Thanks for the kind words, B&C. In Mississippi, Memorial day would be a good target date for repotting the fig. Hibiscus need an annual repot. Do that toward the end of March, before it starts growing in earnest. Apple and most deciduous trees should be repotted just before or at the onset of spring budswell. Cactus - ask the cactus experts at the cacti/succulents forum. Desert rose - in Mississippi - June Umbrella plant - June There are ways to mechanically limit the amount of perched water a planting will hold, even if you're using a very water-retentive medium. Eliminating all or most of the perched water allows the grower to use media that would otherwise be or border on the edge of unusable. This outlines ways to cope with heavy (water-retentive) media Another effective way of dealing with media that hold too much water is through the use of ballast. You can read more about that technique here: Ballast ..... For now, checking your planting's moisture level regularly with a 'tell' will make a difference in your plant's appearance and level of vitality. Here's something I wrote about that: Over-watering saps vitality and is one of the most common plant assassins, so learning to avoid it is worth the small effort. Plants make and store their own energy source – photosynthate - (sugar/glucose). Functioning roots need energy to drive their metabolic processes, and in order to get it, they use oxygen to burn (oxidize) their food. From this, we can see that terrestrial plants need air (oxygen) in the soil to drive root function. Many off-the-shelf soils hold too much water and not enough air to support good root health, which is a prerequisite to a healthy plant. Watering in small sips leads to a build-up of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil, which limits a plant's ability to absorb water – so watering in sips simply moves us to the other horn of a dilemma. It creates another problem that requires resolution. Better, would be to simply adopt a soil that drains well enough to allow watering to beyond the saturation point, so we're flushing the soil of accumulating dissolved solids whenever we water; this, w/o the plant being forced to pay a tax in the form of reduced vitality, due to prolong periods of soil saturation. Sometimes, though, that's not a course we can immediately steer, which makes controlling how often we water a very important factor. In many cases, we can judge whether or not a planting needs watering by hefting the pot. This is especially true if the pot is made from light material, like plastic, but doesn't work (as) well when the pot is made from heavier material, like clay, or when the size/weight of the pot precludes grabbing it with one hand to judge its weight and gauge the need for water. Fingers stuck an inch or two into the soil work ok for shallow pots, but not for deep pots. Deep pots might have 3 or more inches of soil that feels totally dry, while the lower several inches of the soil is 100% saturated. Obviously, the lack of oxygen in the root zone situation can wreak havoc with root health and cause the loss of a very notable measure of your plant's potential. Inexpensive watering meters don't even measure moisture levels, they measure electrical conductivity. Clean the tip and insert it into a cup of distilled water and witness the fact it reads 'DRY'. One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod of about 5/16” (75-85mm) would work better. They usually come 48” (120cm) long and can usually be cut in half and serve as a pair. Sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell comes out dry or nearly so. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue. Al

I'm with the others. Re-frame. If it's that old it's probably got some other code issues (4x4 posts instead of 6x6, end nailed instead of joist hangers, post anchors vs. embedded in concrete, etc.) and it would be good to bring it up to current code and make it more solid at the same time. You need 16" centers for your IPE anyway. Post some photos and we can give you a read on any other issues you'll want to fix while you're at it. :-)

Hmmmmmm...Let me take another little look up there,,,, Fiberglass roof I am thinking this is a simi flat roof with a little fall to the outside, the sleeper part I get and I am thinking your worried about leaves and general dirt stuff falling in between the decking gaps and causing... thats the part I dont get what problems do think will happen??? in other words what is the big question mark. Anyway with roof top decks I never go T&G material for a lot of reasons. Do not buy eon,or trex at all, ever, dont even look at them in a passing way, forget it,no, nadda,noppers, nix. With stringers even on 16'' centers 1x6 ipe,garapa,tigerwood, TT solid 5/4, in fact any of the upper grade decking will do fine. Defintley install the strong 1/8'' gap. If your completly cant sleep,think about it all the time kinda thing about the question marks far as stuff geting inbetween the cracks,open up the gap to 3/8'' or 3/4'' and run a garden hose thru them every now and then. In any install T&G materials drain the same way any other kind of decking will,thru the gap,dont expect a T&G material to be any different than face fastened far as debris goes. John Mon

Iron Woods is definitely used interchangeably across several South American tropical hardwood species including Ipe and Cumaru, but believe is also a proper noun in the instance of "Iron Woods" whose parent company is Timber Holdings USA which we believe is owned by Coastal now. Regardless, good guys with good wood. This does open the door to an interesting topic for wood geeks and homeowners alike. Grading standards.... There is currently no uniform grading standard for South American tropical hardwoods. Generally speaking the best Ipe coming into the US right now is clear three sides with allowances for small tight pin knots no bigger than your pinkie. So how can a layman homeowner differentiate between "grades" and know they're getting the quality they expect? Nominal vs. actual dimensions can be confusing enough..... As stated, there is no uniform grading standard, but here is a list of common "grade descriptors" that are indicative of top quality: 1) Clear 2) Premium 3) Prime 4) FAS (acronym for "First And Seconds") 5) FEQ (acronym for "First European Quality") While a company may use these and send you something of lower grade or water it down with a small percentage of B-Grade... (like all industries there are unscrupulous characters and companies), if you purchase wood in any of these five "grades" what you should receive is "clear three sides with allowances for small tight pin knots no bigger than your pinkie." In addition to "grade" names, always check references of the supplier and they should be happy to give you a list of satisfied customers. Another qualifier is whether the company is FSC Certified. While you may not be purchasing FSC Certified material, the certification process is arduous and an indicator of a reputable company. We don't know of any companies out there who would risk losing this certification just to make a few extra bucks. Advantage is right though, you get what you pay for and if the price seems too good to be true then you're probably receiving some percentage of inferior grade before we even enter the realm of discussing botanical names and specie substitution....., but we can save that for another thread.....