Hello everyone. My dwarf Meyer in a large terracotta pot has/had a severe infestation of scale I caught later in the game rather than earlier. I thoroughly cleaned off the scale by hand and a toothbrush. The branches appear alive but ALL of the leaves appear withered and dried. I fear it went on too long unnoticed. I watered with a liquid fertilizer to encourage new growth. Should I remove all of the dead leaves? Would this encourage new leaves? I did not use a soapy solution nor did I use neem oil. It's been roughly one week. I do not see a reinfestation. I hope I didn't lose the tree and it can recover. Any and all suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.

You really need to get it down to the slab. There is a tool...I think it's called "The Black Widow," that fits into a Sawzall (reciprocating saw) that looks a bit like a 4" or 6" chisel. Used properly, it really helps to dig up the old vinyl. If you get it down to the cardboard-like material, sponge on a lot of hot water to loosen it. It should scrape up pretty easily after that.

Sounds like a cyst of some type, though treatment often involves cryogenics. You are basically frostbitten when treating the warts this way. I would stop picking at it, go back to your doctor or another if you don't like him/her. I have to wait almost 1.5 hours, on average, to see an exceptional dermatologist. Believe me, I tried others because of the long wait. Tried another dermatologist recently whom I made 4 appointments for same wart in my thumb. He froze w/spray each time, except the 4th time I called back and canceled - he knew his skin ailment terminology and names, but he wasn't about to get the job done. Went back to the other dermatologist mentioned above, 1 trip, q-tip application, and the wart (I had this almost a decade) is gone. This is one type of doctor, if you know a good one, don't let any less important considerations hold you back.

I have to pick one soon for my kitchen and entry from the garage and thought I had it all figured out until I saw the Adura tiles by Mannington. I've had vinyl for 34 years and am fine with it, but am considering the Adura Yunan Honey Calcite or Manhatten Hammer Beige. The vinyl I am liking is by K-tech called Expectations Twilight Gold. All 3 are rather light. I'm particularly interested if you have Adura tile-- If you have the Adura did you grout it and how does that hold up to spills. Any cracks in the grout or tile? Scratching? Have you dropped anything heavy or sharp on it? Do grit and garvel harm the tile anymore than vinyl? We would have it professionally installed. So please if you have any experience with these I sure could use your opinion. (I posted this on the flooring forum and received no response so I'm trying here) Thanks, Cindy