myk1; I kinda half-way wondered about that too, which is why I mentioned it - thinking someone may want to comment on that aspect of my pre-planting preperation. I've been trying to discount that in my own mind though by thinking that they say once Roundup hits the dirt it's done. The stuff I used was not target specific like poison ivy or anything, but it was the good stuff, like 46% or something like that. Then I thought, well..., Roundup is sometimes slow to show effects on broam, maybe 7-10 days, but then you have a good idea you hit it good and in a couple weeks it'll look like scorched earth. That these plants have been in 40 days, can it be that even Roundup would take that long to have an effect, and wouldn't it be getting 'em all? (I wish I hadn't said that...)But then again mostly Roundup is sprayed directly on leaves, so if there is any residual in-the-root action going on I wouldn't know that so maybe it would take longer to show an effect on my raspberries if it's first contact is with a root system somehow... Then I reasoned that heck, I placed a mound of new humus and topsoil that's made my planting bed maybe 5" or so higher than the original soil grade level, and that my understanding is that Raspberries are shallow rooted. I took care to not plant them too deep, etc. But I don't know I may just be trying to convince myself that I didn't doom my plants from the get-go! Do you have any thoughts on the tiny skinny little multi leged gray/brown worm things? I was just out there and noticed every plant had about on average 10 dead ones laying around them as a result of me spraying them earlier. Thanks!

Ingrid, you mentioned the pillows tying the sofa and chairs together. That's what I was trying to do with them. There's a big difference in the color of the chairs and the curtains and I was trying to add pillows that would pull all the colors together. Not too sure I managed to do it though. Dilly_dally, that TSP is amazing! I can still faintly see in some place where things were hanging on the walls, but the spots aren't nearly as noticeable now as they were before I cleaned the walls. Les, I swapped the chairs and sofa this morning. Here are a couple of photos. I had to move the coffee table down so it would be centered in front of the sofa, but now it's not centered with the medallion on the rug. What do you think of this arrangement? I still haven't put anything back on the walls and looking at these photos, the room looks so empty to me! Here's a link to how the room looked before I started doing anything in there. Any suggestions are very much appreciated!! Here is a link that might be useful: Living Room Before

Yan I use grit, perlite (in equal amounts) and less turface. Your mix sounds good using what you have available. I believe that you could adjust water retention as needed by using more or less of coco coir. Most important is to find if there is any water retention deeper in the pot - it may, or may not be. Not sure how you tell, but using a wooden stick (bamboo chopstick or skewer or dowel or even pencil) stuck deep inside the pot can give you idea. Once you know for sure, you can water more or less often. Even filling empty, see-thru container (with drainage holes poked in) will give you great picture: you can watch as you saturate the mix, how fast it dries up.I hardly ever fertilize, since most of the water my plants receive is from rain. On rare occasions I have to water, it is same fert I use for my veggie and flower garden (soluble MG 24-8-16 or liquid 12-4-8 which is the same proportions).

"What condo would you choose? Thank you for your thoughts." Personally, I don't think I would choose either one if they lack things that are important to me that can't be easily changed. Not having an outdoor space for a simple pleasure like morning coffee would be a deal breaker. Potty pads for a dog have no appeal to me. Part of the reason to have a dog vs a cat is that a dog makes you get up and move, go out for walks.... whether you want to or not. lol. Litter boxes are bad enough, but washing pads, ew. I get the feeling, that if you chose one of these, you would be settling for something you don't really want and have regrets.