Do you know their songs? She Drives Me Crazy Don't Look Back Good Thing Suspicious Minds Looks like we're hijacking another topic! Hey, to stay on topic, there once was a topic entitled, "I painted my traps" and he wanted to know if that would hurt the plant

Linda, dropping dirt is exactly what I do ha. I work for a propogating nursery and we have huge compost piles outside which we are generously allowed to use. I take two big plastic boxes left over from when we moved here and fill them every day with the compost (mostly dirt but lots of interesting stuff comes up in it). I take it home and drop it on the sand until I have the size or shape garden I want. I plant it and eventually I border it with dropped cement. I've made about seven gardens of different sizes doing this. Seriously I could drop the dirt and water it and all kinds of goodies would pop up (along with weeds). I've had datura, viola, spiderwort, hyssop and of course petunias come up in it. Adele

Well, lpinkmountain, there's always next year. The benefit of this recipe is the strawberries stay almost entirely whole, so it has a lovely appearance and texture. The downside is the traditional gel temperature doesn't apply, so you have to use the cold plate test to determine degree of set. The original recipe was done outside, so it's basically a naturally dehydrated jam, but we don't have the sunshine here (especially this year) and with the oven you don't have to worry about insects. I think the balsamic vinegar could easily be reduced. I'd be inclined to add near the end tablespoon by tablespoon and see how I like it. You could do a balsamic-peppercorn, which makes a lovely "boutique" preserve for gifts. I'm thinking that might be the base for some wonderful glazes and for a killer strawberry-peppercorn-mustard condiment. Also, lpinkmountain, I've used this same recipe for other berries, particularly raspberries, which are so delicate they tend to lose all identity. This results in a beautiful, bright, "textured" preserve, so is perfect for raspberries. Blueberries with a cinnamon stick and maybe some whole allspice could also be made in the same way. So play with it, see what you come up with and let us know how you like the results. As far as traditional strawberry jam (the "holy grail", LOL), I've never had a set failure. However, due to the growing conditions here in the PNW, the berries have a different sugar-acid balance that makes a good set easier to achieve. Remember, too, that with traditional no-commercial-pectin jams it's a good idea to use 1/4 underripe fruit. That boosts the natural pectin level. Carol

It better not look stupid because that's what I'm going to have to do lol. I've got the same thing with a taller living room. Your orange is beautiful but Anjou Pear is a gorgeous color, too. I'd do diffent fabrics on the windows. Just find something (color, scale) that ties the patterns together. I love looking at those planning boards with samples of fabrics that flow together. Stripes, checks, florals etc.