> Ok, so my cucumbers still looked dead today... completely wilted > by noon as were the cantaloupes. The cantaloupes weren't wilted > as bad as yesterday, but still they were wilted. > I am 100% sure > those beds were wet, no doubt as I watered them last night and > the dirt was nice and dark (it turns light when dry because it's > very sandy). The only way to be 100% sure is to actually poke a finger in the soil, or dig into it, to be sure that it's watered down deep, not just on the surface. I realize that if you're going out in the morning dressed all nice for work, this is not an appealing habit, but it is the only way to be sure. BTW, sandy soil drains very quickly, and therefore needs more frequent watering, than other soil types. > Should I water it until there is one > inch of water present, which I can figure out a way to measure an > inch somehow, or should I water it longer?? Water it until you can tell, by poking the soil or digging a hole, that it is watered to the bottom of your six-inch depth if these are the six-inch beds, and deeper if they're not. What you're looking for is moisture all the way down, basically to the center of the earth :), with no dry layer, but there's obviously a limit to how deep you can check. I'd recommend that at least a couple of times, you poke/dig into the soil, water some, poke/dig again in a new spot to see if there's a dry layer, water some more, and keep it up unti you can't find a dry layer. You may find that watering thoroughly takes a lot more water than you thought. Over time, you'll learn what it takes to keep your soil at the right moisture level, but while you're learning, you'll have to keep checking. The issue is _probably_ water, because that's what I believe until you tell me that you actualy dug into the soil and looked. :) But once you're positive that the soil is staying reasonably moist - it doesn't have to stay sopping wet, in fact sopping wet is bad - then I should tell you that sometimes in very high heat, a plant will wilt no matter how much water is available to it. The roots and stems just can't pull up as much water as the leaves are losing to the sun and heat, and it wilts. And with only six inches of sandy soil, this is likely to be even more of a problem - the roots are going to be pretty hot. (Mulch!) > Does this help keep the soil cooler too in the > summer?? I have more problems keeping the moist and cool than > warming it. > > What else can I do at this point to keep my plants from wilting? > I don't want to lose them as they are producing nicely. Thank You > so much!!! Mulch. Mulchmulchmulch. Fine-grained mulch that can later be dug in as a soil amendment, preferably compost, preferably organic. (_Don't_ use bark chunks or other chunky mulch in a vegetable garden! And have a look at the package to try to be reasonably confident that it's not dyed, or municipal mulch that might have herbicides... I try to find certified organic.) Mulch keeps the soil cool and moist. If you get a look at the price of purchased compost and groan at what it would cost to thoroughly mulch everything, buy some anyway and thoroughly mulch one small area (preferably an entire bed) to give yourself some experience with what mulch will do for you. ChickenFreak

You don't see it because cooktops have electric and gas connections that aren't attractive and that would be exposed. Also, they have safety requirements for landing spaces on either side and behind them. You need 15" on all non working sides. And that's just if you want a separate cooking station. If you want to also prep beside the cooktop, you need to add in another 36" of prep space. If this work table is to be an island, then you'll need 42" aisles on the sides between the cabinets and the table. You're up to a pretty darn big kitchen by the time all of these requirements are taken into consideration.

I got POLISHED marble countertops and love 'em. We cook every day (2 small kids under 5); we cook spaghetti sauce with oil and balsamic vinegar and wine; Asian and Indian curries with turmeric (supposedly the most vicious stainer); and use copious limes, and so far no problem. Ours were properly sealed, maybe that's why? - everything has wiped right off. The only "special care" we take is not cutting directly on the counter which I've never done in my life anyway since we always had melamine counters before. The melamine would immediately show cuts and also couldn't withstand much heat, whereas I can put a hot mug on the marble and not worry. Oh, and i do wipe things up within an hour or two if there are spills, otherwise there are ants...that's it. We just use regular cleaning liquids to wipe the counters down. Would i do it again? TOTALLY. It's actually decreased my time spent on kitchen cleaning. And FYI, I am a klutz who tends to drop things left and right.

The floors are from UA flooring. http://www.uafloors.com/g/g931.html I loved the Carlisle floors also but they were out of our budget for the heart pine. Cypress cabinets are fairly common in Louisiana. It has a nice grain and accepts stain well.