I wanted to provide an update on my winter garden efforts. =) I built a small (about 3x6) low tunnel using 1/2" electrical conduit and a clear plastic dropcloth along the back of my garden, where there is full winter sun and protection on the north side. I had a "duh" moment the other day while I was out in the garden picking swiss chard for dinner from my MONSTER plants... I transplanted them into my tunnel and they are doing great. (The "control" I left outside the tunnel is now DEAD.) We'll see how long they last through the winter! I know they'll go to seed in the spring if they survive, but that's ok, I'll have new stuff by then. And I can save seed that way too =) I also moved my parsley in there, so I can see how that does. I tried presprouting spinach and mache inside, which worked fine, and then planting them out... well, they weren't doing so hot without any protection, so I put them in the tunnel as well, and I am starting to see sprouts! Not growing fast, but growing. We'll see if they can get established enough before the weather really gets bad. And finally, I have lettuce sprouting inside a milk jug (wintersowing style), inside the tunnel. It is tiny right now, but green and healthy looking! I figured it would get "double protection" that way and might make it. My husband just rolls his eyes, but I tell him, "Hey, this will keep me sane through the winter, so humor me!" And he really does, he helps a lot even though he's not really into gardening! Helped me get my new community garden plot cleared and tilled this spring (after five years of neglect), built me raised beds at home, and he even thinks to get grounds for the compost heap when he's at the coffee shop =) >sorry had to brag on him a little!Anyway, I am excited to see what will happen! All the tips from posters here are such a help! Lori

Several years ago I was lucky enough to get a shed-your basic barn-type, but I was so thrilled! One of the first things we did was brainstorm on a bench for the inside. I don't have a picture & it's too dark now, but here are a few features we used to make it SOOOOO useful. Height-if you've spent years planting & potting on the kitchen table, your back knows what I mean. The correct height for you makes all the difference! From the ground up: I got 3 plastic storage totes with lids that fit just right lined up side by side on the floor of the shed between the frame of the bench. These hold my potting mix, compost & such-I just slide them out to access them & slide them back. I think this would also work outside if you find them without a concave lid (don't want to breed those skeeters!) Above this is a shelf, not a terribly high space, but perfect for some pots, tools, row cover-you get the idea! On top is the top. It extends 3-4" in front of the frame so that after potting you can just pull your tote forward & sweep the fallen soil back in-easy & tidy! The front edge of the frame being in back of the surface gives you a conveinient place to drive a couple of nails to hold your brush to sweep the dirt with, a dustpan if you need to dispose of the debris, a flyswatter, or anything you'd like to have ready at hand. Since it's inside a shed with exposed studs, we notched out the rear side of the top to fit around the studs to prevent stuff from falling down behind the bench! Another cheap tip-2 screw eyes & a piece of dowel that slides into them makes a dandy paper towel holder! Mine was built of mostly used wood, topped with old rubber conveyor belting & while it is totally functional & not as pretty as some of those you've done, these are features that you could use even on the cuter ones!

It is truly amazing how little space a bunny needs to get into a garden! Last spring I added these neat iron gates I got at lowes, and I thought the squares at the bottom were small enough to keep out the bunnies - wrong! I ended up cutting chicken wire for the bottom of the gates AND had to tighten up the green coated 24" fencing against the poles of the gates - another entry point. I like the green coated fencing and the green metal posts. Just be sure to really jam it down into the soil so no space for bunny to crawl under.......of course the deer love just reaching over the small fence, or just popping over it. Sigh. Good luck! If you have even one deer in the area, you need to totally rethink your project.

Julie, Spider mites overwinter wherever and however they can, but generally in garden debris or mulch, fallen leaves, or places like crevices in bark. Their reproduction seems to be temperature-related in terms of when it starts and when it accelerates. Once really hot temperatures arrive you can get a new generation every 5 days. Yesterday I sprayed my poor brugs with a pyrethrin spray, though I normally avoid pyrethins because of their toxicity to felines. I chased the cats away from the brugs and made them stay away from the brugs for the rest of the day. I looked at the foliage today and could see no change. I've never had spider mites this bad on any plant this early in the year. With the hollies, if you could post a photo of the leaves, maybe we could have you figure out what is wrong. For the most part, hollies are very pest resistant so I'd be inclined to think browning leaves you're seeing now are not related to last year's spider mites. In future years, if you have spider mites on your hollies, you can spray them with dormant oil during the dormant season to smother any pests that are overwintering or any eggs. You also can use one of the superfine summerweight oils (they're lighter than the traditional dormant oils so less likely to damage foliage) during the growing season. The one I'm familiar with is called SunSpray but I am sure there are other brands. Read the label carefully of any dormant oil, whether it is the regular one or the superfine summerweight one, before using because many plants that have blueish foliage can be permanently damaged by dormant oil and it will cause their foliage to be emerald green instead of its usual blue-green hue. Chandra, There is no simple remedy that takes care of spider mites. When I was a kid, my dad used difocol (Kelthane) or liquid Sevin and every time he sprayed, the mites seemed to disappear, but then a few days later he had more of them than ever. The more he sprayed, the more mites he had in the long run. It took me a very long time to understand why this occurred. It occurred because the miticide (Kelthane) also was killing off the good bugs (predatory mites) that helped keep the spider mites under control. The Sevin killed off other beneficial insects that were doing the same thing. He finally stopped spraying for spider mites in the 1990s and had less trouble with them after that than back in the years when he sprayed. So, if you choose to use a miticide, be aware it also will kill the beneficial mites. If you choose to use a broad-spectrum pesticide, understand it could kill your beneficials. Also, read any product label carefully. Most insecticides do not kill spider mites because they are not insects, they are arachnids. I bet there are some multi-purpose pesticides out there that contain both an insecticide and a miticide, but that's just a "guess". I bet it is a good guess though. For ornamental plants, there is a product called Avid that you could use on anything that's not edible, as long as the Avid label doesn't specifically list the plant and state not to use it on that plant. It is a pretty pricey solution. For edibles, I try to start with the least toxic and least invasive remedy for spider mites, and work my way up. So, I usually go in this order: 1. Try hosing them off the undersides of the plants with a sharp stream of water. Do it once every 3 days until you've done it three times. If they are still there, move on to the next step. There's some water wands like Bug Blaster made specifically for this because they make it easier to direct the spray of the water up underneath the bottom of the leaves. You might want to google this method and see if scientific backs up its efficacy to your satisfaction. In my experience, it is most effective very early in the season most years, but not after that. This year, I tried it and it hasn't done a thing for my plants. It might knock off the mites, but they are back by the next day. 2. Try spraying the foliage with the least toxic spray you have handy--neem oil or insecticidal soap. 3. If those two methods don't work and if your lady bugs are not controlling the spider mites, try spraying with a pyrethrin spray. I use one that contains pyrethrin and neem oil. They's also one that contains pyrethrin and canola oil. 4. Try a botanical insecticide. (See linked page below because it features some of them.) 5. Try a superfine summerweight oil. Test on one plant of any given veggie or flower, wait 48 hours and check for damage, and then use on rest of plants if you do not see damage. These can cause damage if used on plants that are drought-stressed or if used at high temperatures (above 90 degrees). You also can try a wettable sulphur powder, but only in cool temps and only after testing it once on a plant and waiting 48 hours to see if damage appears. Sulphur can cause foliar burns pretty easily, so I generally don't use it, but it is an option. 6. In addition to the above, try a repellent spray. I have better luck with Hot Pepper Wax than with Garlic Barrier when it comes to spider mites. 7. The final thing I would try (and I am almost to this point) before resorting to the use of a stronger synthetic chemical would be a Spinosad spray. I haven't tried this and have no idea if it would work on spider mites, but in general, I have found Spinosad works well on a wide variety of insects although I have no idea if it works on mites. 8. A great potential solution on paper is to buy and release predatory mites that prey upon the spider mites. I haven't tried this. There's also a beetle (I think it is a beetle) called Spider Mite Destroyers. Both can be purchased and released. I haven't checked any published research to see how effective they are or aren't, and they are both pretty expensive. Of course, if they work, it is worth the price to save your plants. 9. Kelthane or any other miticide would be the next step. Be sure to do your research. I don't think I would resort to Kelthane because I saw it fail my dad many times. Also, I tend to avoid synthetic chemicals. 10. As a last resort, strip off the worst of the affected leaves, bag them in a zip lock bag, zip it shut, put it in the household trash, and dispose of them this way. That would reduce the number your plant had to deal with. After removing the most heavily infested foliage, spray the remaining with the spray of your choice from the above list. My personal opinion is that an individual's success in fighting spider mites will be highly variable depending on how many spider mites infest the property around them. If you're in a rural area surrounded by pastures, meadows or woodlands full of them, it is doubtful you'll ever really get rid of them. I speak from experience. I honestly don't have much faith in anything you do to fight spider mites if you're surrounded by acreage infested heavily with them. They are so bad here that they even infest the blades of bermuda grass and Johnson grass during hot, dry summers. This spring, we had them on our otherwise gorgeous winter rye grass. It is crazy. Part of the problem is they can produce a new generation every 5 days, so you have to be just as persistent in fighting them as they are persistent in reproducing. I'm linking the page form Planet Natural's website that deals with spider mite control. At the bottom of the page, they should have a listing of all the products they sell that may help control spider mites. They have pages like this for many pests and I generally find their info very helpful. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Spider Mite Control Tips From Planet Natural