Cynna - don't be disheartened or discouraged and think that you can't grow attractive and productive plants in commercial potting soils - you can, and lots of people do. You can use the thread about container soils and water movement to better arm yourself so you can take steps to avoid excessive water in the soil and deal with it when it does occur. While much of the chatter about bark-based soils is between people who are actively trying to get the most out of their growing experience by improving the foundation their plantings are built on (their soils), the information and an understanding of how soils work will take you a long way toward increased success. I'm not saying this in a boastful way because I wrote it - I'm saying it because after hearing it 100s of times from others, I'm more comfortable saying it in a matter-of-fact manner - because it's not just my opinion, but the opinion of hundreds after practical application. If you bring your concerns/problems here, we'll help you work them out. It's possible you might have to deal with some suggestions to improve your soil or add pine bark, but if you start by setting the parameter, "This is what I'm using! Help me get the most from it", you'll get guidance with that thought in mind. Al

Jessejr: Your mention of Miracle Grow Garden Soil compels me to ask this question: Are you by any chance trying to grow cantaloupes in small containers? All melons and other vine crops develop very large root systems when grown on the ground. When confined to containers, roots can develop only so much as the containers allow. Roots in containers also heat up in very warm weather, which can impair their ability to function. It is possible to grow melons in containers, but for a chance of even a couple of melons the containers must be adequately sized, and kept cool during the heat of the day. Black plastic containers are the worst in terms of heat absorption. If you are using Miracle Grow soil simply to add organic material to your garden, of course, it should cause no problems. Application of fertilizers, or not, has nothing to do with your problem (unless you have seriously over-fertilized), and the fact the seeds are "open pollinated" even less. My best melons are always hybrid types, which grow bigger and better fruits, and usually have the advantage of some inbred disease resistance. I have grown many of the OP types in past years (including Hale's Best), and my favorite cantaloupe is "Primo" from Stokes Seeds. I leave the open pollinated melons to nostalgia buffs. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Hi Anthony - I'm glad to hear that so many of them survived. I know you were worried there for a bit that you'd have few viable plants this year. Guess they are tougher then we give them credit for, tight? ;) Cagers often say that they don't prune and they get lots of production. QUESTION: Does this have many fruits ripening at the same time, are the fruits smaller that typical fruits for the variety? More pounds of smaller tomatoes is not something that I want. Hope it's alright if I restrict myself to just this part. As you probably know, I'm a cager and don't prune. But this year I also set up a Florida weave row to try and for comparison. Same varieties in each - Stupice, Bloody Butcher, Brandy Boy, Opalka, Black Cherry, Tappy's Heritage, Super Marmande, Marianna's Peace, and Sweet Cluster. We are eating the Stupice, B. Butcher and a couple of S. Cluster so far. I pruned all of them up to the first fruit cluster and then stopped on the caged ones but pruned the FW row to 3 stems each. Right now they both have just about the same number of fruit +/- a couple, with the exception of the Opalkas, Black Cherry, and the Sweet Clusters. The caged plants of those varieties are at least 18 inches taller and have 1/2 again more green fruit than the pruned ones do. On all the plants the fruit size is the same to the naked eye - I didn't dig out the calipers. ;) The caged ones are ripening from the lowest cluster up - same as the pruned ones - no faster, no slower so far. Don't know if this helps or not? But so far the only real advantage I can see is that the pruned plants are going to be a lot easier to pick the fruit on but I am also worried that I'm going to have more sun scald on them and less production. Time will tell. Hope this is of some help. Dave

If you are thinking about the 220V 6K 1986 and can get a one you might consider it. I've had one since 2003 and it has performed flawlessly. It has many of the features of the older models, and yet is still more configurable than the 1215 which followed it. You can select a tap cold pre-wash that is heated to warm to deal with stains and then it will change the water and continue with whatever temp you have selected for the rest of the cycle, and this can be added to any cycle. It has a soak cycle that can be adjusted to last up to six hours. I've used this once. It does not have a 150F or 168F wash. It has Cold 85F, Warm 105F, Very warm 120F, Hot 140F, and HOT 190F. Some cycles like silk, woolens, and dedicates will allow cold 85F or tap cold. It has an extended option which increases the length of all parts of a cycle - good for heavily soiled whites, but I usually use the regular cycle which, with my incoming hot water of 115F, has taken 49 minutes with extra rinse for temps of 105F, 120F and 140F, and 56 minutes with extra rinse for 190F. Sometimes cold water is mixed into the fills even though the heater will then start some minutes later. At 190F you can hear the water near boiling during the tumbling pauses and the glass will get too hot to touch so I never really worry about how hot it really is. Temps over 120F will cause a cool down to occur before the wash water gets drained. If you select perm Press at 85F - no cool down will take place. Perm Press at 105F water will run in to cool down the wash water. Perm Press at 120F or above and some water will be pumped out, then cold water runs in to begin the cool down. It will also adjust the cycle length to the load size so if you have a smaller load it takes less time. Like the W4840 the door will lock at temps over 120F. It will also lock when the water level is above the bottom of the door during the rinses. The manual advises you NOT to use chlorine Bleach. I have never used and don't need it to whiten, remove stains, or sanitize anything.