SUCCESS !! Thanks to all for advice on pine bark fines as well as on persevering to find them. Waupaca Northwoods, makers of Greensmix, have finally gone to bat for me. (Just took a little more squealing I guess.) Actually, I simply called Jane, their Wisconsin area customer service/sales rep, for the second time. I told her of my failed efforts in finding her product at any of my local stores she had previouslu suggested. I asked if anyone at Greensmix could help me locate some Soil Conditioner and she volunteered to telephone her clients and find some Soil Conditioner for me without me having to drive all the way across Wisconsin to get it. Within an hour or so she called me back with two locations, the closest being less than 100 miles away. (That's pretty good when you live in the boonies like I do.) She found two bags, which is all I need for my first batch, at Walmart in Ashland, WI, about an 80-mile drive. It's on hold. I'll pick it up tonight. By the way, Greensmix is willing to sell their Soil Conditioner to the general public by the 50-bag pallet at $2.56 per 2 cu. ft. bag, FOB Waupaca, WI. I am seriously considering the 200-mile drive to buy a pallet for next years supply. Anybody interested in splitting it with me, let me know. We could meet in Waupaca, pick it up together and split it up. I've also ordered a bag of the Ace mini-nuggets which won't be here til later this month. They are available in a 3 cu ft bag for $4.99, a bit cheaper per cu. ft. than the Greensmix. I'll compare the two and report the diferences, if any. Thanks again to all. Justaguy, we'll have to do lunch on some other occasion, looks like I won't be making the drive to Johnson Creek at this time. Thanks for all your advice. We'll get together some other time when I'm in the area. Thanks again to all. Bob

My Comptes de Champagne is new this year directly from DA. I love it. According to DA's catalog, it is supposed to stay at 3x3.5, but mine reached that size in early summer, and looks like it will surpass that. However, it has stayed nice in shape, very full, not throwing out any long canes, but just growing evenly all over. It has bloomed off and on all season, with a lot of blooms per set. It clusters like a hybrid musk (because it is a hybrid musk...), and has that two-tone thing going on that makes some hybrid musks so pretty. The blooms start out deep egg-yolk yellow and mature to a creamy white. A cluster is just breathtaking. But the best thing about CdC, IMO, is the unique cup-shape of the blossoms. It's like a semi-double, deeply incurved cup. Delicate and elegant. Exactly like the pictures. The only thing I DON'T like is the fragrance. It is a musk fragrance, but very strong, with no hint of rose. I don't detect the "honey" scent that DA advertises. Every time I see a bloom I smell it, hoping I'll like the fragrance this time. Nope. I still hate it. But CdC is a rose I'd probably never be without. It is very eye-catching and makes my garden happy.

as I mentioned in another thread....I did it again on Saturday! Suffice it to say that my Grand Caravan with stow-and-go seats had the seats stowed, and came home full! Got 3 more climbing roses to fill the fence where I removed bittersweet, 2 other roses that saw me coming and jumped in my cart (as I told DH, and plants for lots of my planters. Oh, I also picked up 2 resin wicker chairs for the dining room porch too! Today the tree man came and took out a large tree that was dieing. So took the day off. Good thing I did as I rounded up garbage cans and covered the peonies near the tree. They would have been done for if I hadn't. Spent most of the day planting and checking on their progress. I did have to dig out one rose from the round bed as they had to bring the boom truck through the back yard. Only way to get at the tree because of power lines along the street side. There was no way they would miss the rose, so rather then have them drive over it I dug it up. Will have to get it planted again tomorrow. Right now it is in the wheelbarrow with the roots covered with wet towels. After they left I raked up the sawdust from the stump grinding, raked up the small branches they missed and then cut the lawn. Then watered it to help it come back up where they had driven. So, all in all a very busy day. Don't you just love it when plants jump into your cart as you are "sailing" past?

I purchased the tub from Ferguson in Florida, believe it or not. We were there on vacation and one day the weather was bad, so we went bathroom shopping. The guy at the store spent a lot of time with me and I wanted to give him some business. I bought everything else online, but used him for the Kohler (Greek tub and the Verticyl sinks in my bathroom) since Ferguson does very well on pricing for Kohler products. Crazy thing about pre-war construction. All lines in the building are different Our line has the biggest baths in the building. The others are what you would expect in Manhattan. There are also all these random columns and chimneys and waste stacks, so working around them is a PITA. That's why we had to turn the bath the other way. Even though the room is 5' wide, it is only 38" wide at the back because there are columns in the way. So it was a challenge, not to mention what was probably double the cost for just being in the city. Needless to say, Ferguson did not have the tub on display--I had to take a chance that I would like it, as I mentioned above. I totally get the desire to separate the tub and shower. I bet that you can make it work. You can skip the step and add a couple of inches to the deck since it would be good to have the option to sit and swing your legs over when entering and exiting. That could probably net you six inches or so. I think this is the only tub of this size except, if my memory serves correctly, for an American Standard tub that may be 46" but is not a deep soaking tub. The whole point of the Greek is that it is deep. So this is probably your only choice if you really want to try to make the tub and shower separate unless you go custom. Keep working at it and post your plans. One of us here can probably help you figure it out. Good luck.