I agree pawpaws are generally slow growing and I also have found the variety 'mango' to be the fastest growing variety, it grows much faster than others. I have had pretty good luck using fish emulsion every 2-3 weeks and keeping the trees mulched heavily with organic mulch of some kind and kept watered well, at least an inch per week. I also heavily amend my soil when planting with well rotted compost and/or manure. I have red clay but I think this would be just as beneficial in a sandy soil too.

Thanks for your input esh. I think I need to take some seedlings out. There are a few basswoods and redbuds in the area and the paw paws which are common in the untouched forested areas are slowly making a comeback but the paw paws, in particular, seem to be sensitive to what's around them. The previous owners upset the balance by cutting all the big trees in this area...if I leave it I don't think I'm going to get anything but wall to wall poplars! So I will try to take a good look at the forest and space the poplars out a bit. If you can think of anymore tree thinning tips please let me know...I'm pretty new at "restoration". Thank-you!

For one thing - runsnwalken - I have worked for and volunteered at MANY MANY MANY cat shelters, rescues, and organizations - NONE of them ever used the adoption fee to pay for declawing the cat! Especially since the adoption fee barely covers (usually it doesn't!) the care given to the cat. When adopting a cat from a legitimate rescue or shelter, the cat should have all its shots and vaccs up to date. Usually, rescues also neuter and spay the cats as well. For cats too young to get spayed or neutered, most rescues will either give you a voucher/rebate or schedule a time when you can bring your new pet to their vet and have it spayed neutered at no cost to you. Given that shots, vaccs, spaying, and neutering is so expensive why would a rescue or shelter take perfectly good cats and have them declawed when all that's going to do is cost them more money! And basically, you're scaring people away from adopting a cat and paying a reasonable fee for adopting. In my eyes, the rescues much deserve the adoption fees they charge - it costs a lot of money to care for a pet and 99.9% of the time, the adoption fees only cover the shots and maybe the spay/neuter. They don't cover all the food and medications and time spent caring for that pet. It's highly unlikely (nearly impossible) that a rescue would spend more of their money (when they have barely any money at all anyway) on declawing cats. And the whole thing about rescues and shelters giving dead bodies to food companies...maybe some hole-in-the-wall, small town shelters do that, but I seriously doubt that it's common. One book does not an expert make. Anyone can write a book about anything. Doesn't mean it's true. Sorry for rambling. That whole thing just really ticked me off. As for the soft paws, they do work but you need to know your cat first. Some cats really tolerate them well. Most cats get really irritated when you put them on, but once they are on they don't notice them. Other cats hate them and chew on them until they come off. I, personally, have never had problems. And actually, you don't always have to keep putting them on. My sister-in-law only had to put them on her cats for about 3 months. The whole time, whenever the cats would act like they were scratching at her furniture or carpets, she would scold them and place them at a scratching post. When the cats would scratch on the post, she would give them a treat. Now, her cats don't wear the soft paws anymore and they don't scratch at anything they're not supposed to. I've just started putting them on my kittens and they're doing fine with them. They never really scratched at furniture or anything, but they did use their claws to climb up furniture and after they tried to climb up my expensive leather ottoman, I went out and bough the soft claws. Now, they can't climb on stuff and I'm training them on where they can use their claws. I only have to replace 2 or 3 caps a week and that's mainly because they're kittens and their nails grow faster. Here are my tips to you: 1) Have a partner with you who can help you! If one isn't available, or if you ever need to replace a cap by yourself, wear long and thick rubber gloves. Wrap the cat tightly in an old towel with just the foot out and do it fast! 2) Make sure to reward the kitties after you cap their claws. After a few times, they won't resist and they will actually enjoy having their nails capped. Of course, some cats have different temperaments and they may never like it at all. 3) Make sure to clip the nails but only just the sharp, pointy part. Definitely don't clip too close to the quick! 4) Before gluing the caps on, try them on the claw without the glue first, just in case. Some cats don't fit in the sizing guidelines. This way, you might be able to exchange them for a different size. 5) If you have a long haired cat, you might consider trimming the hair on the feet back a bit. Sometimes if you get the hair stuck in the glue or in the cap, it really irritates them and they will chew the cap off. I have to trim the hair back on my kitties feet a little. It helps! 6) If you're still having troubles, you might consider finding a vet or groomer (groomer would be cheaper!) who would help you put the claws on. Some will do it for a pretty reasonable fee and after you watch them do it, you can usually figure it out on your own. Oh - and they also sell soft paws at Target and they're cheaper than pet stores. At Target sells them in store where I live. Just an FYI. Good luck!

My cat's nails used to snag the sofa when she walked on it, though she never intentionally clawed the furniture. Next time you go to the vet, ask to have them show you how closely you clip the claws. It's possible you aren't clipping close enough. Also you might want to use a regular cat claw clipper instead of a human style clipper. Maybe then the claws will have fewer snags. You could also get a pretty throw and put it across the loveseat for now. I know he uses his clawing post, but another thing our cat loves is the cardboard clawing box, the one that sits flat on the floor, you put a little catnip in it to pique the kitty's interest. Just a Christmas idea for His Majesty. Get the velour seat; leather is too cold. Aerobeds are pretty tough, so I don't think you need to worry about that. If he did puncture it, it would just deflate. Don't get kitty declawed.