Charlie, I'm in S. Central PA, not too far from TMI (10 mile radius) but North of Reeser's Summit, which seems to make a difference in growing conditions. I've noticed the garden shops in the county South of us sells plnts that are less cold-tolerant than the shops in my county do. (That's why I'm not entirely certain I'm in the 6a region.) The Black Horehound label just said "Black Horehound". It looked like regular horehound except it didn't have all the white hairs over lighter green that white horehound does. It was darker green but not really black, and had the usual scalloped edges to the leaves. I can't remember what reference on the Internet said it was poisonous. " The onus is on the buyer of the plant to know if that plant is used in the kitchen or not and how it is used. The nursery is not responsible for the assumptions of a buyer nor what they may put into their mouth without knowing for sure what it is and how it is used." Actually, Fata, whether there is any onus or not depends on how the nursery is selling the herbs. If they have a warning sign up they're covered. IMO, if they don't, and someone is poisoned, it serves them right if they are sued, especially if they are selling the plants contiguous to things like garden vegetables. The garden shop made a real mistake with the black horehound. I think the sign behind it was for white horehound, and all they had was the black, which is why I purchased it. ASA I realized it was not like my usual horehound, would spread, and was just an ornamental, I pulled it up. It was an attractive plant, but in the earlier stages of growth it was difficult to tell them apart, and I use my white horehound quite frequently. It is all well and good to believe that everyone has the resources to research herbs, but there are still people in the USA that can't even read, let alone have access to the Internet. Luckily for most of them, they also cannot afford to purchase herbs from garden shops.

Schoolhouse - lol. Yes, it is a challenge on one's own, and Kathy, I love that remark - I agree!!! And of course the cute younger men are scared of cougars!! Seriously, though - I understand about not wanting to wait for someone to come, take the mower, fix it on their schedule, and then return it on that same schedule. I tried repairing my own gas mower, but wasn't that good at it. ;-)) You could put an old blanket over the access to the trunk, then use the ramps to get it up there and in. That way you don't have to be too careful wedging it in.... With this recession, and people not having jobs, I am waiting for the return of the door-to-door repair guys. Remember the ones who came around ringing a bell, and would sharpen all of your knives and scissors?? In my Aunt and Uncle's snowbird park in Florida, a Cuban man came around in an old pickup with vegetables that he had grown, selling them. It's hard to even get kids today to cut grass or shovel snow for $20!!! That's just crazy. I talk to people every day, and many are unemployed. Some have just been laid off as I call!! I had one woman rip me a new one cause her hubby had been unemployed for 5 years!! I'm sorry, that's just lazy, not unemployed. People need to realize they're not in line for the corner office anymore - time to get out there and make some money. Sorry, what was the topic again?? Nancy.

It is possible but I will allow others to give their input on that topic. For all of the readers that do not have a place to garden check with your city, parks department esp, or garden clubs to see if your area has community garden spots. Many cities have set aside vacant land as community garden areas. Most you would pay a small rent or volunteer to help in the garden area. If your city does not have one see if the city would be agreeable to starting one. Some cities/counties have small parcels of land that are too small to build on but can be used for this purpose. Good luck. In a couple of months you too could be growing in soil. Check your produce section of the supermarket for fresh herbs.

Thanks for all the kind words. I still look at it in disbelief that it came together so well. Kompy,yeah, the title was tongue-in-cheek, because I was warned about using friends as contractors, but I knew these guys and their work ethic, so I wasn't worried. Cabinets are clear maple with a natural finish, from a local custom maker in Salt Lake, Mt Tech cabinets. Countertops are Maron Cohiba granite. They almost read as black from a distance, but are deep brown and scattered with gold flecks, small fractures, large flakes, etc. Really have a lot of depth. Backsplash is from Daltile, from the Urban Metals collection, UM01. It's a running brick pattern with pewter grout. It's kind of weird, not really tile, almost a composite substrate with a thin laminate of shiny material that also has specks & color. Hard to describe. The whole thing was really a collaboration with input from a number of different people. I had a rough idea of what I wanted, and had spent a lot of time talking about it with Dale & Damion, my friends who were the contractors. Dale loves to do the "Craftsman" style woodworking, so a modernized version of that style was the base. The original kitchen was cut in half by a bank of cabinets that totally cut off the "dining" area, with the original stove in that section, and the old sink where the range is now. I really wanted to open up the kitchen and join all that space, so that also was one of the primary design criteria. From there, things just developed, and as we went along, I decided that I'm only going to do this once, and I wanted to do it right, and do justice to the beautiful woodworking that the guys were doing. I was also fortunate to meet and enlist the services of a great designer, Carrie Snyder of Avatar Design in Salt Lake. Carrie was just awesome at coming in at crucial moments to make sure things worked together. She did the lighting plan, helped me choose the countetop material, chose the backsplash, and all of the interior wall colors. The walls are Pratt & Lambert "Briarwood", with accent walls of "Clove Dust", and some "Chalk Grey", with the same Chalk Grey ceilings. All of the woodwork was laboriously hand sanded, then shot with sanding sealer, sanded again, then shot with three coats of lacquer. One of the details that you cant' see in the photos is that the baseboard is 5/8" thick, the jamb legs 3/4" thick, then the frieze boards on top step out another 1/8" to 1", so there is a three dimensional step out on the trim, which was all milled in my garage. Anyway, I hope I've answered some of your questions without prattling on too much like a proud papa. If you could have seen what this house looked like before, you would not believe it. I bought the house in 1988, and the entire thing (including bathrooms!!) was carpeted with a short blue-green industrial looking carpet, all walls were the same battleship grey, (it was listed as a "Newport Contemporary Solarium") The transformation has been awesome to watch. This past Monday I got my final inspection, and was able to start moving back upstairs after spending the last 6 months in my dungeon of a basement with my two Bengal cats, (hence the screen name). I don't have any more photos at the moment, but would love to share some of the rest of the house when I get back home from work in 2 weeks. Thanks again for looking & listening! I got a lot of great information from the folks on this forum, so if there is anything that I may be able to contribute, just ask. BTW, the range is a Blue Star, 36" RNB with charbroiler. I haven't really had the chance to cook on it yet, but the installation was relatively painless (it's heavy!), and all burners, ignitors, broiler, etc worked perfectly first time.