ha ha yes Scott, I think a bit of poetic license went on like catching a fish... it was this big... hand slowly move apart bigger than the actual real fish, unfortunately the older American types are very rare here, the newer American and candian types are slowly coming available I,ve never tried the Suwannee, I believe the flavour was 10/10 must have an amazing flavour, ive been told and have read about Pochahontas, Sparkle, Fairfax, Albritton and midland for flavour but again impossible to find this side of the pond, I have the Blakemore which was rated 7/10 for flavour Stew

Melissa wrote: "Climate in my garden is similar to Kim's but my care is different. I'm not nearly as nice to my roses in general.;) I water less, and feed differently I think. No chemical fertilizers at all." I think your "winter cold" is deeper than mine. (9b v. 10a, Sunset Zones probably between 18 and 19 for you, 20 to 21 for me) It seems your soil is quite a bit different in origin from what I've seen on line, being more of a deeper alluvium. Mine is the white shale layer of the Santa Monica Mountain formations. I water enough to keep plants alive, but not "thriving", particularly during the worst of the heat. I don't fertilize with anything other than prunings I shred and throw back on the soil surface as "mulch". I don't amend using anything, period. I avoid "organic" fertilizers due to the legions of moles, gophers, skunks, opossums, raccoons, coyotes, rabbits, rats, etc., all of which are either attracted by the organics themselves or to those which they attract. I don't need, nor wish to encounter any more "wildlife" that close to the house. Sometimes, it's a "witch" living this close to the "urban wilderness". I don't fertilize those in the ground with inorganic fertilizers, either. The soil is quite 'salty', as is the irrigation water. There has been no rain to flush the accumulated salts from the soil. Adding inorganics would only serve to intensify the "salts". I do use light, infrequent applications of inorganic fertilizer (always water soluble) to newly propagated, potted plants to replace the nitrogen they lose to watering. Being in an "extreme heat, extreme fire danger" area, I am allotted a relatively high level of "Tier 1" water use. I use, and have been using a quarter of that allotment, both to conserve the resource itself as well as to conserve the ever increasing cost of it. The areas I would normally irrigate show the reduced water consumption. I recently removed sixty feet of forty-plus year old escalonia hedge which had begun dying at one end and continued crisping and browning by the foot from the southern toward the northern end. Increasing the water to it had little positive effect, so eliminating the need, as I have done with all other plantings proving themselves "too needy", helps reduce the danger of combustion as well as need to increase the water bill. You might find this seedling of interest. Kim Here is a link that might be useful: Puzzlement

Dawn, I appreciate the concern. Like you said it really was a dangerous system but died almost as quick as it built up. If you looked at it on animation on radar less than 30 minutes after it showed up as a green speck there was lots of red and tornadoes. And 45 minutes after that it was dead. It was one if you had looked out and didn't see anything and waited 15 minutes it was close. By the time the weather services got the warning out it was staring to lose strength. I don't blame them as it built so fast no way to anticipate it. As far as I know the one that touched down was over open ground and didn't hurt anything. Will hear more tomorrow I'm sure. We never got more than a few sprinkles out of all of it. Looks like some decent rain east and north of us. One thing for certain is we are a day closer to when it will come. But missing so many good chances starts getting a little depressing. Thanks again for the concern and advice. At times during dry spells we don't respect weather enough. Jay

Great thread! I wanted to comment on the exfoliation topic. I have a Mia that I use regularly but I recently added an Alpha hydroxy acid cream (10%) to my routine and I cannot believe how much smoother my skin feels! I wash my face at night with a washcloth and apply the cream to sleep. It is not expensive and I am so pleased with the results. My skin is so so smooth. I still use the Mia but in the shower in the morning. I used to use the scrubs but again, Alpha Hydroxy seems t work better and is my new best friend. I found this brand at TJ Maxx and will provide the link but any brand would be fine. It's the percentage concentration that matters. Check out the reviews. Here is a link that might be useful: Alpha Hydroxy Cream