A layer of grass clippings over 3 inches thick will heat up and generate an unpleasant odor as well as harm any plants that touches, but less than that usually does not get that hot, so if the grass clipping mulch is kept to a layer of less than 2 inches, and kept a couple of inches away from plant stems, there should not be a problem. In a good, healthy soil those clippings should be fairly quickly digested, and incorporated into the soil, by your soil bacteria, much better than you could ever do that.

I read somewhere (recently), can't recall the ssource, that you need to open your windows for only 5 minutes a day to air out a house. Hmm, if I start now, by the time I open all the windows, it will be time to start closing them. It's a sunny day, 70, not very humid. And I don't like artificial sprays,etc. I had bought Charlies soap, it's wonderful for laundryu, has a very faint coconutty odor. Reminds me of sun tan oil/sunscreen, the beach. What could be fresher?

Well, I'm not sure my DH will move the tv due to it's mounted on the wall and if we put it into the corner where do all the components go? We have too much in there, that's my feeling. Too much w/too little wallspace. Plus the sofa/chair are too big for the room. I'm not really feeling the added wall, either. With or without the pass-thru OR just a pony wall. I think it will make the room seem small. I'm trying to fit a round peg into a square hole w/this situation I think. Even building a wall isn't really the answer plus I know my husband doesn't really want to do it. I feel like giving up. Thanks for reading along and offering suggestions, but I'm going to stop thinking about it for now. Maybe I'll re-post when/if I have a new inspiration.

Hi Nicole, I'm so sorry for your loss. If the article above is too much info for you to handle in your state right now, just cut the roses in the evening before dark. Leave the stems as long as you can, about 18 inches would be nice, but not always available. Then take off all petals that will be below the water and dunk them into a bucket of warm water (like faucet warm, not too hot or they will wilt) like bath water heat. Then after they sit in the warm water for about an hour put them in the refrigerator. This will condition them enough to last a few days and make it through the funeral. Keep in mind however, that some roses will close in the dark cool conditions of the fridge, so take them out first thing in the morning so they have time to acclimate and re open. Bright light (if not sunshine) causes them to open, so if you have a few that are still closed, put them in the morning sun or by a sunny window until you're ready to go. Note that roses can absorb water via the entire cane, not just the end of the cane, so its good to have as much cane as possible under water. This is why its good to cut them longer. Don't think that just because the tips are in water, they are getting enough moisture, the more stem you have under water, the better it is for keeping the rose hydrated. If you do not how floral preservative, its fine, just keep the water clean. Austins as a rule don't last very long after being cut, but for the most part you should get at least a good 2-3 days if you follow the refrigerator conditioning regimen. Some varieties last longer than others. I hope your roses somehow help you get through this difficult time. Good luck.