'Less aggressive than the black widow..." Then this spider must almost be DEAD, lol! I can't imagine a less aggressive spider than the BW. I'd suggest that is a 'not to worry too much' type of thing. Brown widows have always been around. I'll bet that there are not any more of THEM but more of US. ;-) Brown recluse reports have gone way up in recent years for the same reason. It's good to have a warning and reminder, though. That's for sure! We need to use our common sense when working in locations that might be a good harbor for these reclusive (that's the widows, too) spiders. I always wear gloves when cleaning out the garage, for example. Turning your porch furniture upside down for periodic cleanings is a good idea, too. (Take that from personal experience, eeeek.) I ALWAYS check out picnic tables at parks, etc. You know that little air space between stacks of cell packs or pots? (We all have those stacks, right?) PERFECT location for any of these three spiders. (Take that from personal experience, too.) What other spider stories do we have?

I hope everyone did ok in the Issac storm last week. We did ok, the gardens were thrashed worse than I imagined. I have been replanting veggies found dug/wind whipped outta the ground (not workin well but have saved some things. Lost almost all my tomatos :-( but, family is safe - so I set out to clean up. Welcome GardenHeart. I'm new here too, nice site, I like that one can locate others growin in the same areas. It is def a unique exp gardening down south! Natal: the 1st pictured bed is about 8ft wide x 16ft long. Access was limited due the forest behind it! We have woods not 3ft from the rear of this one and the animals thought it was a buffet! Using 4x4's with a "pathway" cut out was like makin them a trail. So we added a major drainage for each of the boxes, eliminated paths (which also helped with water distribution during downpours. Previously we had a lot of good soil wash away thru paths, now it just shifts but stays put) my kids and I have walkways along the edges of each box to access plants and just step over the lower boards to get in and out. The inconvience was well worth the reward in this case. The racoons and moles avoid the wood frame here. As far as the Citrus, we have a satsuma but it failed to produce this year. We fert with these 6inch stakes once a year and always had a plentiful harvest. (Time release ferts) this year we did it to late and it may have affected that :-( usually in Feb I add the stakes and it wasn't done til April. Shame on me I know. But a few friends have them and they failed to produce too so maybe a weather or bee problem :-( they spray A LOT for mosquitos down here and it can kill bees too...so I dunno

Hi Louisianagal, I hope you went and re-posted this question over on the regular rose forum or that you will. That forum is very busy and you will get some good responses. I can't help but find it funny when you mention dealing with roses in colder temps. Come up here! lol. The winter temps in Tupelo aren't going to have an effect on the roses you can grow. You have to come a little more north for that to start happening. If you were successful with keeping the roses healthy in Louisiana, you should do just fine in Mississippi: ) Good luck with your new garden, Remy

Just crusin around GardenWeb and found this posting for Mississippi. I'm from Olive Branch, but since I couldn't find any Mississippi people, I have become involved with the Tennessee people. I'd love to get together for a swap anywhere from here to Jackson south and east or west to the borders. Anyone else interested for Spring 2006? Here is a link that might be useful: My first attempt at a garden and other stuff