I second fred on the dryish tufa with the wire mesh I actually use chicken wire to help the tufa have something to cling on to when doing long vertical surfaces, such as the wall on your dog (hobbit) house. You wante a peanut butter consistensy... something that wont run, but will also not crumble. Also, if you want the "hobbit" house effect, I found out, by accidentally using too much dye, that the dyes from Olde World (particularly terracotta and the bright yellow-rust color) will give you that effect. And it wont wear out with time. As far as the pre-mix, I don't know if it'll be easier and cheaper to just buy your portland (white), sand and peat on your own. It's not that difficult to mix, although, a doghouse will involve a LOT of mixing. You're going to want rounded edges, so I'd probably dress an existing structure so you will have something lighter that also requires less tufa Good luck on your project and be sure to post some pictures :-)

I haven't ordered during this sale because my pot ghetto is already too big--especially with newly-arrived salvias, destined to be rose companions. Unfortunately, I discovered a great new source of unusual and fragrant salvias (great for my area) called Flowers by the Sea. Did order from Heirloom in August and received in September these: Kraskoje Kawaskole, gallica (Eurodesert inventory) Siwa, canina hybrid (Eurodesert inventory) Nymphe Tepla, reblooming rambler/setigera cross (Eurodesert inventory) Limelight, ht Oklahoma, ht Eglantyne, Austin Little White Pet, polyantha Kraskoje Kawaskole is an intriguing gallica, and there doesn't seem to be much info available on it. I got the only one Heirloom had. So far it is growing like a maniac! Put in a 1 gallon pot in September, soon after arrival, it was more than ready to graduate into the ground when I did so last Saturday. I'm hoping it will sucker all over the place in true gallica fashion. Looks the picture of health. Siwa is a lovely Rudolph Geschwind rose and a hybrid of the dog rose, which has always appealed to me. Don't know if she sets hips, but I hope so as I like to snack on them.;) Check out Cliff O's pic of her on HMF. So pretty a flower. Nymphe Tepla is supposed to be a seedling of the very classical de la Grifferaie and very similar except she reblooms. Plus she has a dash of R. setigera, a native American wild rose. When I removed Nymphe Tepla from her band pot I was simply amazed at the extensive roots she had. Into a gallon container she went in September, and when I planted her over the weekend those roots were already growing well outside the bottom of the pot. I can't wait to see what she does with some freedom to expand! Limelight I chose because I like yellow, the pretty flower form, lots of fragrance, bushy growth habit, and bred by Kordes. Oklahoma is a rose I remember with fondness from my childhood, is loaded with fragrance, and the beautiful dark color is one I like. Eglantyne is an Austin I've long covetted--seing her looking spectacular in the neighborhood prompted the purchase now. Little White Pet is a diminutive cutie which has looked good everywhere I've seen it. Now as to what other have on order. Golden Globe tempts me greatly. And I'm really curious about the Rolf Sievers alba, Golden Blush, so I hope you will post how this one does Tammy. Geheimrat Dr. Mittweg would be worth getting for the name alone. Heavenly Pink I saw at Eurodesert and was very impressed. Every time I passed it, it was covered in trusses of pink flowers, A+. Werner von Blon was growing on what I think was the east side of Cliff's house so appeared to be in a fair amount of shade. That purple color was most striking. On my wish list for the future. Other Eurodesert roses that I think are standouts are St. Elisabeth of Hungary. I think she will become a true classic. Flowers are big and luscious, heavily scented, and profusely-produced. She is a BIG plant and seems wonderfully healthy. Check out the pics on HMF. Petite Francoise is an absolutely charming little polyantha that lives to flower. Cute as a bug, covered in little pink seashell blossoms. Omi Oswald is a very primitive looking hybrid musk, with pale yellow single flowers, looks like a species rose. Flowers are fragrant and oh so attractive to bees--to the point they look like they're in ecstasy, yep drunk looking, happy bees! Blooms have a pretty pompom of stamens in the center, somewhat like a hibiscus in appearance. Mine was blooming again last week. I don't know, there were so many roses at Eurodesert that impressed me, it is hard to decide which ones to get first. Joe Grey is another I intend to order, he's a dense round mound of green all the way to the ground (invisible knees!), dotted with purple flowers. Melissa

Dorothy, I'm about at the same place you are in terms of planting cool-season veggies. I hope to get everything exc. broc and taters in the ground today and tomorrow (with the assistance of my 2-year-old GD, so that slows me down a bit). My broccoli seedlings are about at the same stage as yours, and I hope to get my potato bed soil ready tomorrow and plant next week after the forecasted stormy period of Sun-Mon passes. (It won't bother me if the rain misses us.) Megan, The latest OSU-recommended planting dates for most cool-season crops is March 10th. Of course, you can plant later, but the later you plant beyond the recommended dates, the greater the chance your crops won't produce as well as those planted on-time. Potatoes do pretty well as long as they go into the ground in March, and broccoli does the same. Direct-sowing peas is tricky. Peas grow best in cool soil and cool air temperatures, but germinate best in warm soil. That's why some of us start our peas indoors using various methods to get faster germination than we would outdoors, and then transplant them out quickly so they can grow in the cooler conditions they prefer. Look at Tom Clothier's chart on soil temperature's effect on seed germination that I've linked below. For peas, you'll see that it takes peas 36 days to germinate at a soil temperature of 41 degrees, 14 days at a soil temperature of 50 degrees, and only 8 days at a soil temperature of 68 degrees. Right now, according to the OK Mesonet soil temperature charts, the 3-day average soil temps for most of Oklahoma are in the upper 30s through upper 40s, so peas direct-sown now will germinate fairly slowly. So, if you direct sow, expect germination to be slow. Because our spring weather air temperatures can get too hot fairly early, peas need to be sown as early as possible to get a good harvest. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Tom Clothier's Germination/Temperature Chart

Week II in Hi-Energy (post "Detox"): Yesterday was my "first service" visit to the Gilbert, AZ office. (Btw, the contract states you have until 7 days or within 3 days of the first service date to cancel the program, whichever comes first.) Interviewed by a counselor regarding my first week of "Detox" whom when asked admitted to no credentials relating to nutrition, dieting or any medical field. After explaining the program guide booklet and selecting my food choices for purchase ($148.69--I bought extra boxes to accomadate food choices), she administered a 10-lead electrocardiogram. I learned this is a 5 and 1 program where I eat six (6)times a day. Five (5) times with their "Medifast" food and one (1) time, i.e. dinner from my home refrigerator. Dinner, or "Lean & Green", in one sentence is basically any lean meat, e.g., fish, chicken, pork, turkey, lamb and so on. You can go meatless with eggs. The "Green" is broken down chartwise into a low, moderate and highest carb count listing from their guide. Bottom line: After listening to the counselors about taking the upcoming urine test for Ketones, studying the guide and the Medifast food boxes, the Hi-Energy program offered here in Arizona--is the very same Medifast program offered online, or what is is offered at any Medifast facility (e.g. Texas). Online, you are offered an opportunity to start a franchise or join the program. See the link: http://www.medifast1.com/index.asp and you will know "Hi-Energy." Everything is there to include the program guides and food information. However, the this rabbit hole goes even deeper. These programs work by spilling ketones, or more simply put, changing the body metabolism to primarily burning fat stores in leiu of carbohydrates. At the deepest depth of this rabbit hole--you will find Robert C. Atkins, M.D. He wrote a #1 best seller called: "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution" 2002 latest edition for $7.99. May he rest in peace. I own this book and lost 20 pounds on the Atkins diet serveral months ago. I've kept off the weight because my girl-friend who does the cooking always has presented my dinners with lean and green! Btw, a prevailing media misconception of Atkins is that there are no carbs on this diet. Actually, the first week "limits" carbs to 20 grams to induce ketosis, and thereafter to around 40 grams per day. If you look at carb gram counts in different foods-you will notice this is an abundance of food. It's dark in this hole . . . let me get my flashlight out . . . alias Hi-Energy at $924.00 plus food, or the Atkins book at $7.99 plus the frig and sensible grocery shopping? Here is a link that might be useful: Medifast is Hi-Energy