Oxygen loss is also determined by the temperature of the water. The warmer the water the quicker it loses oxygen and thus harder to keep oxygen in the water when the pumps are turned off. I have my pond ran off 1 circuit and use an in-line light switch that I can flip to turn off the pumps when I need to do a little maintenance or sometimes I need to switch it when its very windy outside so I don't lose a lot of water from my fountain and spitter. My pond is only a 50 gal pond so oxygen loss would take quicker affect on the fish and I have already went 2 days with my pumps turned off and never had a problem. If you are worried about oxygen loss for the 1 day you have the pump turned off you can add some fresh water to the pond to give it some oxygen.

Some people find that earthy smell prior to and during a rain to be offensive, while I find it very appealing. I play with tons of fresh to month old horse manure mixed with shavings on a regular basis. The very freshest manure does have that undeniable manure smell. And while I don't usually smell ammoniain it, I do know it's potentially there. The medium aged manure usually reminds me of pipe tobacco, not pipe smoke, the tobacco itself. Flavored. Sweet, mellow, sort of earthy, but not dirt earthy. Not offensive (to me), but not what I want an air freshener in the house to smell like. If I scatter fresh manure on the garden, a week later, I can't tell it's fresh. No smell. If it were 6 inches deep all over, maybe it would still smell a little. But I don't go that thick. If i till it in right after spreading, then there is no smell the next day or maybe two.

Eric, I think Janalyn is giving you good advice. I won't get into a debate with you over whether your cat hunts when you're not looking. Your neighbors may have cats that do hunt. I'm allergic to cats and therefore have none, but see other people's cats in my yard regularly since I started feeding birds. I've noticed the hummers spend longer at plants and perches that are higher up. I think they feel safer that way. If you give the hummingbirds a spot where they are comfortable, you will get to see them more. We can give you better suggestions if you're more specific. I'm glad you added that this container will be on the porch. How big is the container? Did you want to hang up the container, set it on the porch floor, or something in between? Window box on a porch railing, perhaps? How much sun does your porch get? Do you care what the plant looks like in winter? If you want a plant that looks good year round to decorate your house in winter, that will narrow your options considerably. I second the vote for fuchsias, with the caveat that you will need to choose the variety carefully. I think for your area you'll need to seek out heat-tolerant fuchsias. Fuchsias come in both trailing and upright shapes. I grow several different ones and have seen the hummers nectar on all of them. In my area, fuchsias are healthiest in either dappled shade all day, or morning sun followed by shade the rest of the day. Generally speaking, triphylla types can handle more sun and heat. I have heard that some people grow triphyllas in full sun but haven't tried it. For me, they fill a useful niche as a shade-tolerant hummingbird plant. I overwinter them in the garage too.

aw, Ken... a voice from the other side of age-related brain damage... I've got a jug of engine coolant in the garage. It is open. When you use engine coolant, it is mixed 50-50 with water... but, of course, when you need it and open a new jug, the stuff in the jug is undiluted... and can't be diluted to the correct amount until that jug is half-empty. And, of course, this always happens when you are leaving for a trip or going to a funeral or getting married or something, so you pour some into the reservoir and then dump in some water, shooting for about 50-50. You also don't have an indelible pen (or any writing implement)in your pocket, so you promise yourself you will remember and head off to your great aunt's bat mitzvah... and promptly forget until the next time you need engine coolant. I've got four sprayers so I can use one for really bad kill-everything herbicides and one for Round-up and the other two for whatever... and you'd think I could keep straight which was which... and you'd think that I'd immediately mark them with an indelible (I first typed inedible - that too...)pen, but every year I have to go through the "now which was this again???" two-step. I think I have 8 shovels. Short of painting one with a black skull and crossbones, there is no way this old brain of mine is going to keep a specific "shovel of death" tucked away in the shed. Add to that that I have a co-Idiot gardener... I think we'd better concentrate on cleaning up!