So to add to the mix of questions (no pun intended)...what do I do about watering when I go on a two week vacation? I must admit I was lazy this year...okay, not lazy, just precautious. I had back surgery in November and am not even supposed to be gardening, but God help me, I can't stop myself. My husband had been entirely overworked and I couldn't stand to ask him to help me round up everything needed to mix the soil I know I should be using in the quantities I needed and then actually have to do the work to mix it up since I couldn't have done it. (Of course, now my back is doing much better than it was two months ago even, and I could mix the soil with a little help from my husband, but I can't distrub the root systems of my fruits and veggies.) At any rate, we simply bought two big bags of Miracle Gro Moisture Control Container Soil. It is a mixture of coir/bark/peat/pumice/perlite/fertilizer. After planting in it, I have found with the little rain we've been getting, I don't have to water my big 20" pots at all and only have to water the small ones every third day or so. Our temps have been mild to say the least. We've only had three days in the nineties and today it is 65 degrees out. It's May 17! I can't believe this. Now, I will say that the soil stays moist a long time, but it is by no means soggy wet. I do not think that I could pick it up and squeeze out any water, so that is a good thing. However, I also don't think that it has the same beautiful porosity that Al's mix, which I normally use, has. Anyway, In July, I am going away for two weeks and know that 65 won't even happen in the mornings and my plants will need much more water. There are tomatoe plants, peppers (bells and jalepenos), herbs, one black berry, and a Mexican Lime tree. The pots are all different sizes so would need water at different times, and weather is unpredictable here in July. It can rain everyday or not rain at all for days. I want to get a timer to water, but what in the world do I do about setting it? If I set it to water every day and it rains every day, I am worried the soil will be too soggy. If I set it water every third day and it doesn't rain at all, things will wilt. Any suggestions on what to do would be greatly appreciated. I have two months to figure this out. I have a friend who gardens that might be able to come over and change the setting on the timer if necessary. I was going to ask him to come over and pick any ripened veggies and fruit for his family during my time away anyway.

Does the picture illustrate where the tree WAS, or where it is now? The tree is shedding foliage as a drought response, but that doesn't necessarily mean that watering more is any sort of solution. A tree with the foliage mass as large as that in the picture needs a larger root system than even a skilled gardener who knows how to root prune can pack into 30 gallons, and if the previous owner is any sort of grower, he/she KNEW that before the tree was sold and should have done what is necessary to ensure what you're about to endure wouldn't happen. If you keep the tree, you have 2 options. You can keep the soil damp but not wet and let nature take its course (the plant absorbs water most efficiently when the soil is barely damp. The urge to water when the plant is suffering from drought is strong, but remember that over-watering increases the severity of a drought response - doesn't alleviate it. As nature takes its course, the tree will shed leaves and branches until it reaches the point that the root system CAN support the canopy. The reason this is happening is because the plant's main lifeline (the roots that were in the soil) has been severed. The problem with allowing the tree to have control over which branches are shed is in the fact that the tree will shed the branches doing it the least amount of good, which are probably going to be important to the plant's appearance. The other option is for you or someone who understands pruning and structure to remove enough of the canopy that the roots are able to support what remains. That would be my choice because I get to decide what the tree looks like if I have to remove half of the branches. One way or another, the tree is going to balance the root to shoot ratio. Either you take control or let the tree have control. If the pot is partially buried in soil, and the soil the pot is in allows free drainage into the earth, it's almost impossible to over-water - unless the soil the pot is in is very coarse. I'll emphasize again that if you bought the tree from a pro grower, there was an obligation to explain to you what I just did, or to prune the canopy appropriately before you took delivery of the plant. Al

I was just doing resesarch on rocks. (my two semesters of geolodgy long ago didn't help, sigh) Here goes. (I'll sign off now, rather long, best Sherry) .......................................... Before I mention rocks, your fish list is mixed. Ie your combinations (I am assuming you might mean all together) require different environments mates. cichlids need higher ph, hardness. Danios which type, but giant dianos (again much research as I was considering them NOT now... except for large globe tank where they can go round and round, they need huge tank with a big enough school or can be agressive).. Schooling fish, tetras, dianos so on, can be very agressive, the school reduces this agression. Watch them carefully at the store, you will spot this behavior... bigger school bigger space (certainly 55 is big enough for most save for giant diano) Gouramis, again get agressive - some exceptions, but as they mature they set up territories like bettas, and the weakest gets picked on and disease sets in.. then the next one, so on... (just gave them away except for one for each tank, and one even went after my catfish) these were dwarf, unless you have a huge long tank several feet of territory each, pleanty of wood plants. And then their is the dreaded gourami disease, which from vet research may even be viral due to their being bred in horrific conditions now. Even called ticking time bombs by breeders. There are always exceptions. I love this fish, but was very dissapointed and after researching seems a common problem these days. Most of the fish you have listed are not of the peaceful nature, certainly not the gouramies and esp the cichlids! lol I personally do not use fish as water cyclers, cycling can be done and fish need not be stressed. Just go slow and add two to start so on. Some dianos are so frenzied for other fish, slower moving ones, they discombobulate the whole tank... (again from reading much of others experience) (sorry for my horrible spelling) So, decide on cichlids which would be alone and possibly with loaches depending on type. (loaches are a great fish mho) Here is a link mentioning plecos with cichlids.. some do some get eaten (plecos that is) http://cichlidforums.com/showthread.php?threadid=115 Loaches (some have spines so have to be careful when bagging) are a schooling fish.... Loaches and cichlids? http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27255 (where paste is from) Go to www.cichlidscene.com This website shows you that you can mix clown loaches with Midas, Red Devil, and etc.> http://www.cichlidscene.com/ Plecos get huge, and need wood. (ie don't overstock, even 55 will fill up fast with fish that need territory, and plecos do as well, under logs mostly, I had two and each had his place, then one day the one was dead (think he sat on heater and I didn't realize he wouldn't know to move, oops) Mollies need higher salt content then the other fish you've mentioned. Mollies would go with platies, guppies which also like higher salt. Mollies would be nice food for most cichlids..... Rocks: Question number one is what type of environment for which fish are you using rocks. This will make a difference if the rock is safe or not. Cichilids can handle rocks that contain calcium/lime so on (sorry did much research but was focusing on something I found, granite/sheitz (sp) rock. so read links to your specifics) (after many hours, I gave up and am going to take it to my college alumni geology department)....(found it when a hole was dug up in nyc, but has mica and iron in it so not sure if its safe except for my blind cave fish which was not what I was going to put in this tank but may change cause it looks great) First, ones collected from rivers, lakes, so on with fish safest. Vineger not best test (read in link below). Sandstone can contain lime. Many many types of sandstone so depends. Best test mho is if fish living in water with rocks in it. ................................ I agree, bleach and other cleaners not good choice, may be softer part of rock that absorbs. You can use hydrogen peroxide instead. I use it to clean all things as it breaks down into water. http://www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/aquascaping/rocks.shtm Has great photos, and can be beginning to further research. http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=55806 http://www.thekrib.com/TankHardware/rocks.html ................................... Pillow Lava: (I grew up in Oregon and collected obsidian but never heard of this type) Make sure no glassy sharp edges otherwise safe.. IE inert. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pillow_lava Pillow lava Pillow lava (NOAA)Pillow lava is the rock type typically formed when lava emerges from an underwater volcanic vent or a lava flow enters the ocean. The viscous lava gains a solid crust immediately upon contact with the water, and this crust cracks and oozes additional large blobs or "pillows" as more lava emerges from the advancing flow. Since the majority of Earth's surface is covered by water, and most volcanoes are situated near or under it, pillow lava is very common. Examples of this can be seen at Llanddwyn Island. .................... Sandstone: Well, as you can see in the following link, there are many types. IF you got it from river with fish (fresh I assume) then it would be ok. Again, it is the one worth questioning, as there are many types. I put my baby guppies in my 20 long with rock, both to cycle (I always use bio bugs, bio filter from other tanks, and change water often, and add fish so slow, never get spikes so on) But want to see about the rock, so far all is well) Pillow Lava: (I grew up in Oregon and collected obsidian but never heard of this type) Make sure no glassy sharp edges otherwise safe.. IE inert. PS. Wikipedia is great as one link leads to another, can go on forever! So, some sandstones safe for certain fish, some not. Again, depends on fish/rock combo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandstone Terrestrial environments Rivers (levees, point bars, channel sands) Alluvial fans Glacial outwash Lakes Deserts (sand dunes and ergs) Marine environments Deltas Beach and shoreface sands Tidal deltas, flats Offshore bars and sand waves Storm deposits (tempestites) Turbidites (submarine channels and fans) [edit] Types of sandstone Sandstone with quartzOnce the geological characteristics of a sandstone have been established, it can then be assigned to one of three broad groups: arkosic sandstones, which have a high (>25%) feldspar content and a composition similar to granite. quartzose sandstones (also known as 'beach sand') which have a high (>90%) quartz content. Sometimes these sandstones are termed "orthoquartzites", e.g., the Tuscarora Quartzite of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians. argillaceous sandstones, such as greywacke, which have a significant clay or silt content. .................... Question - Can I use rock from a creek to decorate my fish tank? If so, what do I do to clean the rocks? Thanks very much! Answer - Dear Jay, Sure. Most all rocks are "aquarium safe" in a sense. But some do in fact release mineral substances that can raise your pH and hardness to levels that your fish may certainly not appreciate. Try is setting the rock in a small bucket of water, testing the pH before adding the rocks and then again about a week later, if the pH has risen then you know those rocks may not be safe. Calcarous rocks are good for african cichlid aquariums whom love harder water. ~The way I clean rocks is to thoroughly scrub the rocks in hot water. Don't use any soaps or chemicals. Just a very good scrubbing with hot water under the tap. I really hope this helps! Only my very best wishes! Karen~ ....................... WEll, not applicable but beautiful photos of rocks! As I said, I searched everywhere! lol http://www.terragalleria.com/pictures-subjects/granite/granite.all.html

if a shower is taken for 30 minutes.thay would be the 75 gallons of water.. sounds right but its not..the heater will actually give you only about 50-60 gallons of not water because the tank is filling with cold as you use the hot it is also mixing so..if you take a shower for 30 minutes you will deplete the heater, then it needs to reheat the water. but the next person jumps in the shower. he will get cooler hot water and less of it..it all boils down to the length of showers and how lon inbetween them. when your house was built a misunderstand of a water heater system happenrd instead of a huge heater seperat heaters for different baths would have been the way to go this is also the reason of your high gas bill you have a hugh vessal of water, the gas has got to keep that vessal at the temp you want it..every time you use hot water the heater has got to come on and heat up the water to thee desired temp. a larger vessal will cost more than a smaller vessal to keep warm.. my opinon..water heater to big...need to split the system upinto 2 systems,and..with the price of fuel.the way it is now. i suggest to switch to 2 50 gallon electric heaters AND the heaters get put on timmers. if you both work heater off 9pm-5am on 5am-8am off8am-4pm something like that the ages of your children also have a big factor in all of this. teen agers stay in the bathroom or on the phone i never thought i would be telling people to go with elec water heaters. but my fuel price went up ti $4.a gallon a few mths ago. went down..but i think it will go back up