Thanks for the suggestions. We put a hose out for the past 2 weeks walking where a path had already been worn in the grass. It seems to work fine, so we've decided on that gentle curved path. I didn't take a photo while the hose was out, so can't show it. The exposed aggregate concrete path will start on the right from behind where a car will be parked in the driveway & curve left to then go straight to the front door. Since the front porch has some rotten beams, we will repair or replace it with a larger concrete landing with 2 steps down to the path Once we've done some landscaping like shrubs, building curved garden beds, & leveling the grass areas we'll be able to lay it out. It's hard for me to picture it now, but I know it will come together.

I don't blame you Chester, especially after what you've been through. I realize there are lots of bad contractors out there, which is why I had a very difficult time trusting our contractor and made sure I was involved in every process. It may take some real work to find a good one but they are out there. We found ours by word of mouth from his peers. When we first started the process, I asked for a referal list of tilers from our local tile store. Then while getting a quote for the tile work, I asked the guys if they knew a good plumber. One tiler referred me to a master plumber whom he said was excellent, but added that if I wasn't treated well, to please let him know because he'd stop referring him if he did a bad job. I called the plumber, who in turn said he knew a good carpenter, a guy he worked with often and he'd use personally if he needed someone. He gave me his number with a similar comment about his referral. When the carpenter came out, we talked for quite a while and as luck would have it, he was a GC. His pricing was in line with all the pricing I had collected so far and personality wise, we clicked, I knew I'd feel comfortable working with him. After verifying his license, we started him out on some smaller projects to test the waters. Nothing major, we widened and installed some new doors, leveled out some cabinets, and demo'd the bathroom. I also talked to him in detail about several other projects we're interested in doing. And his answers were all spot on. His work was perfection and since everything felt right, we went ahead and hired him for the bathroom. We're still relatively new to our area and I have used other ways to find a variety of people for different projects. Everything from ads to referral services none of which produced good results. This was by far the most successful way I've found to find good help. Whether you decide to hire someone or contract the job yourself, it may be a good way for you to at least find dependable people as well. Good luck.

The paths between your beds should be at least three feet wide. If this seems like a lot of wasted space, imagine kneeling down to work on a 1-2' wide path, or maneuvering your wheelbarrow along skinny paths without damaging your plants. Larger pathways are much more comfortable to work with, and are one of just four improvements that Mel has made on his method since his book was published over 20 years ago. (See his website for the other updates to his method.) Your budget, your aesthetic preferences, and available materials will determine what you use for the paths between your raised beds. Here are a few ideas: Any fancy material typically used for a sidewalk or paved garden path can be used, including flagstone paths, concrete pavers, bricks, etc. set into concrete, sand, gravel, rock screenings, etc. There are multiple sites on the Internet that give detailed descriptions of how to construct these kinds of paths. Grass, edged along the beds with a weedeater or square-bladed shovel. Paths made from broken-up concrete slabs (free if you're willing to scrounge) set into grass, sand, gravel, or rock screenings. Organic materials (hay, wood chips, grass clippings, etc) over dampened cardboard boxes or newspaper. The cardboard/newspaper blocks weeds, and the whole mess gradually breaks down and will need to be replenished every year or so. One GW member rakes up the breaking-down materials and uses it as a fall/winter mulch for her beds, then places fresh materials down to start breaking down over the winter. If you want a super-permanent path between your square foot beds, take a look at some of the nifty concrete molds available at home improvement stores. They come in many different patterns (random stone, slate and herringbone brick, just to name a few) and are quite easy to use. Depending on the design you choose, they can be used for straight or curved paths.

Hi EK! I'm sorry that no one has been able to answer your question yet. I've been thinking about your problem. I don't know that this is the "informed opinion" you are looking for, but I'll run a few thoughts by you for your consideration. When it comes to manufactured homes, water is the enemy! I think this is especially true for homes like yours (and mine) that are not on a foundation. So you are right to be concerned. When you crawled under the house to observe the siding, how wet was it? I think you're fortunate to be in San Diego county, rather than somewhere that gets a lot of rain/snow. (I lived in San Diego for a couple of years about 15 years ago and I loved it! But really expensive to live there!) If it's getting wet enough to grow mold, it's too wet. If it's really wet, I'd advise getting a sump and sump pump and pumping it out. If it's not wet enough to sump, you've still got to dry it out somehow. Then, if you're keeping the siding, you've got to get that mould removed. That is for your health and the health of your family. Do you have a pitched roof, an overhang, and gutters? If not, and you have the means, that would help immensely in keeping water from running down the sides of your house. Gutters aren't that expensive to have installed. That would be my first suggestion-- a pitched roof, overhang, and gutters to control where the water goes. It's also an expensive solution, unless you just need gutters. When you say "mysterious spongy material," what do you mean? Are you talking about something intentionally placed there? If it's not working, I'd take it out, because you don't want it retaining water. if you can't afford the roof option right away, I'd say go with the option of the wide trim on your skirting to divert the rainwater. There is now a gypsum wood that is mould resistant; you could use that. If you replace your skirting altogether, you could use gypsum for that too. But yes, water getting under the skirting would "still be a bad thing." So, in summary, here's my suggestions: 1. Get the underside of your house dried out. 2. Get the mould treated. 3. Pitched roof, overhang, rain gutters: get whichever of these you don't have. 4. OR, fabricate and install an overhang on your skirting. 5. If you replace skirting, use mould resistant gypsum. i hope this helps!