Sammy, I'm taking it ez on the gardening although I have planted a few roses. I finally got my first gallica, Belle sans Flatterie. I planted a couple of climbers, well five anyway. I can't figure out what kind of look the front yard needs. If I had my way I'd plop what I wanted where I wanted with the idea of creating a thicket that pleased me. Carla, I left out the part about sitting on the couch eating pie when I suddenly realized there was sour cream in the fridge. It was all over then. Hopeless. Morz and Diane: regarding the Mayan--it has cinnamon and fudge swirls in it. I'm a chocoholic and it takes a lot to impress me. I took one bite and knew it was special. Patrick, it's been a long time since I fried a chicken; it sounds like it was over the top. There's nothing like a flour gravy when it's done right; it's so simple and so easy to mess up but so good when it's right. I usually stick to frying pork chops and I haven't even done that in eons. MichaelAT

RHIZO 1 Reasoning, there is the 'posse' which only seems to be a pest aphid, and not the beneficial insects. I didn't state that the person should release preditary insects BEFORE spraying an insecticide, but instead, place preditary insects out a week or more AFTER the spray. Aphids do respond well to pyrethrins, which is quite safe for edible plants, as is neem. The wasps mentioned are usually sent out on a postage stamp sized piece of stiff cardboard that looks like it has gray sand paper on one side. That's the wasp eggs. I have not had much luck with them, or green lacewings either. I do have early pollinators, orchard mason bees (only for very early apple blossoms), and when the cukes start showing up, a whole honey bee hive colony seems to flock to the cuke flowers every year. Had another preditor, the infamous praying mantis. They would sit at the tops of the basil plants where the flowers would emerge and wait for a honey bee to come by. A second later that pantis has his fast meal, and waits for more. I take the mantis off the basil, and the next day its back to its favorte basil spot chomping on another bee. Nope, mo mantis here anymore, even if they eat a lot! Simply hosing down the plants will remove all the aphids but just allow the aphids more clean places to chew more. Your logic is flawed, and organic gardening is something not everyone knows a lot about, unless they have been able to control an insect pests, diseases, and unknown causes to losing plants. Years ago, I tried putting out japanese beetle traps and barely would have a year go bay that the foliage on everything looked like swiss cheese. My poor raspberry leaves were nearly all chewed off as were the horsradish leaves. I tried natural sprays too, with no luck. After a 10 year battle that I was simply losing, I put down milky spore around the outer perimeters of my garden, watered in beneficial nematodes for both grubs and fungus gnats (cost me a FORTUNE!), and tried neraly every kind of pest deterrent there is, including some battery operated LEDs that light up at night and are supposed to attact moths that lay looper eggs. They caught one single beetle on a whole summer, out goes that trap! I also had a lot of striped cucumber beetles and there, I use scent lures and sticky traps nearby the cuke vines. The traps get loaded within a month and always need replecement. Same with coddling moths on my apples, and there I use scent lures and red spheres. I spend more on control of insects and disease than I do on what my produce iw worth, and I would NEVER use garden hose and spray water on my herbs, tomatoes, peppers, cukes, or any other plants. The plant only see rain water on their foliage and my soaker hoses at ground level. I even have a fig tree that does well in its 85lb pot, but is just too heavy to deal with, so in the ground it goes this fall, once the leaves drop off. You seem fixated on the words 'broad spectrum', when in fact an insect pest isn't a single entity, but is part of a BROAD SPECTRUM of insects and many are TRUE pests! A pollinator doesn't have to be a honey bee, there are a many other tiny wasps and bees that love tiny flowers like the ones on dill plants. If I were to spray my fruit trees with something like Imidan, that would kill all bees and most any other beneficials, whereas the beneficials are barely harmed, if at all by diatomatious earth and a pyrethrin. ollinators dont chew on leaves that have insect sprays applied to them.

Sharon, Just when I thought I'd have time to be a regular at CF again...my time gets zapped up so quickly. I wanted you to know I am thoroughly enjoying these posts! I am having a great time figuring out what you're saying with my own camera. My pictures have already improved remarkably. I've been begging (okay, whining) to take some classes and they just aren't to be found around here. Your tutorials are just what I need! Thank you for all your time! Deb

I have to make chinese the first night of the yearly family get together every summer. Egg Foo Yong and Fried Rice I usually just throw together - I tried to put them into "recipe" form for you... Egg Foo Yong 1 cup of chopped vegies (celery, bean sprouts, mushrooms, broccoli, green onions) 1 cup of chopped meat (cooked chicken, pork, beef or shrimp) five or six eggs 1/2 to 1 tbls soy sauce (to taste) Mix vegies & meat together in a bowl. Beat eggs together and add to vegie & meat mixture. (It should look like you dont have enough eggs - you want more vegies & meat and the eggs to basically hold it all together). Stir in soy sauce. Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan. Use a ladle to spoon the mixture (I make 4 patties at a time in my electric frying pan) into hot oil and cook on medium high until "set" (like an omelette), turn over once and cook another minute or so until cooked through. Fried Rice 1 cup cold cooked rice 3 slices of bacon 1/2 cup of chopped vegies (celery, carrots, bean sprouts, mushrooms, green onions) 1/2 cup of chopped meat (cooked chicken, pork, beef or shrimp) 3 scrambled eggs Couple of splashes of soy sauce (to taste) Slice bacon into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces and fry until crisp over medium-high heat. Add cold cooked rice (donÂt add it in one big lump - shake it up in a tupperware bowl or zip lock baggie so itÂs separated nicely) and quickly and gently keep it moving around the pan - the goal here is to brown (actually, tan) the rice in the bacon grease without letting a big glob of rice absorb all the grease, in which case you have one gross mess - when the rice is a nice even color, add the raw vegies and cooked meat and keep it moving (stirring gently) around the pan until everything is nice and hot. Add the scrambled eggs (already cooked) and a couple of splashes of soy sauce (taste as you go, itÂs easier to add more...) and keep it moving (stirring gently) for about another minute or so until the eggs are hot. Shrimp & Vegetable Egg Rolls 2 Tbls vegetable oil 8 cups finely shredded green cabbage 2 cups coarsely grated carrots 2 & 1/2 Tbls soy sauce 3 cloves of garlic, finely minced 1 Tbls ginger, finely minced 6 green onions (or scallions), cut into very thin slices 3/4 lb salad shrimp (can substitute chopped, cooked, chicken) 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro 1/4 cup finely slivered fresh basil Salt - to taste, if needed 12 egg roll wrappers (10 oz) 1 egg, lightly beaten 1 & 1/2 cups vegetable oil 1. In a large, heavy pot, heat the 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the cabbage and carrots; cook over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until cabbage is wilted and bright green. Stir in soy sauce. 2. Add the garlic and ginger; cook for 1 minute, stirring. Remove from heat and stir in green onions, shrimp, cilantro, basil and (if desired) salt. 3. When working with egg roll wrappers, cover them with a damp kitchen towel so they donÂt dry out. Stuff wrappers one at a time: Place one tip facing you like a diamond shape on a flat work surface. Place 1/3 a cup of filling 1 inch from the bottom point and across the wrapper to within 1 inch of each side. Fold bottom tip up over filling and roll away from you halfway up. Brush egg over exposed edges with a pastry brush. Fold in 1 inch side tips and finish rolling TIGHTLY (very important - or egg rolls will absorb more oil and taste ÂgreasyÂ). Place on a plate seam-side down. Repeat procedure with the rest of the wrappers. Keep finished egg rolls covered with a damp towel. 4. Heat 1 & 1/2 cups of oil in a 10 inch skillet until it begins to bubble a bit on top. (To test for temperature, drop a cube of bread into oil; it should brown within one minute). [I use my deep fryer - @ 370 degrees - drop in 3 or 4 egg rolls - cook 1 minute and turn and cook for another minute, or until golden brown.] 5. Add 3 or 4 egg rolls at a time to the oil and fry for 2 to 21/2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towel. Serve immediately. I like mine with ketchup and hot Chinese mustard. Hubby likes his with sweet & sour sauce. (S&S Recipe follows) Makes 12 egg rolls Sweet & Sour Sauce 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1 tablespoon corn starch 1 can (13&1/4 oz) pineapple chunks 1/3 cup vinegar 1 Tbls soy sauce 1 small green pepper, coarsely chopped Mix brown sugar and cornstarch in skillet. Stir in pineapple (with syrup), vinegar and soy sauce. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly; reduce heat. Cover; simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until sauce thickens to your desired thickness. Stir in green pepper. Cover and simmer for about two more minutes. This is the Âperfect (according to family & friends) S&S Sauce and can be used for egg rolls, meatballs, chicken, shrimp, fried won-tons, egg foo yong - whatever... Batter for deep fried chicken or finger steaks 2 egg whites 4 tablespoons cornstarch 4 tablespoons soy sauce Mix well and add chicken strips (boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1" strips) or beef strips (cube steak cut into 1" strips). Set aside. 1 cup of bisquick 2/3 cup of water 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (if using for almond chicken or sweet&sour chicken) Mix well and add to chic or beef mixture. Mix together well (coating all meat) and deep fry until golden.