Proudgm, read up on this site and www.wintersown.org to learn about winter sowing. This was my first year and I love it. I planted 54 milk jugs of perennials and hardy annuals during the winter. It may have been a crazy winter to start but I had pretty good success. Oh, I lost some stuff in the ice storms followed by the "big freeze" but still have plenty. i look forward to doing it again next year. Basically, you're planting your seeds in mini-green houses(vented milk jugs or other containers)then set them outside to let nature take its' course. Read up on it, try it, you'll like it.

J0nd03- that ft.mcnair is a beautiful tree. Ill have to see what the specs are on it as far as tolerances/preferences. Tornado- no offense taken at all, I'm quite long winded myself (I am a car salesman!) and I love taking politics but unfortunately from what I have learned (perhaps its the area we live in?) most discussions about politics/govt matters turn into a pissing contest/yelling match because when someone has a differeing view than I yet cannot support their claims/reasons for their beliefs they get defensive and resort to un civilized behavior. I think it's hilarious but sure you have experenced it as well! ;) I really appreciate the info your giving me. From what I have read/picked up from folks (a good friend of mine is a horticulture major/landscape business owner) these beech trees will maintain their vibrant foliage as long as they are kept hydrated. I'm site the tree in your pics gets pruned/pest control done professionally and regularly but I'm not sure about the watering part too much?

Oh, yeah, grandiflora rather than folia, thank you. Have you just moved to the St. Louis area? Your member info shows Georgia. If so, you might want to also ask about this in the Midwestern Gardening forum. St. Louis isn't really in the Ozarks. We have several feet more soil than the Ozarks! I'm not sure how cold-limited the grandiflora Magnolias are. Those in St. Louis do come out of winter looking more droopy and brown-tinged than I remember the ones in Memphis after winter. I might just be remembering Memphis' Magnolias wrong. Even though Memphis is warmer, St. Louis is not quite so prone to those ice storms as is Memphis. Seems like having their big leaves encased in ice would be pretty hard on them. I can think of three Southern Magnolias in my neighborhood. I think the smallest has probably an 8 inch diameter trunk. The largest is probably 10-12, but well over two stories high. I have not seen any huge Magnolias, but that might just mean no one was plnting them prior to, oh, maybe thirty years ago. I do think they grow more slowly here than Memphis.

Wow! That box is in good shape. It looks hardly used. It is similar to the one we had in the 1940s in southern Illinois. Rural electrification came to that area in 1947 (after WW2) ending the iceman's delivery and the icebox. Most iceboxes were discarded because a refrigerator was a vast and welcome improvement and less costly. I remember that our first month's electric bill (for everything) was less than what we had been paying for ice. Places to look for identification: 1. top side 2. Back side 3. Bottom 4. A stamped logo on the inside. 5. Lift out the metal drip pan to see if any id was under it. It is possible that your box was not manufactured but home-made by a handy cabinet maker. There is no fancy mechanicals. The major requirements are: Insulation, rot resistent materials, and a water tight drip pan and drain. The pan must be rust resistant and safe around foods. It should not have any lead bearing solder - most solders of the time were lead alloys. The usual material for the ice/drip pan was zinc. A galvanized steel pan could be used, but a 100% zinc pan was more corrosion resistent, Finishes on the interior had to be water resistent and food safe.