Hi raymondo17, Thank you for the comments, yes this area is one of the popular tourist destinations in Australia. The scenery is very green & fertile (due to the area having been the remains of an ancient volcano). Population density in this area is predominantly large acreage properties on undulating hills. We all choose where we want to live & this is where I decided to settle, am sure where you live has some advantages for you, even if only proximity to family & friends. If any one is wanting to visit this area will be happy to show them the area. I remember staying near the Grand Canyon (30 years ago), with the family of a friend, it was equally beautiful in a different way. Life is what you want to make it? allan

I think it's disingenuous to suggest that a well-made 5:1:1 mix needs constant watering. It doesn't. Even the gritty mix, that holds even less water than the 5:1:1 mix doesn't need constant watering. Do you have to water more often than more water-retentive mixes? Yes. But there is a price to be paid in the form of lost potential for the convenience of soils that hold water for extended intervals. Denise: there is a monetary consideration that clearly delineates hobby growers from professional growers. Nursery/greenhouse ops wouldn't be willing to pay employees to water twice as often as a heavier mix because they've weighed the cost of limitations due to temporary periods of excess water retention against the cost of watering more frequently, and decided it's to the advantage of their bottom line to sacrifice some lost potential to save labor $. The hobby grower is in the hobby to scratch their nurturing gene. for the most part, They actually feel good about spending more time with their plants and offering them the best care they can afford, as opposed perhaps to the cheapest soil they can find. Think of it in terms of the difference in perspectives between a puppy mill and the owner of a new puppy - two completely different worlds. So, care given by a nursery and greenhouse of will always be in consideration of the bottom line, which means following their lead will not always be in the best interest of the plant. Your care and mine are far more likely to be about providing the best care we can. Holding up the practices of a greenhouse or nursery is a little like asking us to emulate a puppy mill. I know - tugging at your heart strings. I wasn't really trying to do that - just the first good comparison that popped into my mind. Chicken farmer/ pet chicken, beef grower/ pet cow is another. If a plant is properly handled during a repotting session, it would be extremely unusual to lose a plant. Look at the two following root reductions where well over 90% of the roots were removed:Here, I have just finished pruning the top. This is after the root work was completed: Here ^^^, about 1/2 of the roots have already been removed The plant with root work complete:Note the size of the roots I removed. Many were more than 1" in diameter. In subsequent repots, I have removed all the knobby roots from the bottom of the bole. This plant was grown in the gritty mix - note the remarkably (for a maple) fibrous root system. The entire soil mass, you can see, is densely packed with the fine roots that do the lion's share of the work. After the root work: If you look, you can see the wire that shows this tree was layered above a poorly formed (but not unhealthy) root system. Where each of the 7 main roots are now, those that emanate horizontally from the trunk, I bored 7 holes into the sapwood and treated each hole individually with IBA rooting gel. I ended up with 7 perfectly spaced roots that will look great when they are later exposed on top of the soil. One more series, just to illustrate how little trees care about having half or more of their root systems removed: Again - note how healthy the roots are. ^^^ I wouldn't suggest you approach root pruning this radically, but removing 1/3 to 1/2 of a young plant's roots (younger than say 25 years) should be no problem. Plants that grow extremely fibrous roots (boxwood, azalea .....) need a slightly different approach. Keep the roots always wet while you work. First remove all problem roots (crossing, encircling, girdling, j-hooked roots - roots that grow upward, straight down, and roots that grow back toward the center of the root mass. After the problems are corrected (makes future repots much easier - the first is always the hardest) concentrate on removing the largest roots with the fewest fine roots attached. We know that root congestion negatively impacts growth, vitality (health) and yields, and those limitation become increasingly severe as root congestion increases. Pruning a bit around the edges of the root/soil mass and potting up is a half measure that ensures limitations remain until someone physically gets into the root mass and corrects the congestion and problem roots. Even planting out (in the landscape) will not eliminate the effects of congestion in the soil mass that existed at plant-out time. Al

Tony - I haven’t placed my order yet, but those peppers aren’t tempting me. Maybe that carrot though. I saw it when I was perusing the site earlier. Kevin - My order included a couple bags of Promix, some 1020 trays and the 32 cell insert and a couple humidity domes. I’ve been doing seeds now for 9 years since my mother’s death and I have been using her previously used supplies all this time. I decided it was time I buy a few fresh ones. Was getting tired of finding holes in my trays. Those things happen after so many years of use. ;-/ Also picked up some netting that I hope will keep the birds off of the strawberries and then later the peach trees. A few other things that I can’t think of at the moment. The pelleted lettuce seed that I started 2 days ago has sprouted. :-)

Richard, that sounds cold for your area. Guess you will get your exercise the next few days. Yesterday I did a final turning of compost in my makeshift bin at my community plot. It is breaking down well. I hope the latest aeration and nutrient additions will get most of it broken down by spring. That is when I plan to work with it next and hopefully have good compost to use. If nothing else, I am glad I could put lots of plant wastes into my makeshift bin instead of the trash cans people were told to use....not for composting but for general trash pick up. I don't like to see nutrients go to the landfill. I'd rather give up a corner's worth of growing space and do some composting.