My Louisiana Green Velvet was 12 feet tall (or taller) in 2009. The LGV okra routinely got 6-7 inches long and was still tender. I also grew Cowhorn in 2009 and the plants were about 8-9 feet tall -but- they were in an EarthBox and I suspect the root crowding kept them 'shorter'. I only had 2 Cowhorn okra plants in the EarthBox. The Cowhorn okra was MUCH fatter than the LGV and stayed tender to about 5 inches. In 2009 my Silver Queen okra performed much the same as LGV. I tend to prefer okra plants that branch as this gives me a much more prolific harvest. LGV and Silver Queen only branch for me when I plant them minimum 12-18 inches apart in all directions. Baker Creek Seeds has quite a selection of okra seeds (I am NOT affiliated). DL

Hi Ying. GW won't let me respond to the post in the exchanges section because I don't live in Minnesota any more. But I'm planning to come! I'll be bringing my husband with me and he's as excited as I am. We don't have a lot of plants to exchange yet (we moved June of last year) but we have some really pretty Michigan Rocks that I think some of you will love. We've done borders all around our gardens here and a few larger 'feature' rocks too, and we have plenty to share. We're planning on going 'rock picking' this weekend so we'll have plenty to bring along. We're also especially looking forward to seeing so many of my Minnesota gardening friends. I miss you guys! Please send me the directions. Joyce

Good evening! It's 86 F. and the mosquitoes had a nice dinner on me - literally! I have bites on my face and on my hands and knees. All the fun spots that I can't resist scratching in my sleep. Donna, I'm so sorry for all you're going through. Be strong and post more often for lots of (((hugs))). Jan, I have severe osteoporosis and have been on Fosamax for 6 years with good results. I'll never be perfect, but my bones are stronger than they were at 55. I also take two calcium tabs every night before bed. Raeanne, I really hope my son loves this birthday gift. In the last few years, I've taken the safe way out and just gone with a GC. And, I didn't make it to Dallas after Christmas this past year, so my sister and decided to just wait until this weekend to exchange gifts. I don't usually wait quite this long! Still lots of packing to do. I keep thinking of things like sheets and spring rods to take to my Dson for when they move into their new home in late August. That's what I used until we got our window coverings, and it was helpful. I also need to take Alexis's (9 yr. old DGD) books to her that she forgot last visit. I haven't seen her in a month, and I really am excited to see her tomorrow night when she flies in from AL and visiting my xh and his wife. Guess I'd better get back to it because experience has taught me that nobody else is going to do my packing for me! Have a great rest of the week!

Child experts say six is one of those really tough years where bad behaviour is common. In fact the three worst years, according to our family therapist, are 2, grade one, and grade 7. Something to do with the start of grade 1 , and all day school with responsibility tends to short circuit the kids for a while. I remember every one of my kids being a total brat in grade one, after being "angels" ha ha at younger ages. BY the time they got to grade 2, they had learned how to control their own behaviour to be socially acceptable. Just as an afterthought, the main problem in grade 7 seems to be refusing to complete things, whether that be homework, or getting self dressed, or being responsible for their own stuff. THats the most common issue at that age. Anyone else have a kid that lies about homework? What we did when ours were picking on their younger siblings...if it was confrontational or violent, an immediate time out. What also helped was never reacting to the whining, but giving extra attention whenever good behaviour was there. IN other words, when the child is whining about little bro having an extra cookies, ignore it. BUt when the child is playing nicely with little bro, or even coexisting in the same room without any problems, make a point of doing something nice for the child. Kids that age want attention and they arent particular if its positive attention or negative attention. Of course, any direct confrontation has to be stopped. Be careful that you dont just seem to punish the six year old, even if it seems they are causing it. IF they really ARE the ones causing it, then time out for them, but sometimes six year olds can convince themselves that the two year old is doing something to them. IN that case its better to just separate the two for a while, and work on the positive stuff. Six year olds cant reason like an adult can. Their problems with their siblings seem very big to them, even though we as adults cant see what the problem is. It takes about three weeks to change a bad habit of a kid in that age range. IN the meantime, just hang in. This too shall pass.