I could be wrong about the zone - on a zip code lookup map it tells me 9-10. I am near the coast, and the weather here tends to be much more mild. Those "zones" are pretty broad classifications. Here's a fairly accurate description of where I live: "Salinas, CA climate is mild during summer when temperatures tend to be in the 60's and cool during winter when temperatures tend to be in the 50's. The warmest month of the year is September with an average maximum temperature of 74.60 degrees Fahrenheit, while the coldest month of the year is December with an average minimum temperature of 39.40 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperature variations between night and day tend to be fairly limited during summer with a difference that can reach 19 degrees Fahrenheit, and moderate during winter with an average difference of 22 degrees Fahrenheit. The annual average precipitation at Salinas is 15.12 Inches. Rainfall in is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is January with an average rainfall of 3.00 Inches." We do get some 90 degree days, but only a handful. I had read the FAQ about blossom drop. . .I don't think too hot is going to be my biggest problem. My neighbor (who's in something like his 60th year of planting tomatoes in his backyard across the street - he's 92) said he usually doesn't even plant until around May 1 because it's not warm enough to really get 'em growing; in his words, "they just sit there and look at ya." Maybe I'm misunderstanding the term "frost date." Is it a technical term, or just the last time that you wake up to frozen stuff around you? Stupid question, I know, but I have a feeling I'm not communicating something correctly. Yes, the plants get direct sun for at least 6-8 hours a day (I need to be a little more scientific about it), but it's been a cold spring - it's been in the 50's all this last week with a high of 63 projected for the next week. On the few hot days we have had, the plants have practically grown before my eyes, but they don't grow much during these chilly times. So. . .I can put in a stake without messing up their little root systems? Thanks, Christopher

i'm sorry. no, we have the brick picked out. i'm just wondering about the siding that goes on our dormers, etc. that house that i found in the above pic is about 20 minutes from where we are building, but it's the only house that i can find that has both white siding, white front porch, almond windows, and almond trim. i'm thinking now that i may stick with the almond trim that will go along with the windows, but then add an off white (possibly BM lancaster whitewash or something) as the front porch and siding color. that wouldn't be so STARK and stick out so much. i do love the black. i think it just looks so classic and of course, it looks wonderful with our roof color. our contractor said today that they are going to start bricking tomorrow. so, i'll be able to have a pic of the house with the actual brick on it, instead of some that i've applied from another home. thank you all so SO much for your opinions and comments. i need them! since i'm now a stay at home mom. . . .all my buddies still teach school, so i sit here and think about all these crazy decisions and drive myself insane! my sweet hubby says he doesn't care. as long as we stay in budget. . . .so he's not the greatest help!

Welcome Pattico, I'm so glad you decided to check this forum out. I "know" you from reading your posts over on the GJ forum. I know the word Tole scares some people, so I am glad this forum also includes Decorative painting in the title. We are interested in most "anything and everything" someone has painted. That's how we get inspiration and sometimes even "motivation". LOL Your Santa looks wonderful--great that you are able to freehand paint--that's a real talent. I prefer patterns because what is in my head doesn't always translate to what my brush paints! (even with the pattern, it might not!) ;o) Please pull out pics of more things you have done and post them for us to ooh and ahh over. We love to see everyone's creations, and even love to chat about other things over on the conversations side. Luvs

ThunderBear48, I had a little bit of a hard time time following you on your last post. It's possible we're emphasizing two different topics based on different parts of the conversation. Maybe to clarify a bit: As I said in my original post, this is for a vegetable garden which would sort of implicitly exclude azaleas and blueberries. I understand that some species have different requirements but I'm interested in a more or less "generic" mix. My list at the beginning was (as I mentioned in another comment) an attempt to build a shopping list. Accuracy would be nice, but I'm not going to be dumping those amounts into a big bin & mixing at once. Having a surplus is fine, I just wanted to be sure that I didn't have too little to complete the project. I reached 15 cups based on the following (assuming at the time [inaccurately] 15 cu ft of pine bark and extrapolating Al's recipe): Big batch: 2-3 cu ft pine bark fines 2 cups dolomitic (garden) lime (or gypsum in some cases) Assuming that I used the least amount of pine bark in the mix (thus the highest amount of lime I'd need): (15/2) * 2 = 15 cups lime Obviously, there may be some flaws in the way I reached that number. Since that point, I've learned plenty (much of it from information shared in this thread) so I don't think the original numbers are as relevant as they were at the start. I've already purchased my materials so at this point I've moved on from those original bulk numbers, feeling confident that I have enough to complete my total mix. At that time I'll be following, more accurately Al's recipe quantities. Admittedly, I don't yet know enough to understand soil PH well, and I have to start somewhere. I'm relying largely on other's advice, so now the remaining question would be "is Al's recipe a good one". Given the number of times I've heard others reference it, I'm inclined to believe that it is. If anyone can share specifics (or information sources) on soil PH and how you are all arriving at your numbers, that would be great. The results of my research have been kind of across the board. Al's recipe calls for 4 tbsp per 1/2 gallon of peat, while Seysonn recommends 0.5 tbsp per half gallon. I've read other sources cite 8 tbsp per 1/2 gallon of peat. That's a pretty dramatic difference from all sources unless I'm entirely misunderstanding the information at hand. I'd love to understand it better if anyone has any (preferably quantifiable, not just anecdotal) info they'd like to share. I know the chemistry can get pretty complex so if we can keep tips at the kindergarden (pun intended) level, that'd be swell. :-) Thanks everyone for the time you all take to share your thoughts!