The worry over burlap and wire cage is needless. The burlap itself poses no threat to root growth. The villain is usually compacted soil. The wire cage initially serves as a stabilizer for the roots and gradually leaks iron into the soil, a good thing since maples sometimes suffer from a lack of accessible iron. I'm not sure "needless" is exactly the term I'd use :-) There have been numerous studies that show how NOT removing rootball wrappings before planting can inhibit the establishment of trees and how many trees planted with wrappings remaining intact fail within the first few years in the ground. Considering the investment with many larger trees, those that are often sold B&B and with wire cages, it is a risk many choose to not to take. In fact, most extension services, the USDA, the Forest Service and the ISA all recommend removing ALL wrappings from at least the the top half of the root ball after placement in the planting hole. Some even go so far as to recommend washing the roots or removing the heavy clay soil most B&B stock are grown in. It is there only as a convenience to the growers, not because it has any magical properties for protecting roots or enhancing root development. And FWIW, there's a lot of burlap-looking products on the market that are not natural, untreated burlap and they are frequently used simply because they do NOT degrade rapidly once in the soil. Some are even plastic products that are visually identical in appearance to untreated burlap and not removing this product when planting will virtually assure tree failure. And it's pretty darn hard to remove burlap within a wire cage without removing the cage or at least a portion of the cage as well.

Thank you vwhippie! :) I will check it out....even though dh think it's too modern, I think it looks classic.

MareLuce, I looked at the White Collar kitchen, it is very nice. Here's a lifestyle difference which may explain my location choice for fridge- 90% of our meal eating is at the countertop (we currently have a peninsula instead of an island and the only time I sit at the table is when there's no chairs left for me at the island). So in MY mind the ovens are 'out of the way' and the fridge is 'prime real estate' lol. In my mind if I put the fridge over there I will have snackers walking through the prep/cook zone to access the fridge. (I am frequently cooking dinner as the kids get home from school, and I serve dinner a couple hours later, it just depends on what it is I am cooking. Even a casserole or lasagna I prep early and put it in the oven later) Beuhl, thanks, I can move the aisle width. Is that 54" counter to counter or cabinet to cabinet? Thanks for the clarification, I hadn't noticed the counters were extra deep along BOTH walls, I just noticed it on the sink wall in your diagram. Yes, I did know the fridge had to stick out a certain amount for door operation. DW: I am familiar with prepping over a d/w as that is my current arrangement. Perhaps because we live in Michigan I don't mind the heat from it. Although I certainly won't be planning any prep over that 26" on the d/w side of the sink. I was planning for a 5foot prep space on the left side of the sink. Why does that seem too small of a prep space. On my diagram it's labeled 57" plus there will be 3" of counter at the sink because my sink is a 30" in a 36" base = 60" of prep space to the left of the sink. (left when I am facing the sink, so right as looking at the diagram on paper) Not enough? Other lifestyle things that matter to me: Toaster oven is an important appliance in our lives and we use it A LOT. One of our current bottle necks in our current kitchen is toaster oven close to the range. People trying to use the toaster oven to heat various items while I'm prepping dinner or breakfast. That is one reason I dedicated a good chunk of countertop for it (and the coffee maker). I really know that space will be used for secondary prep at least once a day while someone else is working at the other main prep area. mw drawer- I'm tall and I hate the idea of cleaning out a mw drawer that is at counter height. My husband is NOTORIOUS for not putting a cover on his plate of food and so I'm stuck cleaning up the splatters. Other than that I'm not opposed to a m/w drawer. As far as a pass through that's not possible- laundry room is on the other side (washer dryer back up immediately to that wall in fact). Several times you have mentioned dirty dishes on the counter. I am just learning that is something people do. We never do that. The thought never even occurred to me. Typically I have the d/w empty before I start prep. If there is a conflict, then the dirty dishes go right into the sink and I hand wash them. I still spend a lot of time hand scrubbing my pots/pans because either they don't come as clean as I like in the d/w or because they are not d/w safe (cast iron, non stick). Anyways, I'm going to continue to study your proposed layout. Maybe I'll even draw it out with chalk on our driveway. :) I'll show my husband some pictures of wall sinks. The main thing I hope you will still answer for me is addressing the prep space on my island. I really thought 5' was enough and that because of the depth of the island at 60" that the seating side could still be used for the rare larger projects. Please advise. much appreciated, illini.

Thanks Inga , The Rosemary is all from cuttings from my Parent plant-soft pieces abt. 10 inches long the bottom 3 ins stripped and plonked in the ground and no treatment since -they are tough!! The Kangaroo Paws are an experiment in heavy soil. With Winter on the way it is fun -or not- waiting for the outcome,I don't know abt indoor KP plants but someone might regard s chas