peren..I took 3 clumps out of the path yesterday to give to someone..I can't believe what a hassle it is..move the rocks..pry the hosta away from the paver without scraping my tools or damaging the hosta..they're growing right next to the aggregate circles..then trying to dig the roots out..took me forever..

There's always some damage, but it seems more widespread to me this year -- four-lined plant bugs on the caryopteris, something chewing the heck out of my cactus zinnias, who knows what munching on the squash and cukes, explosion of asparagus beetles, and yowza did every ant in the county take up residence on my property? I've never seen so many ants in trees and shrubs. I thought some of my milkweed bit the dust but when I looked closer I noticed green stems had poked through but was chewed off -- all of the stems. I dug them up and potted them, figuring if I get them away from whatever's going after them they'll survive just fine, and then other milkweed had something eating just the tips, probably some sort of borer, so I had to cut those back to below the damage. I think it's just going to be an ongoing battle this year...

Artist-FKA: With regard to your questions: 1. MG All Purpose Plant Food for water soluble & Easy Feed from Mills & Orchid fertilizer: I cannot find the ingredients in Easy Feed SOLUBLE fertilizer, so I suspect it has potassium chloride. Lilly Miller's used to have sulfate of potash, then they switched to potassium chloride and it took me a long time before I could find the label on-line. I checked the ingredients for Orchid food, and most of them have potassium chloride. Yes, K in MG-plant food is potassium chloride and that would cause browning of petals. If the label of a fertilizer is hidden, there's a good chance it's the cheap & salty potassium chloride. 2. water soluble for pots: I checked Jack's Blossom Booster NPK 10-30-20 and it has monopotassium phosphate, low-salt index of 8.4 (compared to salt-index of 116 for potassium chloride), but it also has potassium nitrate with salt index of 69.5 (compared to sulfate of potash salt index of 42). 3. To reverse BS: I tested 4 different sulfate of potash and I like Kelp4less best (easiest to dissolve due to higher % of sulfur). Next best is granular brownish Southern Ag. (this dissolve quickly), and hardest to dissolve is Alpha chemicals (10 lb. for $20). Since last summer I found a better way to dissolve potassium fertilizer than using vinegar: I used the microbes (fermenting bacteria) in alfalfa-tea to make potassium available to roots. Bacteria is used in landfill to degrade plastic, and the fermenting bacteria in alfalfa-tea also break up the hard-bonds in potassium fertilizer, making it available to plants. I save those HUGE plastic jugs (laundry detergent or large juice bottle), rinse them well, then store water to ferment alfalfa (takes 2 days). I use 2 TBS of alfalfa meal plus 1 TBS sulfate of potash per gallon of water. The acid (sulfur) given off by the fermenting bacteria will make sulfate of potash available to plants. Fermenting bacteria (from alfalfa tea) also give off vitamin C (essential for plant growth), plus B-vitamins (for plants' health), plus sulfur (for growth). So you can get sulfur (an essential plant nutrient for growth) from: expensive sulfate of potash OR acid given off by decay of organic matter such as alfalfa meal soaked in water. TO REVERSE AND TO PREVENT BLACKSPOT: Since 2012 I grow 140+ own-roots in pots first before transferring into my dense clay. Each year I test different fertilizers (both organic and chemicals), aiming for the best health and most solid roots for zone 5a winter survival. These are what I notice for the past decade: 1) The higher the salt, the worse the health. Salt zaps out potassium, and potassium is essential for health and blooming. Potassium regulates water osmosis. The healthiest roses in pots was the year that I tested ORGANIC Nature's Care soluble fertilizer NPK 10-6-3 with Hydrolyzed feather meal, MEAT and Bone meal, Blood meal, and Sulfate of Potash. Blood meal is high in iron. I supplement that with sulfate of potash to UP potassium level in pots. This fertilizer is the fore-runner in my daughter's 8th-grade science projecting in growing seeds from 6 different soils and fertilizers. 2) The worst health is with any fertilizer containing potassium chloride, it's like dumping salt into your pots. Roses are such water hogs, and salt defeats water osmosis (essential for lush leaves and blooming). 3) Osmocote PLUS NPK 15-7-12 is fast in inducing blooms (even on tiny rose rootings), but not best for health due to the fast release of phosphorus (Ammonium phosphate), and the high salt index of Ammonium nitrate of 104. Tiny rose rootings broke out in blackspots the minute rain hit. Fast release of phosphorus and too slow release of potassium UP diseases. Potassium is essential for disease prevention, and it competes with phosphorus and calcium for absorption. 4) I root roses from cuttings, and I use these tiny rootings test different fertilizers in pots. The best health on tiny rootings was when I tested Tomato Tone (higher potassium than Rose Tone) as granular application on top, plus watering with Nature's Care soluble fertilizer NPK 10-6-3 for nitrogen. Rose Tone is cheap on Amazon at $20 per 18 lb., plus using sulfate of potassium (dissolved by fermenting alfalfa tea) is equivalent to the more expensive Tomato-Tone.

Thanks to all for the farro mentions! I wanted to buy the pearled version today, but Sprouts was out. I picked up TJ's 10-Minute farro and plan to try it later in the week in this recipe from Smitten Kitchen. https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/07/one-pan-farro-with-tomatoes/ Will eventually try the Blistered Tomato recipe, but I think I'll sub arugula for the spinach and Thai basil for the pesto.