We have a 20' x 24' hoophouse (two layers of plastic) on decent clay soil. I am having some issues figuring out how to loosen the deeper layers of soil for planting, and how to do the final soil preparation for planting with a multi-row seeder. The first summer we did succession-plantings of buckwheat to loosen the soil and discourage the perennial weed grasses. Last summer the house grew tomatoes, herbs, peppers, chard, and brassicas. This year I would really like to implement mechanical seeding, but that requires extra care in soil preparation. I am mostly trying to follow Eliot Coleman's books on hoophouse growing--I also have the book "Teaming with Microbes" but am having some challenge figuring out how to marry up the concepts and applied them inside a structure where it never rains. Regarding loosening the deeper layers of soil, I tried using a broadfork, but cannot penetrate more than the top two inches of the soil due to mild compaction. A mattock breaks up the soil with some effort, or a Mantis tiller breaks it up well, but I'm not sure which approach is preferable. I also have not figured out how I want to water the whole hoophouse. I'd prefer not to spray water all over the wood structure, but would like to get good coverage. As a result, right now plants are spot-watered, which means that areas that are unplanted (and even areas near the plants) get very dry. So all the natural tillers (earthworms and microorganisms) have moved on. I'm thinking perhaps that maintaining a moister environment would help with the "tilling" of the deeper layers? For seedbed prep, Coleman stated that they loosen the deeper layers with a broadfork (isn't working for me), then "till" in amendments with a "Tilther," a tilling device that they had assembled using the motor of an electric drill that only tills the top 2" or so. Finished compost (presumably finely-screened) is applied over that, and the area is raked to a fine tilth, and then rolled prior to seeding. Sorry about this rambling message, but what would you suggest for: (1) loosening the deeper layers of the clayey soil to prepare for the planting? (tiller, spading, mattock, worms, green covers, or don't do it?) (2) watering system to encourage earthworms and organisms to colonize and keep the water where it needs to be? Also, is city water ok, or well water preferred?

I remember reading a short story in college (a long time ago...) that said the only way to avoid chigger bites was to run through the field naked. Idk, haven't done it, but they love me. I may be the only one out of 3 or 4 people in the exact same area who ends up with bites. I have found only one spray that kept them off of me and I let a friend use it for her freaking mosquitoes. I don't know why mosquitoes don't really like me, but chiggers LOVE me. Is there any known reason why some people are more likely to get chiggers VS mosquitoes? Or, am I the only fortunate one? One thing that a friend of mine swears by, and he mows lawns for his employment, is sticking dryer sheets in his socks. He looks odd, but he says he gets no chigger bites by doing this. I don't trust it, but anyone else had luck with this? Or even hearts of it?

I wish I would have timed how long it took me to read every single one of these posts. My beloved cats are destroying my house. I'm single, working, commuting, and losing my mind trying to clean it and get them to stop. I think that a fair number of these posts are written by SHILLS, which I find despicable. People like me are going through hell. Not only is there a mess, it's a smelly, toxic mess, and it's caused by my children. Yes, they are my children, and I can't just get rid of them. I, too, want to chime in and say that Nature's Miracle does NOT work. I'm fine with ripping up the carpet and starting over, but even that is going to be so incredibly difficult and time consuming. After reading all of this, and not having very nice carpet, I've decided to rip up my carpet, but I wish all of you cat lovers the best of luck in trying to eradicate the stains if you do want to keep your carpet. There isn't much on this thread about preventative measures to stop cats from doing this in the first place, but I encourage everyone to visit some reputable sites to deal with that as well. I've listed some below. Please don't ever think your cat is angry or vindictive or something like that. Cats don't have those types of emotions. Educate yourself and respond appropriately, but be careful of opinions in forums. Look to the experts for advice. I so very much appreciate the time people took to offer solutions. Thank you. I also want to recommend a money saving litterbox filler that will encourage you to keep up with cleaning it, as well as keep the smell at bay. My cats' issues have to do with new cats in the home, age and illness - not the use of this litter. I use plain wood pellets (no scent!), bought at Menard's or Fleet Farm type places. They're sold as woodstove fuel, as well as pet bedding. Way more economical that commercial litter and, I think, abate the smell much better. http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/2011/06/cat-going-outside-the-litter-box-super-smart-behaviorists-share-their-tips/ http://catinfo.org/?link=litterbox http://www.littlebigcat.com/?s=litter+box One of the many posts on the brilliant Dr. Becker's site: http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/08/29/cat-litter-box-aversion.aspx http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/2011/02/9-useful-sites-for-researching-cat-health-issues/

Seen too many properties with this problem and itâÂÂs nasty. Every cat owner will swear their home doesnâÂÂt smell but I have never been in a home that I couldnâÂÂt tell had a cat. IâÂÂve been in hundreds where it was noticeable but the owners still believe itâÂÂs not a problem. Cat urine is far more concentrated then dog and human urine. A cats kidneys are so efficient at extracting absorbable water that the high concentration makes the urine extremely foul. With that high concentration, the real problematic component of cat urine is uric acid. This concentrated acid causes that nasty odor and makes stains hard to remove. Uric acid contains non-soluble salt crystals which bond like crazy glue to any surface. These crystals bond to wood, drywall, grout, ceramics, marble and even concrete. Even when the crystals are dry, the problem remains. Any moisture will reactivate the crystals releasing the smell all over again. Usually the smell gets worse since the crystals concentrate after drying. Humid summer days will reactivate the problem years after the cats are gone. The only way to resolve the problem totally is to get rid of the carpet and pad. If wood subflooring needs replacing due to the urine damaging the integrity of the plywood, replace those areas. The rest of the subflooring needs to be thoroughly cleaned, dried and sealed with Binz. YouâÂÂre not cleaning the subfloor to get rid of the cat urine but to make sure you have a clean, dry surface for the Binz to adhere to. The Binz shellac primer will seal down to a .005 microns which is critical. Kilz only seals down to .015 microns so I recommend Binz to fix it the first time. Any walls or trim that are suspect to the urine also needs to be sealed with Binz and repainted. Even concrete needs to be cleaned and sealed but I recommend using and epoxy on the concrete if itâÂÂs going to be left exposed. The biggest lesson I learned is if a cat is urinating frequently in a few areas of the home, itâÂÂs likely a problem throughout. I purchase properties for investments and if IâÂÂm looking at a property with cat issues, I figure replacing the carpet and pad in all rooms, cleaning and sealing all the floors, sealing half way up the walls, repainting entirely, sealing (sometimes replacing grout and/or ceramics) and even having the duct systems cleaned as this odor permeates all areas and cats will even urinate into the floor vents. The last property I purchased like this had the price reduced $35,000.00. I cost me $40,000.00 when I was done so I should have reduced the price $55,000.00 as my intent is to be profitable and this is a horrible problem.