There is no valid reason NOT to be able to cut them back now, although a primary reason for planting OG's (at least to my eyes) is for their winter interest. But commercial landscapers and groundskeepers tend to work to a schedule of their own, often dictated by their clients' wishes. Tidiness and the general winter prep and clean-up that occurs at this time of year is probably motivating this action. There was a long discussion of this same situation on this forum last season. Perhaps a search of the archives will turn it up.

Caryscott, thanks for the info on Canac! Wow, I'm so relieved I didn't actually go ahead with this line - wouldn't have even gotten the one-year warranty on them! LOL! Just to add my two cents to this thread, I ended up getting Kraftmaid cabinets (from an independent dealer, who's given me terrific pricing and service). I considered Ikea, but I'm not really into the "Italian" kitchen look, I needed design help, and I don't think I would have been able to get the size customizations I needed for my tiny galley kitchen. (One side of my kitchen has 19" reduced depth base cabinets.) I had actually wanted frameless in order to maximize usable space, but couldn't find a frameless line with a finish I liked. I finally went with Kraftmaid even though it was framed because their Ginger Glaze finish was the one that attracted me over and over again when I went to look at cabinets. (I was much more inflexible about certain details like finish color than I ever dreamed I'd be - learned a lot about myself in this renovation!) Anyway, I'm happy with the quality of the Kraftmaid cabinets. I got to inspect them in quite a lot of detail due to the problems and duration of my kitchen renovation, so I have some idea what the quality difference might be between them and a high end cabinet line. But for the money I paid, I think they're quite good. I'm sure - I *know* - Ikea would have been much less money, but it wouldn't have done what I needed it to. For those for whom it works - that's fantastic. I have a friend at work who did his ultra-modern kitchen using Ikea boxes and custom doors. It looks gorgeous. There's no single right answer for everyone. :-) Oh, and I love Target too! Got my bamboo silverware organizer there - they were the only place that had one that would fit my very shallow depth drawers, it was *beautifully* constructed (better than the expensive ones I saw), and it was cheap. Can't ask for more!

I'm in California too and a "President's Week" would send my DH over the edge! LOL Days off, half days, and early release days are already more than he can stand. he thinks they're never in school. I try to compare our schedule with other friends and he just shakes his head. We only get two days off at Thanksgiving, two weeks at Christmas, and one week at Easter. Then the Mondays for MLK, Presidents, Memorial Day and Labor Day. We start Mid August and end at the end of May. My cousins/friends kids get all that except it's a week at Thanksgiving, two weeks at Christmas and Easter, and a Fall break for a week. I'm guessing they're not out in May though. I don't know about that.

Not an expert but I'll give a try. I've always used fabric for binding. Usually one of the fabrics from the top or something that coordinates with the top. I've always picked a dark color for the binding but I don't think that's a rule. Yes. 100% cotton only though traditionally quilts were made from whatever was available. Use whatever thread your machine likes. Quilting threads are usually for hand quilting unless it says otherwise. Wash all fabric together with a color catcher. If they bleed a lot, wash again. I washed my kona turquoise with the white I was planning to use. Though the turquoise did bleed a lot, the white came out clean. Use a 1/4" foot if available. Otherwise mark a quarter inch from the needle with painters tape or something similar to use as a guide. There are hundreds of YouTube videos on all stages of quilting. Watch a few if you learn better from visuals than words. There were not many when I started quilting but I've learnt a lot from them. Vasu