Hi Lynn: Thank you for the info. on superphosphate. I prefer that over triple-superphosphate, due to higher % of sulfur: Superphosphate provides 20% calcium, 12% sulfur, and 20% phosphorus, with salt index 7.8. You are right that hard water is tough on skin and hair. My kid has curly hair, and it's tangled up from our hard-well water. My skin is always dry. I like drinking our village's water, it tastes sweet, and won the best-tasting water in the county. Using fish-tank litmus strips sold at Walmart, I tested my water, pH over 8. I tested bottled mineral water, its pH is 7.5. A long time ago I had a landlord that bought tons of those Morton water-softener (and drink it too). Her son died young of a stroke at 50 years old. She had 2 strokes, then died right after her son. My husband bought the wrong stuff, Muriate of Potash or potassium chloride, rather than sulfate of potash. Potassium chloride is what we use to de-ice our sidewalk in zone 5a winter. It browned my roses' petals, due to chlorine toxicity .. I found a picture of fertilizer burn that matched with the browning, along with this statement, ""Overfertilization - fertilizer burn can occur when excessive chloride fertilizers (e.g. muriate of potash) or high rates of nitrogen fertilizers (espcially ammonium sources) are applied." No wonder the 6 tomatoes plants in front wilted when I watered them with Muriate of Potash or potassium chloride. High potassium or high nitrogen also induces calcium deficiency (Wikipedia info).... it's not surprising that I got blossom end rots on those tomatoes.

This is better, very very nice haul Lyndi. Michael's again hey; I see the tell-tale yellow tags, oh how thrilled I was to see those last year after my online dealings with Michael, and AQIS gassing! I have a N silvomontana (got it right this time!) but not from Michaels, and it is same as yours. I also see a N marmorata variegata hidden in your pile. I do love this plant. When it matures, the white variegation stands out beautifully. Although I have been told by an Aussie 'expert' breeder and importer that it can throw quite a lot of alo-marginata pups. Mine has not puped yet. And as for navioides...I will only dream about that.

This letter to the journal Nature outlines the safety risk of antibiotic resistance due to horizontal gene transfer from GMOs and points out that this is not the only risk that needs to be urgently addressed by the authorities. ------ Ampicillin threat leads to wider transgene concern Sir: We are concerned by the suggestion, in your Editorial "Don't rely on Uncle Sam" (Nature 434, 807; 2005), that the US Food and Drug Administration does not consider the presence of the ampicillin-resistance gene in Syngenta's unapproved variety of genetically modified Bt10 maize to represent a safety problem. This is not the view of the UK government's scientific advisers (the DEFRA Antimicrobial Resistance Coordination Group), who state that some important veterinary pathogens remain susceptible to ampicillin (K. L. Goodyear et al. J. Antimicrob. Chemother. 54, 959; 2004). They state that there is "extremely low or no detected resistance in certain bacterial species", so that "any occasional transfer of resistance genes to these organisms would be a very significant event". If, as a result of such horizontal gene transfer, it became necessary to use more modern antimicrobials to treat animal disease, they write, "then there could be significant consequences for the consumer through the food chain". The risk of horizontal gene transfer from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is not a theoretical one. One study found that, after Bt genes in plasmid form were incubated in the saliva in a sheep's mouth for a few minutes, they could still transform Escherichia coli bacteria so that they developed antibiotic resistance (P. S. Duggan et al. Br. J. Nutr. 89, 159$B!](B166; 2003). In addition, it is worth noting that the ampicillin-resistance gene in Bt10 maize and other genetically modified crops is a remnant of the bacterial plasmid inserted into these varieties, and would therefore function very efficiently if taken up by bacteria as a result of horizontal gene transfer. Once the Bt10 maize incident has been dealt with, we feel there should be a review of the general question of horizontal gene transfer from GMOs. There is no reason to believe that any health implications are confined to antibiotic-resistance marker genes; they could, for example, equally apply to the inserted Bt toxin genes present in all genetically modified Bt crops. However, the transfer of antibiotic resistance is the only such risk currently being addressed by the authorities that regulate GMOs. We consider that the case-by-case approval approach used by the authorities does not adequately address such problems, which are common to all GMOs. Gundula Azeez Soil Association, 40-56 Victoria Street, Bristol BS1 6BY, UK

Hello all, I live in the PNW and have access to Flower World, Molbak's as well as the big box stores. I'm just looking for the best place to buy what I need to make the 5-1-1 mix. I'm worried about dolimitic lime and the bark fines. I can get reptibark, but I'd like a better option. I'm not looking to screen really anything. Thanks! Z