Just want to clear up an inaccuracy here: "He urged me NOT to pull any more even in flower beds because PULLING THEM SPREADS THE NUTSEDGE!! He said the seeds are in the "nut" at the base of the root system, so when you rupture/disturb the nut by pulling, all those seeds spread all over and get in the lawn too. I can't believe I've been inadvertently spreading it!!!" Seeds of nutsedge, Cyperus rotundus or esculentus, are NOT contained in the nutlets! They will be located in the flowerheads that form at the top of the plant. But they are not the problem as purple nutsedge seldom produces any seed and yellow nutsedge seeds have minimal germination viability. An established plant will produce multiple nutlets as well as a rhizomatous root system. Sometimes as many as a hundred or more. That's how the sedge multiples and why pulling is so ineffectual - unless the soil is very loose and friable, it is almost impossible to get all the roots and all the nutlets out and any single remaining tuber (nutlets) will regenerate as a new plant. So disturbing or rupturing the nutlet does not spread any seeds. But it is easy to spread the tubers while in the process of physical removal. Any tilling, plowing or even just routine cultivation of a planting bed can spread the tubers. Any tuber left in place will rapidly form a new plant. Control is not a once and done. It will generally take repeated applications of a dedicated sedge killer or a broad spectrum herbicide. Same with manual removal of the topgrowth/starving the plant via denial of photosynthesis. Most sources state a 2-3 year period of focused control methods before a 90% elimination of any remaining tubers.

How big are the leaves that you're working on? I use trays, some are discarded half sheet cake pans or reinforced heavy duty cardboard boxes. I cut the boxes to about 2 or 3 inches tall, wrap with duct tape, line with plastic and fill with as much sand as I'll need. I line the sheet cake pans with plastic and then fill with sand. I use wet and dry sand for casting. You probably know this, watch what you use for wet sand due to the weight. I have shelving in my studio/greenhouse that I can slid the trays onto for curing. The trays are ridgid enough that I can stack them on top of each other too. If you use shelving to store/cure make sure that either the shelves are smooth so you can slide the trays or the shelf opening is wide enough to get into up to your shoulder. When I work on projects in the house I work on trays too, on the kitchen table. I have a closet with shelves that the trays can be stored in if I'm not finished with the project or it's an ongoing project. Hope this helps. Billie

t-bird, surgery is 1/31. On the list: Everything! (But we've painted most of what has to be painted, so my job, unlike yours, is just getting rid of stuff and cleaning every surface, like an old-fashioned spring cleaning.) We're empty-nesters so there are no kids' rooms to clean or kids to give attention and time to. Kitchen is about 90% done, foyer (only a little coat closet and some tile and the front door) is done. Workout room was just painted and is finished except for the closet, which is full of old political-campaign paraphernalia I need to box up or get rid of, and I don't really care much if I get to that or not. Downstairs too is my office, which is a sea of papers, and a TV room and guest bath. Upstairs I have the LR, dining area, and MB, along with 1 1/2 baths. So I may be able to get all of this done. I move very slowly because of my knee, so it takes a while. I'm not going to stress about it; whatever I get done will be better than what it was before I started. Storage area in basement and garage will probably wait until later. I'll join you in a 2012 cleanup project. Mine will be to finish up whatever I haven't done, if anything, before I go to the hospital, and then to keep things in order. I'm the messy one and DH is very neat. Good luck to both of us, t-bird. And may we enjoy the process!

OMG, so you call those things SPACE BAGS? I can imagine putting four fluffy pillows and a comforter in a squeezed bag under the bed, or in a platform bed drawer, and have it LEAK!!!! Good grief, I can picture what you'd have to do to remove the contents after they expand. And did you use the vacuum cleaner hose to suck out the air, Loretta? I think of something and it turns out you've just done it the week before....you install a tiny ceiling fan, and it is the same one I bought too.....are we on the same wave length or WHAT!! Pretty soon, you'll be able to finish my sentences no problem, and I'll be asking you for advice on persuading my DH to do things the way I wish WHEN I wish. I am decidedly "strong willed" as it has been noted, and not always tactful or gently persuasive. My approach is to push someone until they push back, hence I know that somebody is there. Otherwise it is like pushing through a cloud looking for a presence--until you touch something firm, you don't know if anyone is home!