" a simple and complete A to Z guide" Don't we all. Plus I would have liked one for raising children. :) As the saying goes, there's more than one way to skin a cat, and there are many, many ways to garden, as our groaning book shelves attest. As far as seed starting, I'm sure we all do variations on a theme. Your starting set up is nice. It's the super charged, tubo version...did you see my replies in the current Blue Marsh Iris thread ? They just germinated three years in. I'm an older classic I guess. :) Most are somewhere in the middle. With the bright light and hot temp, that style is the most hands on/ high maintenance, and very exciting. But you can downshift, how to do that is not an exact science . I would probably do it a bit differently. I would turn the heat down to maybe 60 or 65 degrees, and prop the lid up just enough that it had a better chance of staying damp, but not air tight and asking for some type of fungus to set in. I've used clothes pins to hold those domes up before, but there are many ways to do that. I would also find a small , non-heating lamp in the house ( something from a study desk or craft room ? ) and put that over the non-germinated seeds. That way what does come up has enough light to get started in life. This is just a few days, so they have plenty of time to have their light requirements updated when you return. (plants need a little more air circulation and seeds only need it a bit moister) I have a link for you. Go down a bit and click on -Seed Germination versus soil Temperature -. That might help you start to see why, within reason, many ways to do the same thing work just fine. As far as thinning... since none of these starts are rare, collectable plants, I personally would use a pair of small, pointed embroidery scissors/ finger nail scissors and cut off all the starts except the best one in each pot. There's no danger of disturbing the first tiny roots that way and fewer plants to be leaving alone in their first critical days while your gone. Others will tell you their style of dealing with extra seedlings. Here is a link that might be useful: http://tomclothier.hort.net/ This post was edited by plaidbird on Sat, Mar 30, 13 at 23:48

No one "should" have Bermuda. Bermuda "should" be killed with fire and holy water. (My opinion, lol.) I've spent 4 years battling Bermuda trying to give some Turf Type Tall Fescue (TTTF) a fighting chance against the evil devilgrass. That's countless hours, a couple hundred pounds of seed, fertilizer, who knows how many gallons of water, and (as of this spring), some chemical concoctions that make my neighbors think I'm cooking meth. 'round here the Bermuda is still dormant⦠but it's coming⦠soon⦠creeping over a flower bed border near you⦠lol.

I was so excited I posted in All Caps!!

I have gotten hostas at NH hostas as well which were good. This year I have ordered many plants from Land of the Giants. Some were pricey, Giantsized Liberty and a new Giantland hosta Elegance, a stunning new upright yellow with white undersides of the leaves. They may be a bit pricey but I found what I was looking for and I understand they have a good reputation. They are close to me so I hope to visit if I ever get my hip replacement done.