Hi Kimberly, I am just north of you. I have a half acre, very wooded subivision lot that is crammed with all the fruit my husband will let me plant. (Most of my landscaping is getting replaced with ornamental bushes that fruit!) One suggestion that I would have for you is to pick very disease resistant, low-care trees/bushes/plants. My friend who lives around the corner from me has a large planting of apples, pears, cheries, etc., but has a lot of trouble with insects and disease. There are definitely varieties of apples and pears that are easier to grow than others due to disease resistance. Sweet cherries are going to be tough without a lot of spraying. I have two Carmine Jewel cherry bushes that are more like pie cherries but only get 6 feet tall, so they can be netted. Birds and especially squirrels are a big problem here. If I had your space, I would definitely do the cane fruits - Navaho and Triple Crown blackberries, Caroline red raspberries, Jewell black raspberries, etc. Easy - and if you net them, you will get to eat them. Some unusual and low care fruit trees you might consider are American Persimmon - Yates is supposed to be delicious and productive without a male. I am going to plant a Nikita's Gift hybrid persimmon in the spring. Also, an Illinois Everbearing mulberry gets lots of good reviews on this forum. The animals are the only thing you will have to fight for those trees. Both persimmons and mulberries are extremely nutritious, too. Good luck and have fun! Mary Kay

Karen, I am so sorry to read about Nipper. Pets are part of us. They are there when we need them, no questions asked. No unnecessary words to mar the beautiful silence, a partner in the garden, couch and bed. It is so hard to let them go. Thank you for sharing Nipper with us. He was absolutley gorgeous. Shannon P.S. I had to put my Australian Sheperd down in April. I planted an Endless Hydrangea in her memory. I chose EH because it blooms on old wood and new- I got Cappie when she was a puppy and I was a teenager- young. She was a retired trail dog. She has been with me through hs, college, getting married, and kids- old. It blooms all summer/endlessly like Cappie's friendship and companionship. The hydrangea doesn't replace her by any means but it helps to look out my window and see her shrub. It is also easy to take cuttings so that if we move she can go with us. Shannon

Okay...I actually got this box on Thursday...and yes I opened it then, but have been busy. This wonderful package came from MargeC. She sent Vintage, Floral & Romance..Miss Elizabeth's scrapbook pages, 2 different types of shape scissors (I didn't have these shapes either!), a great garden flower windmill (it is already in its new home), a memo gift set with a floral design, a writing journal with a floral motif(I'm going to use this one for my reflections of my teaching), a photo memo box(OK..I just realized what this is..call me slow. This is sooo cute), a wonderful double teddybear figurine holding a heart shaped crystal, and a beautiful oval shaped gift box full of seeds & bulbs. The list of seeds & bulbs: Gladiolus Madame de Paris Gladiolus Prins Claus Winter onion Hollyhock Summer carnival Yellow Figleaf Hollyhock Hollyhock Double Peach Poppy Pink Siberian Iris Purple Helleboru Mixed daylilies Lunaria Purple I can't wait to get these to growing and seeing them bloom. She also sent a sweet fairy card. Thank you so much Marge for sharing. I really have some wonderful gardening friends. GW is a wonderful place. Dee

Hostagrams, is there anyway you can find another tri can spinner for your new home? I think I'd be tempted to take the old one with me. If you're home hasn't been sold yet take it out before you show it again and it's legally yours unless already stipulated in the sales contract. Thanks for the link too! Plow, sounds like you have a great system going for you. Along with your recycling service. I do say I miss it coming to our home like it did in the city, but it's nice to know here it helps support 4H. It's worth the drive into town. Cyn, now that you mention numbers one and two I should ask if they do more. I was only going by what the city took. Hubby just went up this past Saturday so it will be a few weeks before we go up there again, but maybe they have a website I should check. I'm glad you mentioned that. Thanks! Seasyde, thanks for the link. I'll check that out. I'm so tired of having to cruch them by stepping on them. Hubby has been doing it lately since I wear my Bass thongs all summer long and they and crushing just don't go together. I'd either twist my ankle or hurt the shoes, though they are sturdy (I replace them about once every decade) I don't want to take the chance. Mommabird, you don't mean Columbus, Nebraska, by any chance, do you? Jak 1 sounds like you have a great system too. We have bins just out side the door to the garage, but we were lucky and found a drawer type unit that works great. Never thought of adding shelves right out side the door for purchased bins. At the time we bought ours we were having trouble finding anything aimed at recycling. I'm guessing it's easier now. We found the bin storage at Home Depot for only $19.99 about five years ago. As you can see it's double that now at Wal Mart. Here is a link that might be useful: Sterilite stacking bins