"Many different Haworthia species look the same to me." Oh thank heavens, Ian, I thought it was just me! LOL Your crassula is: **Crassula ovata 'Hobbit' Do not confuse Crassula 'Hobbit' with either Crassula 'Gollum' or Crassula portulacea (the "Jade" plant). It is definitely different. Crassula 'Gollum' has tubular leaves with "suction cup" looking leaves while the "Jade" plant has fleshy but flatter leaves. By contrast, the leaves of Crassula ovata 'Hobbit' are curved backwards/downwards from the sides. Leaf tips take on nice red color in ideal light.** Here is a link that might be useful: Crassula Ovata 'Hobbit'

kayskats - Yes, the "police" do show up at farmer's markets and farm stands, the state Dept of Ag can show up anytime (and have for several other vendors) to do a "surprise" inspection at your home kitchen, and yes, I do have to show my certification before I can sell at my quite small market (less than 30 vendors on any Saturday). The state also shows up to ensure that weighing scales have been calibrated within the last year, but that is another story. If you are caught selling BWB canned acidified foods when you do not have the cert. or are selling other stuff you shouldn't be (low acid, pressure canned, refrigerated, etc.), the Dept of Ag and the FDA could inflict very severe penalties on you and your market. We homegrown sellers have to follow pretty much what the rules are for commercial operations. One size fits all, US wide, but some states have lesser rules for farm stands and farmer's markets than my state does. Best to check with your Cooperative Extension office in your county and if they don't know, go on to your State Dept. of Ag. One comment one of my co-student's made was that if he didn't know what the rules were he would be safe from penalties. I don't think I'd buy anything from him, would you? Yes, please ask the sellers HOW their stuff was processed and if their kitchen was inspected, etc. We are consumers and should protect ourselves from bad stuff we might ingest. I even walk out of restaurants with a food grade less than "A". ksrogers - I think dry cured meats are regulated by another mega agency, the USDA. One of the vendors at my market raises cattle and hogs for cuts of meat he sells. He threw up his hands at the regs for slaughtering, curing, and/or freezing and now has a co-packer do it for him and THEY have to handle the USDA inspections and process filings which are really intense. >>I wouldn't go so far as to say that cured meat has no safety issues, because they do!Yes, I know, I make regular strawberry jam that is heated, but sadly it is not nearly as tasty as freezer jam. Horseradish, a low acid food, is not exactly stable and the pH acidification cannot be measured outside a food science lab according to my instructor, and that is why I can't sell it. It is not heated or pasteurized to eliminate bacterias, molds, and toxins, and "sealing" only means screwing on the cap. Refrigeration and acidification keep it stable and unable to grow the bad stuff because of refrigeration. That is also why it is sold refrigerated and you are admonished on the label to keep it refrigerated after opening. Commercial processors ship in refrigerated trucks from refrigerated manufacturing and storage facilities, and they go directly to the refrigerated section of the grocery store. That is something that can't be duplicated in a home processing environment or at an open-air market. Also, adding more vinegar doesn't necessarily make it safer because we can't measure the pH of the horseradish's vegetable interior at home, and with pH meters and test strips all we are doing is measuring the vinegar's pH. BTW - shelf stable jams and jellies are exempt from these regs because they have low water activity and a low pH. Since they are also packed at high temperatures, they are not likely to harbor harmful food borne illness organisms. Molds are the most likely bad thing to form but that is usually from not having sterilized the jars or not heating the lids enough (or, dirty hands packing them, airborne dust in a room with a fan, using overly ripe or moldy fruit, etc. etc.). I can sell as many variations of jelly and jam as I want at market. Without a cert. but with a kitchen inspection. Nancy

Karen, most county fairs judge tomatoes and other entries in the vegetable categories on appearance only. I guess the same with the Alabama State Fair. Nonetheless ... CONGRATULATIONS!!! You asked for opinions: I think tomatoes should be judged at 4-H fairs on appearance, production, disease resistance, and flavor. A question: Were your Purple Haze plants from F1 seed or from transplants obtained from SelectedSeeds aka: Darrel Jones? Or were your plants from saved seeds from another source? Just curious at to which filial generation you grew. Bill

Thanks for this thread. I’ve been taken to task, and learned a few things here, while trying to work through some ideas and idiosyncrasies on our current build. At the end of the day, I think we all want something that works for our current situation, isn’t an ugly disaster, and can be attractive for resale at some point down the road. It’s a tightrope act, for sure! My “sins”: We walk through our master closet to reach the master bath. I have a lower level “drive under” garage, but also have a main level carport/patio around back, directly attached to my kitchen, should anyone doubt my ability to carry up groceries. . I have 2 bathrooms with doors to the outside, the master, and a guest bath. (Both exiting poolside.) Said guest bath also connects to my laundry room. It’s my way of minimizing the wet towel problem, and I refuse to apologize. Call it an overreaction, but I’ve lived for 14 years with wet people and towels entering my master bedroom or living room (the closest doors from our current swimming hole.) I’m over it. I may even put a fingerprint lock on the door into my master bath.