OOoh, are you up there near those Sand Mountain tomatoes???? You'll find it SO much fun when everything starts growing and remember, the "hunt" for organic materials will be even more fun! I had let my beds go to rack and ruin over the last several years and last year decided enough was enough and was going to do lasagna gardening (it might have been around this time last year...gorgeous weather like we've had the last few days. I was driving by a bank where the landscape company had bagged up the old mulch and dirt to get ready to re-mulch and asked if I could have it. They thought I was nuts but I haven't stopped. I just can't wait for the grass to start getting cut around here! Just pulled 25 bales of hay to the back yard that I'm going to layer on the beds today, ala Ruth Stout method, a precursor to lasagna gardening. (See if your library has any of her books, they are a HOOT!) I am also working on mixing up stuff for beneficial microorganisms from yogurt whey and molasses. Roll Tide! Here is a link that might be useful: Check out this Granny Gardener! :)

mogardener Sounds like what I hope to do. Our Winters are not as cold so at this time I plan to us chainlink fence on 2 sides and a privacy fence on the North side and coop (a shed we are converting to a coop) on 4th side and a roof to keep the run dry since they will not free range in my garden or the neighborhood. I plan to have a roost in the coop and in the run because I think they will sleep in the run during our Summers which can be very hot at night. I'm hoping they can process weeds for me so I don't have weeds sprouting the next year. I plan to have a smaller tractor...we do not have a lawn...if we can't eat it or it doesn't produce flowers fir butterflies/hummingbirds..it is out of here! LOL I plan to use the chicken tractor on veggie beds after they finish for the year...put amendments on the bed and let them work it in for me while they fertilize, too. Feedstore called this morning early so DH drove the 40+ miles to pick up the rest of our chicks. At this time we have six 3 1/2 week old Red/Gold Sex Links (lg brown eggs/high production), five 1 week old Buff Orpington (lg light brown eggs/medium production,good brood hens in case I want to expand), and eleven DH brought in today...five 1 day old Silver Lace Wyandottes (lg brown eggs/high production and good brood hens), three 1 day old Barred Rocks (lg light brown eggs/high production) and for fun...green eggs n ham ;) three 1 day old Easter Eggers (one chipmunk and two yellow) (med. size colored eggs/med. production). I think I will have a colorful flock and hopefully eggs to sell to cover feed costs. Saw on Food Network a chef talking about eggs he served...said they came from the farm next door...that they fed them beet greens so the eggs were high in Omega 3...figure I might be able to do that...had beets growing all this past Winter and fed them to my Mini Lop. Peggy

Grafting has the distinct advantage over own root propogation from commercial perspective of allowing propogation of larger numbers of plants per amount of budwood used. You can theoretically get one plant for each bud on the wood taken from the mother plant. When I strike my own cuttings, it is common to have four buds or more on the cutting that I use to produce one plant. In my experience, a grafted plant, if the rootstock is suitable to your area, most often will also mature and produce in a shorter amount of time. When I buy a grafted plant, it will most often grow bigger and produce more wood and blooms in it's first and second years. My own root plants that I propogate usually take four or more years before they can compete with a purchased two year old grafted plant. And, as Mad Gallica said, if you plant them deep as we do in the north, they will usually go own root as the years go by. Again, in my experience, it also depends to a large degree on the particular variety. Certain varieties are very difficult to propagate on their own roots. Then there are varieties that while fairly easy to propogate on their own roots, won't be as vigorous or produce as much wood and hence bloom as an plant grafted on a vigorous root stock. Some varieties that fall in to this later category in my experience would include Gloire de Dijon (Tea / Noisette ) , St. Swithun ( Austin ), Orange Ruffles and Break O'Day ( Brownell's ), and Pearlie Mae ( Buck ). Finally, there is the climate issue. Some varieties will do very well own root in moderate or warm climates, but will not have enough vigour to grow in the shorter growing season and harsher conditions of a colder zone ( 5 or lower ). So again, in my experience, grafted roses: if planted well, and acquired from a good producer, meaning that they are not virused, will always perform at least as well as own root. I grow both grafted and own root plants. I propogate many of my own plants for cultivars that do well own root. Some cultivars I grown grafted, simply because I know that the specific variety performs better grafted in my conditions. So, simply put, it will depend on the variety, growing conditions and size of own root that you purchase, band, 1 gallon, 2 gallon, etc. If you buy a 1 gallon or larger own root, of a variety that does well own root in the conditions that you are going to grow it in, then its all good. It will probably do just as well, just as quickly as a grafted bareroot. In my view, the own root, grafted debate is one of either personal preference, or bias. I'd challenge anyone to visit my garden and tell me which plants are grafted and which are own root without digging to look for bud unions. That's my two bits worth. Cheers, Rideau Rose Lad

Thank you, God spoke through you to me. I lost my husband Tuesday (6/15/10) suddenly to a massive heart attack, he was 55 yrs old and we were married 34 yrs. We always said we complimented each other. When one was down the other picked them up. I "will" search for those positive things he brought out in me and do something positive with them as God brings them to my memory. Bless you