Thank you jesse09 I will definitely kept that in mind with the Vitalizer. Thank you ocrelaris for your advice also on the fertilizer and soil. I will definately try in springtime to find the 5-1-1. Its hard to look for anything like that where I live. I might have to purchase online. I feel great that you tell me my trees look good. That was one of my major concerns. I worry about them and only want to help them grow healthy and strong. And of course have fruit. My mom had noticed that the tango, lime and one of the navel trees are protected from one side by my gaming board. They really do not have leaf loss verses the other three on the opposite side. They don't have a barrier as in wall next to them. So those two lemon and that other navel trees are the one losing more leaves. So I'm wondering maybe they are getting some sort of draft. Once I place the pallets I will be able to tell if that Is helping. Which I hope it will. Because now my navel that had the one fruit had dropped it. Thank you poncirusguy for your input. I will give that a try too. To see if it will help my trees. Right now I just want to help them stop dropping their leaves and fruit. The two so far that have been doing well with holding on to the fruit is the lemon that you saw in picture and my tango with the bigger fruit.

Morning!! Margo, it's not as bad to take care of as people think. I think because its bigger, its pretty self sufficient. I do need to get in it every month or so and weed. My water plants reproduce so quickly they would cover the whole top if I didn't. What's nice is I put all the pulled ones in a wheelbarrow and bring them down to the veggie garden. Pile them up and let them dry. I about a week they are bone dry. So dry they crumble! I use them for fertilizer. I don't know if its the pond water, fish waste or what but those plants work almost like miracle grow ;) Shirley, we have a Master Gardener's plant swap usually every year here around Mother's Day. I say usually, cause this year we didn't have one? I was so busy at the time, never asked why, and till you just mentioned it forgot all about it :) My fair swap has been growing a little every year by 1 or 2 people. :) A lot of the same people come every year once they get hooked. The like the variety of different things I bring every year. What's awesome is that it all comes from the gw. :) The seed swaps in the fall produce nice little babies for my swap. This year I tried a bunch of Dianthus.... I have Ipswitch, Black Adder, Yellow something I can't remember, Black Magic, Fire Witch...as you can see I got most of these from the Halloween swap last year :) I also have some different Althea's that I can't remember right now, lol. The turtle is officially done. He's not a fancy turtle, but, he does look cute. ;) The kids are so excited I hope he wins. Taylor was looking through the entry list for ecology classes. She's entering photography, art (painting and sculpture), sewing, flower arranging (gee, wonder where she's gonna get those?), and house plant arrangement. I have 1 house plant in my house. Taylor's zebra plant. This thing has produced 8 babies! She took my tea cup planter and planted them around in it. She then used one of my old spoons and stuck it in. Made a tea bag tag to tie to the spoon, " Taylor's Tea" It came out so cute! Billy is entering art. He made the most beautiful pastel drawing of a fish this year in kindergarten. It won an honorable mention at the school art show. I framed it. He's also entering the house plant arrangement too. We didn't have any house plants for him, but, we did have some hen's and chicks. So yesterday we got a pair of his old sneakers, washed them, and filled them with hen's and chicks. They are so cute!! Little blue sketchers!! So adorable!! My neighbor saw them when she was walking her dog and asked if they were going to be at the plant swap...lol! I have to get a photo of them. Have a great day!! vina Here's a weird one...found this double gaillardia. It looks like a science experiment gone wrong, lol.

I can sympathize; I am in a similar situation. My DH had to take a job where he works every weekday, afternoon and night, so I am now home with SS all the time (I work from home during the day on top of it.) My DH didn't have a great deal of choice in the matter (the only other option was to just not pay bills!), he did consult with me prior to accepting it, and he is desperately trying to find another job... but it is still very hard at times. SS8 is a very good kid but even he can be a bit trying when he follows me around talking talking talking; when it's the whole neighborhood gang sometimes I want to pull my hair out. I don't think my DH understands just how difficult it is for me; he had been a single father for several years and a married father for so long before that. I had been living alone in a nice quiet peaceful apartment. DH just loves kids and so 10 screaming kids from the neighborhood running through the house playing pirate and swinging swords is just lovely background music to him; he can sit and read a book and pretty much tune it out. Anyway, one of our agreements is that, since I am watching SS8 every night, I am in complete control during those nights. I can (and do) tell the neighborhood kids when to go home, tell them that that's enough of playing video games and to go outside and play, decide who/if/when friends are coming along if we go somewhere, etc. It is, in my opinion, completely unreasonable to allow a 12 year old to decide whether or not he will have sleepovers and how late they will stay up - if you are the adult at home, you should make that determination if it wasn't decided beforehand. Same with being evicted from your own living room; you are the adult, you decide when enough is enough. Has Lily said that you can't make these decisions? Is she just assuming that you will/are? You have said that you've "tried talking with her". I've learned with DH that if I said something like "Don't you think the kids are being a bit rambunctious?" his response would just be along the lines of "Oh, they're just having fun". I have to use declarative sentences and be quite clear - "I have a big project due and so I will need the kids to be quieter or play elsewhere". To which he was always surprised that I hadn't just told them that. I have also told DH that I will require some time alone on the weekends, time during which I know that no kids will run in and disturb me at all. While I realize that many single parents do not get that luxury, I am not a single parent; I am a married step-parent, and it helps me incredibly with my stress level. So, I think you need to sit down with Lily and have a serious talk. Don't hint or beat around the bush; be quite clear and calm. Explain that this situation is very difficult for you and clarify as to whether or not you are in charge and whether Lily has your back on any decisions that you make. Also explain that you need some time off on the weekends. If her expectations are that she makes the rules and that you are an unpaid babysitter to multiple kids, well, honestly, I'd be looking for an apartment. I agree with lonepiper; it's a bit concerning that she just dumped this on you without your permission.

Talisman is a beautiful rose. It gets too large to be in my garden. Love your photo, Beth. Here's one that usually is darker, so don't let that fool you. The triple digit heat has lightened the blooms, but it is still quite pretty. It can get large too, in California, but I have to make space for it somehow.