Amen to that, Dawn. Shade cloth is on my 'must have' list for next year also. I haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to put up the supports for it, since we'll be using cattle panels, but I know I'm going to have it. One thing I did find is that, if you order the precut material, you can get it all stitched, taped, and the grommets in place, ready to go, for a fraction of the cost of a piece that you have cut to size. A 10' x 12' precut size in white 50% shade is $50 from the Greenhouse Megastore. A custom-cut 4' x 16' (to fit the cattle panel length) one in the same material is $53 for half the amount of fabric. I'll attach the link. Any of the other sites I found had considerably higher prices. I decided on white because of the cooling effect it provides. It also comes in black, beige, and a pricey big (24' x 36') green one for $200. I wouldn't want to try to suspend something of that size over the garden. It could end up being a nightmare and require a lot of support. But whichever one I get, I will be getting one. I don't know exactly how that price compares, but I looked at some that Lowe's had and did not buy it because of the high price. I haven't looked for any local outlets for it in OK, and I have no idea what the shipping cost would be for a shade of that size. I'm sure that people will be concerned about the durability of the cloth, since it's a big expense if it's only for one season. I don't know what brand it is, but my parents bought a bunch of it to go over their patio trellis. They took it down each winter because of the snow, but they have been using the same one for roughly 20 years. And just think how nice it would be to go work in the garden if there's a shade cloth in place! Here's an idea, for those of you who go to any of the nurseries in your area. You might ask them where they get their shade cloth. It might be ordered in, or it's just possible that there's a local supplier. Pat Here is a link that might be useful: Shade cloth ordering site

azmom, I'd really have to assess your current computer to give you a fair and true opinion! The Specs you gave us were very general but lead me to believe it would be better to a new computer. If you did decide to go with upgrading your current computer those upgrades (if you went with a 500GB - 1TB Hybrid) would be in the range of $125-$175. Using an SSD Drive would be slightly higher. If you're able to do the work yourself you wouldn't have to pay someone to install and set up your new Hard Drive and RAM (you could also Clone your old hard drive to the new hard drive or do a clean install). With the price of Laptops these days it might be better to go that route! You can pick up a pretty decent Laptop for around $300-$400. You can definitely get them cheaper, but you will get what you paid for. Example: here is a link to a 2-in-1 Laptop for $379.99 Lenovo 2-in-1 Touchscreen Laptop I found this in less than a minute searching at Best Buy. I'm sure there are many others out there for a great price. This one has an Intel Core i3 5th Gen. Processor at 2.2GHz, 15.6" Touchscreen, 8GB Ram, 500GB Hard Drive, Backlit Keyboard, Can be a Laptop or Tablet, looks to be preinstalled with Windows 10, etc...

I’ve had good success with the junk plastic ones. I have one of those hoses that puff up with water and extend in length. Can’t remember what they’re called. I love love love love them. After I’m done watering they shrink back up, are easy to carry, and even easier to store, and no kinking. But, I’ve found out that the canvas coating on the outside wears as you drag it around, and when it rips the flexible tubing inside balloons out like a hose hernia. I had those plastic repair things for the middle of the hose on hand, and no plans to head out to civilization to a store for a new hose, so I fixed my bursts one with a few of those. Then I duct taped everywhere that the fabric looked worn. I felt like an industrious homesteader. My plastic-repaired duct-taped hose is lasting pretty well, and looks homey besides. (Actually, it probably looks more homely than homey.) I actually spent big bucks on an extension-type hose on Amazon with industrial fabric on the outside. It’s so thick it actually interferes with the hose stretching enough unless you have high preassure. But, it’s holding up wonderfully. And compared to the cost of a standard hose, it really wasn’t big bucks.

Neat and clean is the way to keep all garden tools. Hanging on a wall is a great way to keep things visible and easy to find. I have a basket I use for things that I use all the time and shelving for liquid things, pots and seedling stuff. I have a few Rubbermaid containers for extra soils, soil conditioners and pine barks. I also have a slotted stand for brooms, rakes and what nots. Have fun organizing. I try to keep my area clean but you know how that goes when busy in the yard. I do always clean up and reorganize in fall. It helps to keeps thing ready for the next spring. 😀