Thanks for commenting, GJers...it's an early summer here...so heat & humidity has taken a toll...but everything is growing...so that is good! Lookin' at the pics, I need a diff 'bird' in that cage...something w/color...will have to keep an eye out! DH & I have been busy this Spring/Summer w/some volunteer work on empty FEMA lots in our nearby small town...life has been flying by! Happy 1st day of Summer tomorrow, June 20th! Jeanne S

Oak is fine I see ferns and moss growing on old oak stumps all the time. Tannins are only produced to prevent animals from eating the tree; it has no affect on plant growth. I would not use black walnut though because it contains juglone which is a chemical that does affect other plants like tomatoes. The leaves of black walnut is also toxic. When your done you might want to add some walls on the sides to stabalize the stucture(rocks, earth pounded tires, concrete blocks, etc.)because if you get a heavy rain the manure/soil will runoff. *If you have any roadkill (deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc.) in your area I would add that on top of the oak wood and then bury it with the manure/soil. This would create an insane about of fertility. This post was edited by greenthumbzdude on Mon, Feb 25, 13 at 21:50

Those are great plants! You will love Ballerina on Ice --- I got it last summer, and "she" is blooming her heart out here in my garden, with many more buds yet to open. Every blossom is perfect. Nancy

Scott, I just just logged on and saw your post. We have been so crazy busy with clean-up, the kids, and just daily life that I haven't checked back in. This story has a HAPPY ending! Or, at least, not a bad one. :) Our insurance deductible is $2,000. The claim was just over $4,000 in damages per the adjuster. He gave us a couple of hundred for debris removal, $2,000 for the fence repair, a little bit for the attic leak which just requires some water seal, and around $2000 for the depreciated value of the play set and grill. Nothing for the large tree or fruit trees, as they did not hit any structures. So we have $2,000 for repairs. The city of Jenks hauled away all of our small limbs free of charge. I listed the play set for parts on CL (swings, slide, rock climbing wall, ladder. etc) for $80. A very nice man came and bought the parts, then insisted he haul away the scrap wood too. He has 20 acres somewhere and said he would rather burn it, so we didn't have to pay to get it hauled off! He is a carpenter, and said that now he can build his grandchildren a play set for minimal cost. Win-win for both of us. I helped him load it, and I thought I was gonna die. Some of the items were huge and heavy (the roof, the tunnel)...He brought a pickup truck and a 16 foot trailer, and they were both piled high when he drove off. My neighbors' landscapers asked if they could have the grill for scrap metal, so I gave it to them. Dave fixed most of the damaged fence with a few new rails, some leftover stain, and some quickcrete. That cost under $50. So now, we actually have around $2,000 to replace the play set and grill (which is about what they will cost). We pretty much broke even :) The big tree is mostly gone, and many of my small fruit trees were undamaged. One was on its side, and we replanted and staked it. A couple are snapped off. They may regrow. I do still have a large stump and a few feet of the base of my tree laying in the garden, Dave has been hacking away at it. But Scott, if you are ever in the area and the offer still stands, I'd love to take you up on it. Don't make a special trip, and I'd insist on paying you something for your time and effort. I'm not sure how long you are going away for, but I don't think Dave is going to get this thing chopped up any time soon. :) Jo