par72, be sure to read closely. The material that works to treat fungus is ordinary corn meal, not corn gluten meal. You can find corn meal at the grocery store if nothing else. Don't get the flour that is used to make tortillas. It is usually adulterated with baking powder or other shortcut materials for baking. You want pure ground corn. Molasses can be used to improve the soil in many ways. It has been recommended against root knot nematodes in Florida and Texas. Otherwise a general organic program helps to control bugs by not killing or chasing away the predators. When you stop using chemicals, you see a return of toads, birds, lizards, and other critters who help keep your garden free of bugs. Of course if you have cats then all bets are off.

I sure do like the ideas already. Do a search on the first forum page for mgs by "Kirkus" as he has made some fantastic trellis out of tree branches, etc. The idea for using them for Christmas and holding decorations is great also. Either paint them or wrap red fabric strips around them to look like candycanes and then top with the star, gift boxes or snowflakes. I think those would look really cute. Or use them to hold faux pumpkins. I've been saving this pic for an idea. The pole in the pic is a porch or stair spindle. You could paint your poles orange and black and other bright halloween colors, nail on a wood top base to glue the pumpkin to and then stream down some colorful raffia with stars or moons attached to the bottom of the raffia or even hang down some fall leaf garland . These would swing in the wind and I think look really cute for the holidays.

The first few boxes that we built were around 7 inches. We then filled the surrounding area with woodchips, so the boxes only stick up around 4-5 inches. These three boxes have been plagued by a very oblivious garden pest--my thirty pound beagle, who sees the boxes as a fun alternate pathway through the garden (planted, even with plants 8 inches tall, milk jugs over some of the plants, and an L-shaped 6 foot tall conduit trellis arrangement). If for no other reason, I'm happy that the rest of my boxes are 12 inches tall as a dog deterrent.

@ terrybull - it seems like there is always something that needs to be done. Recent projects include a the repair of a bathroom cabinet, some shelves, a frame for a plexiglass sheet to go above the swamp (evaporative) cooler and a stand to put the cooler on. If I wait for my husband to do things, it never gets done, there is also the factor that he is not mechanically inclined, so if I want it done the way I want it I have to do it myself. (Plus he would be likely to cut off a finger or something!) I also rip 2x4s in half to use as stakes for my center posts in the Florida Weave in the garden. Sometimes one has knot that will cause it to break, so I might cut it down for other uses. If I have an old 2x2 that the bottom has rotted off of so often that it isn't long enough to use as a tomato support, I will cut it up for other things. Betsy