I know it's hard to move across country with kids and pets and plants - my poor kids had to endure being close to my two large aloe barbadens plants, which are covered in sharp thorns; the moving company misjudged how much stuff we had after they sent out a guy and he measured and counted our boxes and furniture. Our two vehicles were packed to the ceilings, plants got a bit mashed, many left behind, and a couple were put on the truck even though it was prohibited and one died. Sad thing is, I was even more of a beginner then than I still am now, so I didn't have much at all! I can't imagine what it's like to have to leave behind that much from that long!!!!!! The pets we moved with us were 10 angel fish, 3 cory cats, guppies, and a very large African clawed frog. We moved them in 10 gal buckets, my husband bought a converter for the cigarette lighter and we had bubblers going in all the buckets. Everything survived. We had to sell a lot of fish on Craigslist before hand, which was heart breaking. But I think everyone should be responsible about their pets, so I'm glad you're taking the cats. I hate it when people leave behind cats, dump them off, or put fish into streams etc. I liked the idea of allowing people to come dig up plants; if that is acceptable to the new owners - could write something into the contract about the plants. But for yourself, definitely take a division of what you want the most, put in bags with wet paper towels as suggested earlier. Just like if you were going to do a trade online here at GW. I've been trading all summer, my first year trading, and I LOVE it!!!! You could easily get a garden full of plants just from the generous people here on GW. You could trade some of your plants here on the trading forums, if you have the time for it, and tell your trading partner to hold off sending their trade to you. You might even be able to get a division off your own plant later down the road that way. Just a suggestion. I'm addicted to this plant and seed trading!!! If you aren't trading yet, you should totally try it after you get settled into your new house. If it were me, I would be wishing the new house's garden was prepped and ready for the plant divisions I was taking as I was wrapping up my stuff with bubble wrap and paper . . . I was fretting over having a window for my houseplants!!! (In addition to worrying about whether or not the angel fish would even survive! And how I was going to keep 3 babies happy and fed as I drove alone!) It was a production, and it was VERY stressful, but it was worth it. We've been at this house for almost a year, and I have been shaping the gardens to my own liking, weeding, adding tons of new plants, weeding, expanding beds, weeding . . . and I'm so happy and proud of what I've done in one growing season. I'm going to try wintersowing this winter!!! Best of luck to you, get as much help as possible, remain calm, put it all in God's hands and let go - all will work out in the end. You'll have a lush, full garden again in just a few years!

Hi B2, LOL! Big Box Store: "A large retail store whose physical layout resembles a large square of box when seen from above. A big box store is characterized by a large amount of floor space, a wide array of items available for sale, and its location in suburban areas. Big box stores often can offer lower prices because they buy products in high volume. Also called supercenter, superstore, megacenter." Therefore: Lowe's, Home Depot, Walmart, Target, etc. I think of them as the "cheap stores," tho some of them are definitely cheaper than others! I don't have time for the long answer, but Hyponex is mostly Colorado "sedge peat," which is basically SLUDGE! Next time you're in a Walmart, go to the "garden" section and lift one of the bags of Hyponex! It's like lifting a bag of lead! (Compared to any other brand of soil mix you'd use for potted plants.) Plants don't grow very well in MUCK, so plants don't grow very well in Hyponex. (In my opinion, plants don't grow AT ALL in Hyponex.) The baled stuff is Canadian sphagnum peat, which is what you want. If you ever get peat in a bag, be sure that's what it is, but it's much cheaper in the bales (used to come in 3 sizes)---and you can keep it "forever" if you don't use it all right away! (It's already a few thousand years old!) That's why I always specify Canadian when I'm talking about peat! It's a completely different animal from Colorado Muck---I mean "peat!" Don't feel ignorant about asking things! The only way to learn something is to ask about it! My Mantra around here: The only dumb question is the one you don't ask! :-) [Now that's assuming you don't ask the SAME question over and over and over.......] You're really not that far from Timberline. If you consider buying a bulk soil, run over there some day and ask to see their soil mixes. They show a "Planter's Mix" for $29.50 a yard. If you go, ask if Kelly is there, and if he is tell him what you're using it for and see if he thinks that would be a good choice. [Tell him Dee sent you!] If he tells you to get the "EKO Planter's Mix," tell him that's too expensive, and you're gonna add your own peat---'cause I said so!!! (And tell him I said Hi!) If you decide to get it in bags, I still think you should wait till Walmart gets their stuff in, then pick up one bag of each of the 2 or 3 cheapest things they have, take them home to check them out, and then go back to get a bunch more of whichever looks the best to you. (Take it home to check it out because you want to moisten it to see what it's gonna be like when you're actually growing in it!) It's been a few years now, but the last time I checked baled peat prices, it was cheaper at HD or Lowe's, so, since they carry the same sizes, compare prices on that one. Walmart was NOT the cheapest! One other quick thing before I go! Gardening is supposed to be fun--the thing you do to Relax and Get Away From it All! (Yeah! I know it's work!) So don't take it too seriously! There is no definitive Right or Wrong! Try something, and if it works, it's RIGHT! Everybody does it differently, so figure out what's right and what works for you, and, while you're doing that, relax and enjoy it. If something doesn't turn out well, laugh, and try again! We'll all help you with the laughing part! You get to do the working part yourself!!! '-) Gotta go! Was just checking back in before x'ing out of cyberspace for the nite! Skybird Here is a link that might be useful: Timberline Gardens

linda, after you've typed your italics sentence, then type this combination and that will turn the italics off. :-) marys1000, I apologize, I didn't read all of your post because it was very long and rather complicated and I don't have enough patience for that unless it's one of my kids. :\-( We sold our house in SoCal last fall in a very difficult market. Prices were dropping so fast it was unreal and we had to sell \- husband had transferred out of state. So we were in a similar situation to you. We were choosing between the Realtor who we'd used to buy the house 4 years previously but hardly ever worked in our part of the county, or a local guy who lived in the area, but we didn't know him. They both came and made good presentations to us. They both suggested the same price range for listing. We could have saved money by going with the local firm but decided to go with our original guy because his marketing plan was so much better, we thought. We didn't want to do open houses, we wanted a lot of internet exposure, and we knew he would work hard for us and be there to the end to make the deal close. Our house sold at a time when most others in the area didn't. But you never really know. It's a gamble, like much of life. You need the right buyer at the right time. Which of the options are YOU most comfortable with? The one thing I would really think about is what happens after you leave, if the property hasn't sold? Who will put the most time and effort into getting people inside the house to see it? Will one of them help you find people to maintain the yard and surrounding areas when you're not there to run things? Unless you're in a really hot market, I think it's likely that the house will sell after you're gone, since it's just 2 months away. So I would really think about that \- who will do the best job after you leave? Good luck \- keep us posted.

Thanks folks, for the kind comments. I do love by birds and gardening. Kathi-MDGD..."Oriole" nectar is just hummingbird nectar (4 parts water, one part white sugar) served in a larger "Oriole" feeder. The way to prevent feeder dominance is to put out more feeders and spread them out as much as possible. Perhaps put one on the east side of the house and one on the north. Or put two or three feeders out but have several feet between them. The more feeders there are, the harder it is for a dominant oriole or hummer to claim them all. I rarely fill my feeders all the way, since I empty and replace the nectar two to three times a week. Sour or fermented sugar water will do more harm than good to the birds. So I normally fill them maybe 1/4 full. My oriole feeders are the older style with rubber plugs over the feeding ports. I remove the port plugs on at least two sides and the orioles, hummingbirds, finches, woodpeckers, and all the other birds can all drink the sugar water. If you have the larger nectar feeder, with larger ports, nearly all the feeder birds will drink it. Once the yellow jackets arrive, usually mid- to late-August here, I replace the port covers to slow down the YJs. The orioles and hummers can continue drinking. . A male oriole at the feeder. . Mr. and Mrs. House Finch at the oriole feeder. . A hummingbird at the oriole feeder . And the oriole feeder here in Larimore with an oriole. You can't prove it by these photos, LOL, but I normally only color the water in the early spring for the first filling. After that it's usually clear. It seem like every photo I had shows colored water. I'll have to fix that. I don't want to set a bad example. LOL