Schoolhouse, why would you skim off the sod? It's the best dirt on the lot! Just dig it in and let it decay. The old English gardeners used to pile sod up and let it decay for six months, then use it for premium potting soil. If spacewaya skims the sod off, he/she has nothing left but silly putty! Aulani, the gypsum treatment only works well on soils that are saline (salty). It's questionable everywhere else. Especially since we don't know where spacewaya lives, or what the soil conditions are. Spacewaya, why don't you Google "gypsum clay"? There is a lot of information out there. If your soil is already rich in Calcium, you could really screw it up with gypsum. Spacewaya, about your plant problems: you're not telling us anything about your garden. What is your soil mix? How much sun and water are your plants getting? Have you adjusted your pH? Is it really hot or cold where you live? We've got a complete information vacuum! By the looks of things, I would guess that your mix is heavy with bark, and you've got severe Nitrogen starvation, and probably need a good shot of dolomite lime. It might be too late to save this year's crop, but you can learn a lot by experimenting, and then apply what you've learned next year. I've been gardening since the dawn of time, and I have always used sand to lighten clay soil. I've done it successfully in New Jersey, Oregon, California, and Washington state. If you want to learn about it, Google "soil triangle". The only time sand doesn't work is if you have a very unusual kind of clay, of if your soil is nearly pure clay, the kind that you can't dent with a pickax. If you want to try it, buy a 2-cubic-foot bag of coarse sand, spread it over a 2 foot by 2 foot area, and mix it in really well, like with a tiller. If you like the result, you're ready to tackle the whole garden area. I usually cover the entire area with at least 1 inch of sand, and then till. It takes some experimenting to find the right amount. That's why I recommend trying the small area first. Don't be discouraged by all the stories about turning your soil into concrete. Just try it in a small area. You'll find out for yourself if it's going to work. People have been using sand to amend clay for thousands of years, and all of a sudden it's bad. Landscapers use it, artificial soil mixes have it, sandy loam is full of sand, and it's the best gardening soil on Earth, but sand is evil, right? Give me a break.

Awwww! best friend! Thanks for checking in. We had a small set back. They had to redo the ceiling in the kitchen and back foyer, so we couldn't start painting on Thursday as planned. However, the ceiling is finished, it's perfect and we are scheduled to paint on Monday! Woo-hoo! I am having some serious worries though. I think I just need to suck it up and do it. If I don't love it after all of the furniture is in...well, I can repaint!

Merry Christmas! I'm enjoying a little quiet! organic, love the room you have posted. I do know what you mean about a barely-there rug. I have thought about using a natural fiber rug for that effect, too. My only thought on that is since I do not have patterns elsewhere, maybe the rug is where I should put it? Or maybe just leave that to the pillows, a new accent chair, and curtains? oceanna, again-- thank you SO much. Love the pictures you posted. I want to live in them all! loribee, thank you! How kind of you! Question about the curtains-- any idea how I could hang them since the blinds have a moulding? I would think a curtain rod would look too busy or weird (we could not do an inside mount with the blinds), but maybe it is done? I have no idea. I have thought about taking down the blinds, putting in cheap roller shades, and then hanging curtains. My sis says those shades are a pain, though . . .and we spent so much on those blinds I am afraid DH would kill me if I take them down. roselvr-- I had no idea I could change the setting there. I have just been hunting around for threads w/o knowing how to get them e-mailed to me! It is taking me time to get used to this MB format. Thanks!

hey the whole point of box.. is that it can be shaped any way the guy with the pruning shears shape it.. for the most part ... often all it needs is a start with a given shape when in production.. when very young .. no plant ever stops growing... if you go look closeley ... you will see last years growth ... and then there will be a bark change .... which will indicate the prior years growth ... and with that info ... you can start guessing its annual growth rate ... for the rest of your life ... so just to make the math easy ... if it grew 6 inches last yer... then every two years.. it will be a foot larger ... so in 20 years ... it will be ten feet larger.. plus the 4 or so it already is.. and IN THEORY .... it could be 24 feet tall ... now some things do slow down ... so it might not make it there... but it will never stop ... and the best indication of that.. is that no plant holds its leaves forever .... it will alwasy be shedding leaves... and if it didnt grow out at the tips.... then it would not replenish such .... this is also one of the reasons why evergreens are nudey inside .... i think i am seeing at least 4 to 6 inches of growth last season.. sans a scale ken