A friend of mine who is a mechanical engineer and designs sewers for the Los Angeles Water Department told me that the less you put through the garbage disposal the better, and so I put almost nothing there. Clogged sewers are expensive to repair. Also, I rarely peel anything. I certainly never peel potatoes, celery, or carrots and simply scrub them instead. You lose vital nutrients when peeling potatoes - a point that was made clear to me when I accidentally toured Brigham Young's winter home in St George, Utah. The guide (who dragged us from the porch into the house for the tour) told use that potatoes used to be a primary source of food in the 19th Century and that the men would eat the potato peelings and give the peeled potatoes to the women, thinking that it was the polite thing to do, but the women suffered from malnutrition because of it and died while the men remained healthy. This may be folklore or an exaggeration, but he was pretty convincing when he told the story. I do peel some fruit, especially apples, and then put the peelings in the trash. If I had a compost heap, I would put them there. I'm much less likely to peel vegetables than fruit. I like the long rectangular sink as an ice bucket, but I really do not like huge islands. However, I cook alone, since I am not feeding a crowd - just my brother and me. I also do not entertain in the kitchen, except for the outdoor kitchen, which is where I generally entertain anyway. It's always much nicer to be outside here than indoors.

Yes, April was cold here as well and my plants are also slow to wake.

my newly moved underperforming Empress Wu with 2 damaged stems..this area was a bed of pachysandra..I ripped it out last year but didn't get it planted..someday I'll have a parallel pair of same size rectangular beds with a center path and 4 turquoise pots on the outside corners..what hurt my Empress?.. Sherry and Laurie..on the way back to the house after taking my pic I see this.. I tell myself "look where you live..wildlife is to be expected".. but plant damage is a bummer.. I insist on growing plants so all I can do is put up with it..sigh.. a happy note..I think my Great Expectations is looking great 🙂..

Hi garden_gal and Irma, it’s so good to hear from you both again and gratifying that you remember my little garden. In answer to your questions, we do still live in the same house. The garden looked wonderful for several years but the shrubs eventually grew very large and many of the plants died off or had to be removed. I have found it increasingly difficult to find pesticide free butterfly host plants and attractors but this is my mission again this year. The garden has evolved but I am happy to report that it is indeed still alive with butterflies, bees and hummers!