I had better luck once I started using broken pieces of clay lining planting holes than wire baskets. But, that doesn't solve your above the ground problem. Course it helped too once the feral cat population increased. Then every spring I struggled to find homes for them every year and had to haul them off to the humane society for the ones I couldn't. It mostly started when the older folks passed away in the community and the families set loose their cats. By the 10th year I didn't have any above ground OR below ground critters anywhere near. All I had to battle then were the deer. Too bad the cats didn't scare them off.

Hi Roulie, I was looking at the beautiful blue kitchens in your thread about painting your cabs, and went looking for this thread for more pictures and info about your kitchen. (I would try the SW Naval from Deb's island on one of your trial boards, it just rocks!) I have an opinion about the hole in your counter. I love the idea of using stainless, and if the Jenn-aire that was removed is the griddle next to the big Garland, I would suggest that you have someone come and fabricate a stainless steel cover that simply butts up to the range and covers the whole counter top surface, front overhang and all, for the length of counter top hole in the wood. That will give you a bulletproof landing spot for messy cooking. YOU may not need it, but you have at least one young person, and a messy spill on your butcher block with a stainless steel insert in the hole in the wood will be a lot harder to clean up than on a seamless sheet of steel. Have the fabricator match the finish as much as possible to that of the Garland, and it may not seem so much like another added texture in the room. It also occurred to me, looking at the photo, that there does not seem to be a range hood. Is that a problem for you, or do you not put a lot of grease into the air when you cook? A metal fabricator could fashion one to fit below that cabinet, and you could put the guts in the cab. Just something to think about if you have someone out to see about the hole in the counter. I went looking for your thread about your butcher block counter refinishing. The problem with wood near your sink area made me think of old porcelain 1920s to 1930s sinks as a solution. In my first search result I saw the one linked below, and it fit the one in my mind's eye perfectly. Something like this will better protect that beautiful refinished counter of yours. It prevents any more deterioration where the wood meets the back splash, as well, and does not go very far up the wall. Check out the link below. I think I am interested in your project because it reminds me of my own. I refinished a used bead board kitchen almost three years ago.I have an island top that is 25 years old sitting in my garage that is very similar to your butcher block. I did not use it when I bought it with my Green Demolition kitchen. I refinished my beaded-board oak cabinets from GD by hand sanding and re-staining them with a creamy oil-based stain that my local Sherwin Williams mixed up for me. I could not get a "pickled" stain in water-base. My routed-out lines were far closer together than yours, but you have a LOT of cabs to do, too. If I had to do it again, I think I might paint. I do not have tons of wood grain around like you do, and really like the grain peeking through, so staining was a good choice for me at the time. My problem was in getting the stain to stick to end grain. All my rounded edges exposed me to end grain, but I did not realize that this was my problem at the time. Stain did not stick well on the perimeter of all of my 34 doors and 20 drawers, and I have a rubbed-through look in places. I also have a few pieces that are a different color. Don't know if it was a stirring problem, a real color difference in the first stain can, or what. By the time I was done, I just did not want to know! Part of my problem is that I have asthma and had to wear terrible face masks to keep the VOCs out of my lungs. I had to work outside because of the fumes, too. In the steamy heat of the summer of 2010, I had little patience for problems and just let the color differences get by me. I just wanted it DONE. If you can paint with latex, it is a lot less bother and mess than what I went through! Oil-based stains are still the most common with wood. Here is a picture of my doors before I refinished them. If you want to see my kitchen (minus the missing cab door that we found in the carpenter's shop 6 months after I finished staining everything else), you can go to my website and see it at www.pbase.com/nancyb/image/127230055 Here is Here is a link that might be useful:

While I really want marble for our kitchen, we have 2 small sons and I am worried they will mess it up. We have wavered back and forth whether to go for it, but dh saw a Corian counter, Rain Cloud, in IKEA the other day and fell in love. I would normally never pay more for a manmade product, but IKEA has a 40% off counters special this month if you buy your kitchen there, so that makes it also more affordable. Since I have made virtually every other choice (I ask for his input, but his usual response is "I don't care", which translates to "whatever makes you happy" but also "if there is a screw-up, it is not mine", not to mention "you choose because I don't want to do the legwork"), I think I will "give" him this one, lol. It has a softer/warmer feel than stone and makes less noise if you clink against it. I am not 100% convinced, but am getting close. I may have to contact the PA yard about the quartzite and get a price, because that is seriously pretty too..... We can do our full kitchen with the Corian, including upcharges and customizations, installed, for less than $2k. That is going to be hard to beat. Our kitchen is not small, btw... I also forgot that if I apply for an IKEA credit card when buying, I'll get an additional 10% off and have 0% financing for 24 months. Corian Rain Cloud:

Sesbania herbacea? I'm not good enough with these to rule out some Cassia species.