Hi, Ellen - Wicks you intend to use to drain the soil needn't be as absorbent as those used to supply water from a source below the soil. To illustrate, saturate your soil in a plastic cup that has a drain hole in it. Allow it to stop draining, then push a toothpick part way into a drain hole so it hangs below the container bottom and observe how much additional water leaves the pot after flowing down the toothpick. Usually, leaving about 3" hang below the container works very well, but there is no harm/disadvantage in using longer wicks. I use strands from a 100% rayon mop head. Al

There is no evidence or reasoning to support the claim that MRSA is treated better by Manuka Honey than other types of "natuyral" honey. There is no evidence to show that MRSA is more susceptible to honey than any other type of staph aureus. Have you every heard of use it and loose it? What ever you use to kill bacteria (with the possible exceptions of alcohol and high high pressure and heat) will eventually have a resistance developed to it. Honey is not an alternative too antibiotics, it is an alternative type of antibiotic, which has some support in the medical literature and a few different plausible modes of action. The only thing I have seen (and granted I did not read your studies) that puts Manuka honey out there as been better have been memes made or descended from those made by people trying hard to make a living selling Manuka honey.

Ellenr, Digitalis x mertonensis is a hybrid of Digitalis purpurea (biennial) and D. grandiflora (perennial) and is supposed to grow like a short-lived perennial. I don't think your seeds are going to sprout until it warms up so don't worry. Although Foxglove is pretty hardy, and remains semi-evergreen over the winter even in my zone. I've winter-sown D. purpurea and bought plants - it is pretty much biennial but sometimes comes back for a 3rd year if deadheaded. D. grandiflora has been reliably perennial. Oddly, I tried to winter-sow D. grandiflora 2 years in a row (commercial seeds) with NO germination. But the plants I bought from Bluestone, have reseeded in the gardens nicely! Go figure.

Tomatoes require a minimum of 1" of water per week (1.5" in a sandy, fast-draining soil). You are right, deep watering is best. Tomatoes also need consistent soil moisture, as fluctuations can cause cracking and/or blossom end rot. A good layer of mulch will help maintain more consistent soil temperature and moisture levels, as well as help keep weeds down. Don't panic if you don't have a lot of tomatoes during this very hot weather. The plants often will not set fruit if temperatures are above 90 degrees. Rutgers Cooperative Extension has a few fact sheets on growing tomatoes in the home garden; a link for one of them is below. Here is a link that might be useful: Growing Tomatoes in the Home Garden