had fallen into as well. Amending the soil with 15, 30, or 40 minerals (elements) falls about 75, 60, or 50 short in my understanding of full nutrition. Not that it is a bad thing; however, I would hate to be the one needing Iodine in my soil due to a lack of this nutrient in my soil, but nobody thought it important enough to put there or mention. My learning is in order to fix the food we must first fix the soil. Once the soil is healthy, the food it produces will offer health, and in the end the animal/human eating the food will be conferred said health. If the deed is to be done, why not do it right the first time and be done with it? The question then becomes where can I get a full spectrum of minerals to put into the soil to insure maximum quality in the food I grow? This is where research and personal preference comes into play; after all, it is my garden, I am the one eating the food, and I will be the one reaping the benefits of this effort. I choose to use a seed meal (alfalfa), bone meal, calcium, seaweed, and sea salt finds. IMO, utilizing amendments from the ocean are the key to offering full spectrum of minerals (see Seaweed in Agriculture and SeaAgri Research that have given this gardener what he has been looking for with minimum cost and fits into the routine of amending the soil I feel comfortable with. IMO, each member may want to find out what is comfortable for their level of gardening; these amendments are what make my lips meet together in joy at dinnertime. The security in knowing all 90 minerals are there because I put them there is well worth the cost as far as I am concerned. Finally, we come to where "the rubber meets the road" in this adventure, the soil. Without healthy soil not much of anything is going to result worth talking about, let alone eating. Amending any soil with quality compost is where one gets "butter from the duck". Yet, our understanding is clouded with fragmented information from many sources and personal preferences. However, there is one thing that is overlooked and not mentioned that has come to light. I must thank my friend and fellow member Althea for her interest when the subject was brought up last year, which tweaked my interest in the subject. Strange as it may seem it boils down to a matter of "teeth". Please bear with me as I attempt to explain. We build compost piles with the end result being compost/humus that we spread on our soils. All the organic matter in the pile is consumed by the soil food web, yet for the most part none of the soil food web microbes possesses any "teeth" to consume the organic matter with. No, what they do is generate organic acids, enzymes, and other chemicals that pre-digest the carbon into a form that can then be consumed and converted to compost. That part of the matter that is slow to be consumed is converted to humus to be digested later or used for storage for any minerals (elements) that can be utilized later by the plant lucky enough to be planted in such a rich soil environment. It is these acids/chemicals that put the power in the soil and work the natural magic we see each season in our gardens/flowerbeds. The link below leads to a web page that can better explain exactly what is going on within our compost piles and garden beds. Please entertain this member and assume what is being said about these acids/chemicals is true and working at this very moment within our compost piles and garden beds. The powers within these words are hard to believe, let alone the implications to what they can mean to our very health and existence. Yes, organic gardening is the answer we have already known to be true; now let us act like we know it and get to work Blutranes

If you read the threads on this board you'll find loads of information. The pruning types are based on how the Clematis bloom. Some bloom on new growth only, some bloom on old and some bloom on both. Hard pruning type IIIs also keeps the growth and blooms lower on the plant. If you never prune them down you end up with bare vines with all growth and blooms at the top. On Type IIs if you never prune you often end up with long scraggly vines with few flowers or a big tangled ball of dead stems.

The cedar shredding has always been attributed to squirrels around here. They do this for their nesting, in Spring, and, perhaps to help insulate their places to sleep in the trees, when the weather gets cold. I suspect woodpeckers for holes in the trees. The only one I have actually seen setting up a round hole is the rather large red-bellied woodpecker, but I suppose downey and hairy woodpeckers do the same.

The route which will give the least headache is to use direct wire 120V AC lighting. Two other alternatives 1. Have the existing 120V AC wiring for the UCL separated out to form the low voltage wiring. Downsides - may not be simple depending on how it was wired up. A separate 120V AC run (with switch(es)) is required to the power supply (transformer). 2. Fish new low voltage wiring and add a separate 120V AC run with the necessary controlling switch(es) to the power supply (transformer). Your electrician will need to use the appropriate wiring gauge to account for the voltage drop and current draw. In both cases, the power supply could be left in the basement. Both could require additional holes inside the cabinets.