I'll really need to keep a close eye on these for a while. Although I'm still horrified at what was there, I have others that are more valued or at least more fragile. (Maybe!) I'd still hate to think of what it would cost to replace all of these, regardless. :~0 My weather has been unusually cool, all summer. In fact, regardless of the past few "hot" days, I can feel a major change coming. These darned temp swings from high 90F down to mid-40'sF. At least the nights a nice and cool for sleeping. I'm already prepairing for another emergency late-night moving of orchids. We had a major frost wipe out the tomatoes in early September, one year. So...I'm already getting worried! As far as cats, I've got the most worthless ones I've ever seen. Plus, I can't stop everyone from keeping food for them 24/7! It also attracts local cats and foxes. I spent one summer killing racoons virtually every single night at the cat food. I just cleaned out the carport to poor concrete it and the lazy cats have been living on literally hundreds of mice!:~( As far as I'm concerned, no one is getting fed for some time! Get to work you lazy felines!

Until we cut down our five pine trees, we had plenty of pine straw. Esox, you crack me up: "I just plant hostas anywhere I feel one needs to be, which is pretty much everywhere." I never throw out any leaves, unless it happens to include a lot of camphor berries, which sprout by the millions. Those I happily donate to the twenty-six trash pickups our city provides annually. I also go collecting the bags of leaves the neighbors put out for trash pickup--what a bounty they are throwing out! My DH operates the shredder but ours is not heavy duty enough to deal with any large twigs, so he sorts them out as he goes. He is a patient man. Who is learning to count hosta a bit too readily. Anyway, I'm thinking about getting straight bark delivered, it doesn't look like the shredded bark in the picture above. It is more like the bark in a commercial potting mix. I had one truck load of potting mix delivered to my driveway last week, and I'm using it just about everywhere. Filling in holes where tree roots (from 6 or 7 trees we had cut down) are rotting. Building up a slope in the back garden where water tends to run off--I need it to hang around for the blueberries. Making a mound for the hosta shade structure so they will display better. It is so flat in my garden. Add some depth to the front yard driveway southside under the neighbor's trees--I swear those trees are eating my soil!! Where does it go? But I can see endless uses for straight pine bark. Like someone mentioned using bark for a walking path. Pretty good when you don't know exactly where it should be located, better than all that hard work moving stones. And you can create a curved path with the bark. Don't know how the two doggies will like the bark though. They don't like to get their feet wet.

Hi Kmttsmom, Thank you for being kind. I'm really not trying to get a reaction or hurt anyone and I think I've stated it over and over, but it bears repeating. :) I'm hurt too, and confused at how my estrangement got to the point it did. Years and years of misunderstanding, letting things go when they really should have been talked out then, not feeling like I could say anything because it would be taken the wrong way. So I'm just trying to understand it from a mother's point of view. And it seems like a lot of mothers are defensive (that's ok, they have a right to be, but then they take it as I'm attacking) and words like "spoiled brat" come into the picture. I'm not, nor was I ever, a spoiled brat. I was raised one of the least spoiled people you would ever meet. No electricity, no television, catchment water, no neighbors. No Christmas tree, very few presents for my birthday. My mother never bought me a car, paid for insurance, college, rent, bills, etc. I had to give away my toys to more needy kids time and again. We recycled everything. I moved out at 14 to live with my dad because of her emotional abuse, and I lived pretty much on my own because he had to work 150 miles away and would be gone for days at a time. I walked to school a few miles away and walked home, did my homework, made myself dinner, and went to bed. And I forgave her in high school. I was able to put it all behind me and move forward. And I included her in my daughter's birth. And when she needed a place to live, I let her move in with me. And then I realized she was an energy vampire. She literally sucked me dry, blamed me for everything, took my friends and started to turn my daughter against me. And she walked all over me. Time and again. So, my defenses go up too, when mothers just say that kids just need to respect their parents, and "get over it". It's a very emotionally charged situation. I didn't come on here for support, I came on here to learn what others think. So I think part of the conflict is our approach to what we expect from this board. I'm shocked at being told to go away, that my opinion is not wanted or needed or valued because I don't agree and I'm asking questions. It seems it's either one way or the highway. And when I apply this to what women here are saying about their damaged relationships the correlation seems too blatant to ignore. I don't think anyone here is a "Bad Mother". The fact that people are even talking about it indicates that they are truly trying to be good people. I'm sure everyone on here has their good and bad moments, and it can be hard to judge emotion when it's in writing, without any facial gestures or other non-verbal clues. I guess this isn't the place for me to be asking my questions because it is seen as an attack, and I felt just terrible the past few days, because I feel bad that people are taking my words that way, and now I feel attacked too. Thank you again, for your very clear, from the heart post. I do wish you the best in your situation. No one should have to feel like this. ~Silver

Actually with some money, and time , one can bring in sand, silt and compost to till into your soil. People do it ALL THE TIME around where I live. Hell around here one is considered lucky if you have clay to play around with. Most are bringing in truckloads of dirt from the bulk soil guy to build up 10" of soil ontop of their limestone. My sister lived on a lava flow. That was hard gardening too, but once amended she had some cool stuff. I am digging out a ditch in solid limestone marl. I am moving that marl to fill in some pot holes in my drive, wheel barrow by wheel barrow. Then I will fill it with dirt and also build a retaining wall so I can deepen the soil. Do I like that I have to do this,..NO, but it is what Is my lot to do. My land is beautiful but it has cr@p for soil. Do I make fun of it ,YES.I have made Marl the name for my inner beyatch (as they say down here). I have jokes about needing teeth protectors for pickaxing and how I want my very own jack hammer for Christmas ( that's not a joke). Do I whine about it? Maybe for short periods of time. Then I remind myself that this is MY CHOICE to do. MY choice to live her, . So, shut my yapper. If I don't like this I can take up theater, scuba diving, rock climbing, penuchle, bridge, map making, knitting, dying and spinning wool. Or I can sit on my back porch and look through my teary foggy eyes with my long island ice tea gripped in my fist and ponder about of what could or should be all afternoon long. Go ahead and quite gardening. Long extended whining will drive those around you nuts . Find something that gives you happiness and serenity , if soil amending is not your cup of tea, or MOVE to that perfect loamy lot. You might find ir infested with crazy ants and rattlesnakes.