I have to say in all the years of dealing with spider mites and their scourge, I have to say it is wise to spray the plants before bringing them in , but in no way will simple washing , spraying with chemicals or anything else remove every spider mite once they get them , so it's more a matter of cotrolling them, so they do as little damage as possible. I sometimes amazes me how quicky, some plants that have experieced regular rains, and frequent sprayings from the hose all summer and shown zero signs of having even one mite on them can just a few weeks later be crawling with the darn things in an indoor environment, but I guess it's the "rule" from, what I've heard from many people over the years, where brugs are involved, and it seems a lone spider mite could find a brugmansia from miles away, and still somehow find it's way to the one plant in town. Anyway , just my two cents, but an ounce of "caution". I've even tried several systemics over the years on various plants in hopes of eliminating all spider mites once and for all, and even that was a pointless exercise, as I think the mites can mutate to tollerate any pesticide faster than new ones can be invented. Tis the sad but true tale of science versus the minuscule little spider mite!!

I would, but can't afford the vet bills! I used to hop the fence to the pasture next door and scoop up "patties" by the buckets full and put that in my compost. In fall I would pile it on the veggie garden and till it in and then pile on some more. By Spring it was awesome. I cannot hop fences anymore - sigh...and the scooping kills me. Raking too. I used to clean out people's stalls and barns...no more doing that either. The thing is, it leaches out as fast as I can pile it on. If I could lasagna all year round, it would be best, but that is almost impossible for me to do anymore. Thanks for the suggestion though. I will TRY to do that again. That is all I can do - right? Clouds still building and flying over us and no rain, at least not here. It just goes elsewhere and rains. While watching the Chris Mathews show yesterday on MSNBC I saw that it was raining like crazy outside his window. I was so envious! Tomorrow we will pull the old well pump and replace it and that will help. At least I will be able to run the water all day long without it continuously shutting off. Running up and down the stairs to the basement all day long every day to flip it back on has just worn me out. I am glad you got a little rain. Here are some pics of my peaches that I managed to get thru this heat. Water, water, water. Peaches and Gird Grapes - it took a lot of work but got some grapes too. These were grown from a cutting, the original vine was from my GG-Grandfather Gird's vines in California. It was named for him. (Girdii) I am proud to have them growing for me. Tasty little grapes. Grannie made jam with hers. I don't get enough for jam, so just enjoy them fresh. Today I am going to be canning peaches and tomatoes again. One of my big Beefsteak tomatoes. Yummy!

Went to Meadow View today. There was quite a chill in the air yet the place was still quite full of gardeners. The check out line was long but moved very quickly...I was only in line for maybe 5 minutes. FYI, They only take cash or check. It is located just over the border from Granby Connecticut on Route 10 in Southwick, MA. They had an enormous selection of roses, annuals and perennials, and veggies. Didn't see any shrubs though. They had some hard to find items (rose campion, for example, which can be hard to find) and a huge daylily section with unusual varieties. Also lots of unusual alpine plants. I just was in the mood for a drive (took me about 35 minutes from my house in CT) and didn't have any plants in mind so I mostly got fillers for my beds and some plants for my go-crazy-and-spread garden on a sunny bank. I got 11 plants for 31 dollars. Can't beat it. I will definitely go back with more specific ideas. Thanks for the tip! Patty

I brought the Hellebores (Lenten Rose), Tricyrtis (toad lilies) and the Variegated Solomon's Seal. The Solomon's Seal will tolerate sun, but prefers afternoon shade. It will grow to a nice clump in a few years. I started out with a couple of pots several years ago and now I have it around my hosta, ferns and trees. DH slammed the trunk on the poor little things and broke them. They will be fine next year. As soon as I can figure out how to do it I will post pics of my clumps. They also have darling little bells that hang along the stems in early spring. The Hellebores like to be grown under deciduous trees. In February they put out wonderful flowers which are greatly appreciated at that time of year! In the summer they have great leaves which make a small bush. (I cut off all of the leaves when they flower. All of mine are now covered with leaves again). In the summer they like to be shaded and no wet feet. Actually I am amazed at how hardy they are. I only began seeing them around this part of the world in the last 7-8 years. I thought they were as hard as the dickens to grow. Not really. I thought that Datura was called Devil Trumpet because the trumpets faced upward and Brugmansia was called Angel Trumpet because the trumpets faced downward. Could be wrong, often am. Imp