I was planning on going on my first bird hike at a nearby nature preserve. They were going to identify birds by songs, and since I only know the basic birds (robin, bluejay, cardinal, etc) and I am always trying to see a bird I hear in the backyard and then try to identify it from my "Birds of Ohio" book withoug much luck, I thought cool, this is for me. The weather is not cooperating. Very windy cold, and on and off rain/snow. I think any sensible bird would stay home. I know I am. When I told my coworker what I was planning on doing this Saturday there was this long silence, then, well, if that is what you really want to do..... But Sandhill cranes. Oh my. I would brave the weather for that.

Prairie When we lived in Katy, TX we gardened in raised beds and fire ants found that the area of the beds behind the South and West facing walls made excellent places for their nests. The best organic control that we found was to apply dried molasses whenever and where ever they showed up. It would keep them away for a month or 2 until rain washed away the molasses or until it was "used-up" by the micro-orgs in the soil. I have read from other posters on GW that the molasses application dramatically increases the bacteria in the soil and that the ants move on because they prefer a more steril environment. I doubt that you are dealing with fire ants in Z6 but perhaps the molasses would have the same effect. I was able to purchase 50 lb bags from a local garden supply store. You can also find it in feed supply stores. Before I found the supplier for the dried product I was using a hose end sprayer and filling it with non sulfured molasses from the grocery store and drenching the ant piles. It had the same result, but did not seem to last as long. Good luck. Matt

I agree, location, location, location. Though sometimes it's season, season, season. I've had to move cacti/succulents in the house during our monsoon rains. One of the epis might die, I'm doing cuttings this week to try and save some of it. Yet no problem with most cacti/succulents in the ground. I'm not sure about pumice with the cacti. Even with bonsi Jim has had to modify what he uses, regular bonsai mix dries out way to fast and the plants with their little root systems can't handle it. I'll be moving the hoyas in tonight also. I grow them in a mix with perlite added and in shade. They never need any supplemental watering unless we are in a severe drought. Pumice comes out of the volcano in all sizes, I find it washed up on the beach in sizes from pea gravel to one large chunk about the size of a large grapefruit. It floats forever and circles the globe. Too bad we can't find out where it drifted from, that would make Curt happy, he could prove his drift theories. I'm still looking for lego toys, they should in theory be showing up on our beaches by now. We've all experimented over the years and have our favorite mixes. Just experiment in your climate using ideas from everyone. You just never know what will do the trick for you. I've totally changed what some of my plants are in from suggestions on gardenweb forums, sometimes with great results and other times with tragic results. If all else fails I plant it in the yard! It does help to be semi-tropical with a micro-climate. Maybe I'll try a jade as you suggest, they are one plant I have a terrible time with, they always seen to rot. Of course the humidity may factor in there also. Stay warm ya'll the cold fronts are starting to roll in regular now. Tally HO!

Chiming in late, but a commercial property I managed for years was recently sold, and the property inspector found woodpecker holes in the back corner of the building. Apparently a woodpecker would hammer there regularly. The tenant on that corner never told me about it because they actually liked the noise! Anyway, I had the damage repaired and bought a cheap bird repellent kit at the h/w store. It had a couple brackets with mylar ribbons that blow all around in the wind. It did work to scare the woodpecker away! Maybe you could put mylar ribbons on some poles? Some people say they've had good luck using pin wheels to scare the critters off.