Well, the tomatoes are ready to be tethered to the wire, went from about 10" to 2' in 2 weeks! Corn went from 3" to about 8". Squash (zuk and crookneck) will start delivering in a day or 2! Green beans have started traveling! Need to finish the jute up the bamboo soon! Tomatillos still have flea beetle bites, but look healthy. Daughter said she watered the raised up garden boxes, but I think she forgot them! Peppers and eggplant are dead! Sigh! Need to till up those beds for re-planting! I didn't see a lot of gardens in Hawaii, but have read of them! I'm thinking it's too humid to not have a bunch of fungus and disease! Anyhow, still not sure what time it is! Really tired! Back to the garden tomorrow! Nancy

This is where I am at, DH seeÂs us remodeling kitchen in three or more years and I see us remodeling our kitchen in the next year or earlier. So, Right now I am more in the process of elimination as far as cabinet brands go. Many earlier brands have been eliminated due to size issues as in I want and need deeper and taller wall cabinets and prefer little to no fillers. Also, cost has been a big factor. I have a basic idea of layout but need help in changing the nook area and windows. Some appliances will be reused but we will replace refrigerator with the kichenaid 42" built-in French door paneled and replace the microwave with the adventium. I have the countertop narrowed down to three or four and know exactly what I want for the backsplash, still unsure of wall splash behind stove though. The kitchen sink has been narrowed down to two choices and cab hardware to three. I know what I want for lighting but havenÂt found exactly the right one, I will know it when I see it. Still tossing around the idea of wood range hood verses stainless. The doors of my dreams are simple $$$applied moulding but with most likely end up with nice raised panel for style of home. Husband thinks I spend way too much time thinking of and planning for the kitchen.

Thank you for all of your thoughts. We are basically doing a kitchen facelift. My kitchen has perfectly nice maple cabinets which happen to have an orange hue. All of the counter tops are black galaxy and I've found it oppressive since we moved in. It's funny, but men generally love this kitchen and can't understand why I would want changes; but I do, I have and I've lived with it for 12 years and I'm ready to make changes. Most of the appliances are near the end of their useful life. So we're painting the cabinets and replacing some with glass and gorgeous mullions in 2 of the doors (another budget buster!), new sink, new appliances, my high microwave will be replaced with the Sharpe drawer model. I'm going to try to do something with my soffits, but we won't know exactly what until we get in there. I'm changing the granite on my island and also the shape of it. We may add a banquette if it makes sense space wise. We also will be re configuring some of the other cabinets and adding embellishments such as moldings and new hardware.I'm getting rid of my Black Galaxy bs and have found gorgeous options for the bs, yet another budget buster...... I also have to change all of the carpet in the house, redo all the bathroom cabinets. Since I'll have a lot of my huge slab left over I want to use it in the upstairs bathrooms. We are also painting the entire house, adding some crown moldings, changing out armoires made for old tv's to be refitted for the new slim ones. etc. etc. So it's a big project with lots of parts. I just got stuck on the sink! I also discovered Edgar Birabi hardware. Need to stop looking at this stuff! Green Designs, I love both of those sinks but they're only 21 inches and I need a bigger sink. The one I want is 33 and it would fit perfectly in the granite without having to change it. This will save some money since I won't have to replace the existing slab. Sorry I may have forgotten to mention that I have to keep the perimeter BG since there's so much of it and it would cost way too much to replace all of it.We won't be overspending at all for the neighborhood even if we doubled the budget! Shannon and Remodel, I'm putting new appliances back into existing cabinetry so there's no changing it without a significant amount of money being spent on the cabinets. I really like the look of "disappearing" appliances so it's important to me as well. I did hit a bright spot today when I found the EXACT double convection wall ovens I want for a $1,000 savings at Fegusons clearance room!!!! I could not find any of the other appliances for any less and I called and went everywhere. I'm in South Orange County, California. I have to run out now but will try to post my rudimentary plan when I get back. I also have an old post that shows my kitchen currently somewhere so I'll try to revive that thread.

Great comments above from Jerry, Gill, and Hyn. Yes, please do add 1/3 more of something gritty and non organic to your soil. It should be loose and very fast-draining and dry out sooner rather than later. I don't know where you are ... please tell us ... and whether it's winter there. It sounds as if you have the trees indoors. These are tropical and will never get enough light for growing indoors unless you use grow lights. But that's OK ... They will just go dormant or semi-dormant, taking a rest until Spring. That and culture shock is what you are seeing in terms of leaf drop. Do not water regularly while indoors during cold weather, just enough to moisten lightly and allow to dry completely in between. Otherwise, they may very well rot ... either from the tips or roots. Tip rot travels downward and root rot upwards and needs to be excised. To answer your question about leaving fine feeder roots exposed so they can grow thick ... no ... As Gill states, those need to be in contact with substrate and are there to feed. Otherwise, they atrophy and die off. That's OK ... There are more underground. That one big white exposed one needs to be buried more. You can raise it about an inch but that's enough. Otherwise, that suddenly exposed white section will burn in the sun. Adeniums should be gradually raised, about an inch a year. Please take a close look at all your branch tips. If anything is turning black or mushy or any kind of soft, prune it diagonally / . Make sure there is no black/brown left on the cut stem. That is rot and can potentially travel down the tree. When you prune, you will activate more branching. It DOES look like you have flower buds beginning on one of the tips. I hope it blooms for you. If they fall off due to culture shock, don't dismay. They will bloom again after Spring. Once Spring arrives in your region and you notice active growth, slowly begin increasing water up to more or less twice a week on hot mid-summer days. Also, you will want to begin feeding once in active growth ... Feed at 1/4 strength every week for best results. Last, but not least, you will want to acclimate your trees to more light in the spring. Move little by little until you can have them in full sun all day during the Summer. As a safety measure, I do not recommend leaving adeniums outdoors when overnight temps fall under 50 degrees F. They are succulents and can freeze. Please do stay with us and ask as many questions as necessary. There are many knowledgeable and helpful people here on this forum. Wishing you all the very best, Maria Elena