I have been gardening in what I call "glacier slurry" and you call glacier till since '04. The only tool that worked for me was a hand mattack and I dug deep wide holes and perk tested them. My backfill was natural soil and purchased compost because my housepad/gardening area was cut out of a slope. There is probably little plant organic material in the gardening area because of it being cut out of the slope ... except for the decayed mulch material I have applied twice a year over the last several years. The glacier slurry is porous and drains well, which means that anything I use will end up in our water supply, the Trinity River. Until last year, I tried to get by with organics and time-released fertilizers, but the plants just didn't thrive. They did OK, but I knew something was missing. Last spring, after the estimated last frost date in April, I applied 1/4 cup of calcium nitrate to the larger roses and less to the smaller roses. I watered well the day before and then watered again the same day I applied the CN. It was enough to kick start the roses and they did a LOT better last season. Altho' the roses do leaf out earlier than they should, most of that growth is blind growth. I think it's the plant trying to feed itself through photosynthesis. We always get a late frost or snow before the middle of April and that growth generally dies off or gets pruned off. We have temps in the high 90s or low 100s for weeks at a time during the summer and time released foods are just burned up too quickly to be reliable, so last year, I did a combination of organics and synthetics and all of the plants were healthier than in prior years. In my experience, it's hard to find the right balance to feed the plants and not pollute our water source. I think I have planted the last of the roses I am going to plant, except for replacements for roses that don't do well in this climate. I know I don't want to dig any more rose holes in this stuff. Smiles, Lyn

We have had the hummers back for at least a couple of weeks now. I put three feeders out in the usual places as soon as I saw the first hummer. I am going to put out two more feeders today. At first we only had rufous hummingbirds, but them about a week later the ruby-throated hummingbirds began showing up as well. We also have some flowers in bloom for them. It starts feeling like spring when the Purple Martins show up, but it doesn't really feel completely like spring until the hummingbirds have returned too. I imagine the hummingbirds are not enjoying the cold nights.

I saw one yesterday too. It surprised me. I don't think I've seen them in October before. I don't have any feeders filled but I have lots of salvia blooming. I have only seen one tanager in my life several years ago when we were in Branson. I think it was a Summer Tanager. I thought it seemed as red as a cardinal but slightly smaller and no crest. There are also Scarlet Tanagers that are bright red with black wings. Could it have been one of those Ceresone? Here is a link that might be useful: Summer Tanager

I have tons of squirrel in my area. Both species are tree squirrels (gray and fox). There are so many that may be several passes through every couple of min. There's always a few hanging underneath the feeder alone with morning doves, grackles, and some times Canadian geese. Recently, I switch from a hanging tree feeder to a pole system where the base is 4 metal pins. I don't have to dig a hole or anything, just step hard on it to get it to go into the ground. My initial attempt to do this fail because I tried to do this next to a wall and the wall apparently have stones base that extend pass the wall. I then attach a baffle and then the feeder. The feeder is located 10 feet away from a tree so they can't jump that far, it's also over 6 feet up. So far, a few attempt to climb the pole but either slip off the metal or get to the top and get blocked by baffle. I don't know if it's raccoon proof, but there are raccoons in the area, but I don't know if anyone tried it. Paul