I'd better start working out so I'll be strong enough to dig those pots in. *** I hear you sister! This is not a task for the weak-backed. DH says that he used to be an engineer, but now he is a ditch-digger. :-) Is there a specific height to the pots? Are they wider than tall? If so, do they have a specific name to them for ordering? *** The ones we use are called "Squats." And they are in fact "squatty." They're wider than the normal nursery pot. If you look to order them as "Squats," you'll get the right thing. We HAVE used non-squattier pots. But of course, they need a deeper hole, which does not appeal to us. Do you prefer the 15 or 20 gal? *** We had only a few 20's, and they were used for things we particularly prized. "Old Town Novato," for instance, is in one. The size matters little, once they get their roots out of the squat, and headed downward. We are told that gophers (I don't know about voles) stay about 18 inches below the surface. I believe that, because Miss Brisa tracks them, listening and sniffing, across the "lawn." So as long as the roots are much below that point, they're not very vulnurable. The pictures REALLY help. *** They do. We were fortunate enough to first see it in someone else's garden. Jeri

I will have some skunk cabbage soon as the snow and wind quit here. Do you have any iris to trade?? Shirley

He is not brittle. In fact he has excellent control, primarily through diet, and I give him his carb allowance, just like I'd give a kid his money allowance, and let him decide where to spend them to suit his fancy. He usually prefers to do fresh fruit instead, but also will do most fruits I can with water or occasionally splenda. Yes, he does peanut butter often but mostly on some apple slices. We are thrilled that it's been so easy and he seems to have no problem with cutting out the sweet stuff entirely. I cook almost entirely from scratch, and love to bake and that was what led him into temptation in the first place with an otherwise good, healthy diet. I'm an ex-nurse and we turned the diet thing into a fine-tuned program and are not having a problem with having to revert to 'special' foods. But thanks for suggestions. I share what works for us too.

It is probably you are 100% right on all of the points in your recent post. I'll just add either my 2 cents worth or toss a bit of popcorn or eventually vermicompostable non salted peanut shells from the the peanut gallery. Powdered egg shells are what we do not want to breath when someone uses a coffee grinder or spice grinder on the egg shells. Maybe grinders grind the shells into little flake size pieces. Maybe those grind the shells into breatheable dust. I do not know. Maybe blending egg shells in liquid or quickly crushing in newspaper with a rolling pin is best. I agree egg shells are good in a worm bin from dust size to whole and any size in between. Exceptions made for those who do not like how egg shells look in vermicompost. I can agree the worms, similar to snakes, might need something with specific abilities to help with cocoon removal. I do not know what those specific things are or if egg shells have that. I do not know if egg shells provide grit for worms to digest. I do not know if worms need grit to digest. Yes worms have a gizzard type digestion system. Chickens need grit. I am not sure worms need grit. One poster here seemed to have done a test and some type of grit addition seemed to have done something positive. Archives somewhere. I'm just not yet on board with worms needing grit or with egg shells being grit. I have egg shells and adding them to the bin, whole, crushed and blenderized is done at various times. Again, I hate to not yet view the facts as you do, CarlosDanger. And I am probably wrong and could be convinced by facts the other way. I just have not bumped into those yet. I sort of disagree that worms have poorly-designed food processing systems. I do not think worms would be better off having ears, eyes, or teeth. All the better to hear, see and eat me with, my dear. I think worms fit into a system and in that system they are perfectly designed for their part in the system, poor digestion or not. Somebody, somewhere thought not having teeth was OK and called worms the "intestines of the earth". Maybe it is OK to not masticate ones food if one is an worm. Again I hate to disagree with you.