Marguerite, I purchased all my Coleus from one mailorder nursery (in 2004 and 2005) but pretty sure they were pestfree when received...especially as I kept them all near sofa the first few days so I could admire them...LOL They spent all summer on my patio so probably picked up mealybugs (or eggs) there. I think I've found part of the answer...attached article says Coleus very susceptible but constant inspection and washing can prevent infestation and spread if caught early. Also, I just had 3-4 little mealybugs...not all over the stems as I've seen in photos (shudder!) Another thing the article recommended was growing potplants inside house a little dry and using less fertilizer. In winter I just "maintain" my plants, not try to grow them...and I never use fertilizer (although some may be in some of potting soil I buy). My house is kept between 66-68 degrees F days and cooler still at night so they sort of go into hibernation mode. So maybe I was doing the right thing inadvertently. I'd always felt fortunate not to have had pests on my tropicals indoors...I think possibly my method of brisk thorough shower and watering well and then letting pot dry out a good bit was, in addition to catering to my laziness, a good insect preventative...LOL Of course when outside they get thorough spray/watering every other day...temps in 90's all summer here. But they flourish and grow so well they don't mind the lower light, cooler temps and reduced water in winter inside. Oh, the one Coleus that got the mealybugs was 'Klondike', orange-red leaves with yellow edge. Iside house it fades to a soft copper-pink but still nice. josh Here is a link that might be useful: Mealybug Life Cycle & Prevention

Hi, welcome to worm farming. I've been doing it for about a year now. Questions are good, and lead to learning more. Hope we can help out. 1. They like it best at 70, but thats not to say you can't keep them in a place that is hotter or colder. I have a bin outside, were it is 100+ during the summer and as low as 0 during the winter, and it is very active. 2. Thats a big bin. How many worms do you have? I would worry about how much air they get if you have the doors on. You would want it covered, but the fridge is made to hold air in, so if you keep the lid on, give it plenty of holes for fresh air flow. 3. Grass clippings are fine, but they can heat up. I would use in moderation. I will bag mine up every now and then, and use in my regular compost pile. Leaves, newspaper, veggie scraps make up most of my worms food and bedding. 4. As stated with the grass clippings, they heat up, so your worms could be escaping the heat. when things cool off they may find their way back. Don't let any mistakes now make you think twice about what you are trying to do. This is a great thing to do, you'll make mistakes and learn from them. Once you get it down, it is easy. You just have to learn what works best for you.

I do believe you, and I do believe her, but I don't understand the cutout number. How can 23.5 fit in a 23.375 space? The cabinets I'm buying say the box is built with a 5/8" thickness...this could be thicker than 1/2" in something like a Kraftmaid cabinet. I would so like to reconcile the calculation! Lovely thought on the drawers. I actually did have drawers first there, but changed the rollouts thinking that they gave just a bit more vertical space with no horizontal framing having to cross the space. But I agree it's less effort to open a drawer. Regardless, I like the look of the 26" oven depth to break up the line, so will likely switch to drawers and deepen.

Not an electrician: I believe the NEC prohibits using ducting as a wireway (conduit) because it is not approved for the application. There are also requirements on cables and conduit when in an air plenum, such as a ceiling used as an air plenum. Truly abandoned ducting is just metal surrounding a cable or conduit run. If the duct is greasy, then any conduit in the abandoned ducting should be sealed, and in my view incapable of supporting a fire, such as thinwall, IMC, or rigid. Flex might allow grease to intrude upon the conductors. UG cable might be OK. PVC conduit might be allowed. I have never noticed this particular case addressed in the NEC. For electrical questions, I argue that it is better to ask permission than forgiveness. See your Code Enforcement officer for advice. You may have to tear out some part of the ducting at each end for it to qualify as abandoned. I think it is a good idea, pending approval, if the duct is buried and the path needed is otherwise inaccessible without trenching under the building.