Evergreens were my first choice actually - cedars would be beautiful. Dwarf Alberta Spruce are overdone in some places but not around here and I like them. But the soil is dry. I can't be buying plants (though check out the prices in the nursery list below). And I don't want to mess with pruning and shaping as I would for white spruce. I went walking along the border yesterday and remarked, now that buds are opening, on just how many serviceberries/amelanchier are in that border. I doubt they'd take well to cutting back though. They are very pretty... Thanks for thinking about this with me. This is a great forum - I'm usually on the soil forum but have been spending a lot of time lately reading threads here. Came across this great website the other day. It has a good list of native shrubs, with descriptions, among many other things. Here is a link that might be useful: MacPhail woods

The steam, the vapor, you see emanating from a hot compost pile is excess moisture, not necessarily nutrients. It takes a balance of material (C:N ratio close to 30:1), moisture (not too much), and enough Nitrogen to get the bacteria that will digest that material working hard enough to generate that heat. Steam emanating from a compost pile is not a bad thing. However, a too wet compost pile excludes air the bacteria need so they cannot work. A too dry compost pile also keeps the bacteria from working. A Carbon to Nitrogen ratio out of wack also prevents them from working as well. Balance, but not necessarily equality is what is needed.

I used it on Boswellia Saca ( Frankincense tree) seeds mixed potting soil, pummice, and crushed charcoal and I got 1 to grow within a week ~ that being said Boswellia Saca prefers High Alkaline soil and is usually grown in poor soil and desert conditions and that is why I took the gamble on it working knowing the average germination rate of the seeds were less than 10% and that getting 1 out of 25 was a gamble any way but I got one so my guess is they are ok to use if the plant/tree requires high Alkaline soil just use it in moderation in comparison to the rest of the portions (not sure if I had a brick that had chemicals in it or not but it was a Kingsford briquet that was not burnt (chunks and powder from the bottom of the bag mixed and tested to get correct Alkalinity) and I got 1 to grow

Actually, DH had reservations about wood period. He thought the tile should go throughout the house, and I said NO. He installed the Bellawood in the front rooms of his Cape up in Massachusetts, and it was the narrow boards of the select ash, very light, and it was gorgeous. That house has lower ceilings than here, and it was basically more individual rooms and not going to be open concept like our living/dining/kitchen/laundry will wind up being. And, our cottage with beadboard could better use the 5" wide boards, also select ash. It sits in my Teahouse under lock and key, with the heat or a/c keeping it properly conditioned for use. I got a bit more than DH estimated we needed, thinking he would skimp on what amount was required, and so there will be enough to have a little left over.....and I will have no problem extending the back porch/addition another foot all the way across, and to floor the tiny new entry as part of the living room. If that doesn't quite make it, well, I can put tile in the entry. It was MoonPie who hiked his leg on everything, even just a tiny squirt on the house plants, the chair legs, the bed covers that hung down far enough for him to reach, the laundry basket, the garbage can.....I became expert at recognizing what HE did and what Dixie might do. She specialized in the bath mat, since she knew business should be conducted IN THE BATH ROOM. Which is why I am so impressed with Dolly and her arriving at 7 weeks of age already, in effect, PAPER TRAINED. And she cannot yet go outdoors to learn about grass, because she needs her final shots to avoid parvo virus. What a charmer she is though.