Pretty good, although I haven't really seen any benefit to the valve yet, but expect to use it later in the season as the weather cools. It's been a very warm and dry season so far, so there hasn't been any reason to limit water. Part of the reason I haven't seen any benefit to the valve yet is I changed my methods this year. I've been using my SWCs as just regular top-watered containers until the plants are well established, then adding the fertilizer strip, plastic mulch cover, and filling the reservoir when the plant starts to get big and/or I have to start watering frequently. The Sungold in the prototype unit large and productive, but the wicking did fail once during the extreme heat and I had to top water once to restart it. I built 3 of these, the last 2 use 8 wicks in the frame and those didn't have that problem. I need to add a couple of holes near the bottom of the fill tubes to make filling faster as there is too much back-pressure with just the valve as the only place for water to enter the reservoir. I'm also considering abandoning the Rubbermaid containers as I don't like how flexible they are, and it's getting hard to find the 14 gallon size I like to use for the bench. I also don't like the large aeration holes in the prototype and prefer to use fiberglass insect screen instead of landscape fabric. In fact I think I like using the 'dual tote' method of stacking a 14 gallon inside an 18 gallon instead of using a cut tote flipped for the soil bench. Using the PVC pipe frame for support of the cage works extremely well, and I use the method in all my 18 gallon tote SWCs. Here's a pic of a PVC frame that is just for soil bench and cage support: I haven't come to any firm conclusion about using wicks vs. wicking chamber, but I really like using the wicks in my bucket SWCs for convenience reasons. I've also been testing Engineeredgarden's method of using just one or 2 very small holes in the wicking chamber and find those containers are working fine. Also, my in ground tomato plants are doing better than their 18 gallon SWC counterparts, but growing conditions this year are ideal for in-ground, and the SWC tomatoes were both transplanted later and got less sunlight early on. I've been surprised how well the in ground tomatoes are doing water-wise in the extreme heat we've been having.

Again, check the soil way down at the bottom, Mile High. You made up your own mixture, and believe it or not, it may still be retaining too much water at the bottom of your pot. Cactus mix and perlite will still retain too much water. Especially when you bring your tree inside for the winter. Which is why Mike shared with you using the 511 mix. O don't even use cactus mix and perlite in S. California, where it is almost as dry as Colorado, and I can keep my trees outside all year. My customized 511 mix is 3 parts bagged mix (usually MiracleGro Vegetable Soil), 1 part perlite and 1 part small bark chips (usually reptile mix or coarse orchid mix). I think the issue you're having is from past and possibly continued root damage, some of it a delayed response, and possibly some of it a response to continued root damage. I think the roots are damaged enough that the plant cannot sustain growth at the apical ends of the branches, and they are just dying back (called Die Back, interestingly enough). So, I would make absolutely sure you're not continuing with more root rot. I think the chlorosis you're seeing being caused by inadequate root growth, not inadequate fertilizer. If the roots are so damaged that they cannot take up nutrients, you'll see chlorosis, despite fertilizing. Your best bet? Re-pot now, with 511 mix. Trim off any dead, rotten roots. You may even have to flush the pot with a weak bleach solution to stop the root rot (I think Mike has had to do this in the past, so search the forum for the bleach to water ratio, you don't want it to be too strong, or you'll kill your plant). Then, once re-planted with a properly porous mix, start fertilizing with 1/2 strength Foliage Pro until you start to see some recovery. Once you do, you can move up to full strength Foliage Pro, and add some Osmocote Plus time release fertilizer (please do not use anything else, many of the time release fertilizers have too much urea--based nitrogen, which will burn the roots, and also do not contain micronutrients, as Osmocote Plus does). Patty S.

I saw that a few weeks ago and on their facebook page I spotted the John Starnes' Urban Farm: My March Classes link. I went to check out his class on unique summer crops last saturday. This guy is very strange and I do not recommend his 'classes'. He has a tiny 2 br house with broken mirrors as flooring - no kidding - with a dog walking around on them. His yard is a complete mess. He takes forever to tell you anything and he doesn't tell you much. When Nick went to use his bathroom, he asked Nick to not flush, then would Nick please pee in the yard instead. That was kind of gross and we all know sewage and vegetables don't mix. Nick didn't feel comfortable with that and used the toilet. The guy obviously knows something so it's a shame but he just isn't organized and his strange personal life is too present to relax and enjoy the class even if it was organized. He is a rosarian, here is an article about him. I think if he gave a rose class and I was crazy about roses, I might reconsider going, but I'd be prepared for the total weirdness. Here is a link that might be useful: times article

I am so envious of you folks with ReStores! Since this is a very low income area there are a lot of junk shops, I can pop a spare backplate and the small rosette (since it needs a matching key escutcheon that wasn't on that door) into the glove compartment. Unless I'm really stuck, I'd prefer to avoid the architectural salvage guy down where I used to live because he is viciously overpriced - like $100 for a single doorknob that was one of about 50 matching ones, not exactly rare and unusual - and very disorganized. I may take more photos and scan rubbings and send them to some other places that sell old pieces and offer hardware matching. Kim, right this minute we're in the "this sucks this sucks this sucks this sucks i hate this house will someone please shoot me NOW" mode because it's slurping down money like a kid with a frappe - milkshake, that is. Between last week's and this week's disasters we're expected to hit $10k, all "WTF??" expenses, not the expected ones. We were counting on having additional expenses, but we were expecting to have some proceeds from the other house to buffer them. Right now I have a plumber (overpriced franchise plumber, but my regular plumber doesn't have the right equipment) downstairs snaking tree roots out of the sewer line, since we had a huge backup last night. We're also extremely peeved with our home inspector for how many things he completely missed. flyleft, we've already been up in the attic and down cellar to find absolutely nuffin in the "If Walls Could Talk" genre. I found traces of a hideous "country blue" wallpaper in the master bedroom - PO painted right over the electrical outlet plates and stuff so if you take the plates off, around each receptacle is a little border of blue wallpaper. Around a defunct cable outlet (no cable attached to it anymore) I tried soaking and peeling some back. No, it's stuck right on there something fierce. So, when we get to that room we'll sand off all the paint boogers and drips, spackle and feather off the seams, and then either skimcoat and paint or put up wallpaper w/liner. *gasp* DH is much more amenable to wallpaper in this house, since it "fits the house", as long as I choose monochromatic or unfussy patterns like most of Bradbury's "Morris Alternative Fills" line. But that's a ways down the road: we need working sewer, properly working electric, fully working heat, etc. before we get too far into "pretties". (I admit I have spent a little bit on "pretties" though: we got wood blinds for the LR because keeping DH in clothes is extremely difficult ;-) , rods for my cheapie eBay curtains, slipcover for my wonderful new couch which people were fighting over last weekend, and a couple of cheap secondhand furniture pieces. I'm still looking for a mailbox and the mailman is getting a little irritated with us!) We do believe that the large brass chandelier in the dining room is either original or very close to it - it's heavy as all get-out, can tell ya that much. If we take it down it'll be hung up in the attic wrapped in sheets for safekeeping. I did pick up, at a yard sale, two antique pan chandeliers: one looks very much like Rejuvenation's Belmont. The other looks sorta like this. I paid $15 for the pair. KGW had a chandelier restored for a surprisingly low price, I think at JF PeGan; I'm thinking about sending them over and seeing how much a complete restoration would cost. The little two-light would go beautifully in the entry. I'm not sure I like the large one as well, maybe I'll have it restored and sell it (depending on how much the restoration goes of course).