that is an awesome looking bin!! I might have to copy it sorta. looks great!!

You may not be hardening up your seedlings enough also . I use a growing medium of five parts peat moss and one part washed sand , dampened thoroughly with a weak miracle gro solution. Pack full without tamping , into a large peat planter ( 12 oz. pot?). Three melon seeds per pot . If you're starting under lights , after two weeks you need to start getting them outside ,occasionally at first, only during favorable conditions , left still in their peat containers , of course , moistened with good rain water if possible. By doing this , by the fourth week you should have hearty seedlings , that should survive if transplanted when the weather permits. Thats another thing , watch the low temps . You'll gain nothing trying to plant them if the night avg. temps dip below 45 degrees . I think zones 5 and 6 you need to wait until after about June 6th to plant.I'm growing in Redvale Colorado at 6,500 ft above sea level . I experienced a 2 in 5 survival rate because of the late spring cold spells in the four corners region . Nontheless I now have a good melon patch going . I am trying Extra summer sweet , a Japanese variety from Evergreen Seed Company and Maverick Melons from Johnnys Seed Company. In the future I will use clear plastic tents along with black plastic ground covers to give them an optimum start. This year I dug a deep trench and threw in some old composted cow manure and covered it from one side making a semi-dirt-covered-manure ditch . I used this ditch to pin the one side of the black plastic and heaped the other side with the soil that was excavated from the trench . This formed a slight mound with one side deeper than the other . The deep side I flood irrigate . I have used this same method for years , and it works pretty good.Its probably too late for melons this year.You still may have some luck with Zukes . Just throw a whole packet in a small spot . You're bound to have something come up . Just thin them out some. And you know what , you could try that with the earliest of earliest of melons , Maybe minnesota midgets or butterscotch . You can make a tent for them to extend the season. Good luck Dave

Hmm, well paraffin must be pretty darn safe then, or at least I hope it is for your sake RickyR. The paraffin is to make the candy not stick together as much I take it? I dunno if I have had the peanut butter balls ever, but in my family there are frequently a lot of rum balls to be had around Christmas. As of right now I think I've settled on the oil (linseed or tung ... as I mentioned above I have tung so that works in its favor), paraffin (small amount, about 1 ounce to the gallon), and mineral spirits as a solvent recipe. I MAY add, as in an improved version of the recipe, some spar polyurethane, as I think it may help and hopefully the small amount won't hurt things. I am making a rather complicated raised bed arrangment and am hoping to get a few more years out of them vs just using them 100% bare. Next version (when these rot) may be Trex or the like so I don't have to keep replacing them. In case any are interested here are links to some of the things I have been looking at: http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/lumber.html#PreservativesAfter http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-5-22-35,00.html http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/finlines/willi02a.pdf None of these are likely the best way to not have wood rot. If the new pressure treatment looks safe in a number of years I might use it myself. However, as this is the veggie garden and not the flower garden I am trying to be a bit more cautious as I don't want to find out in 15 years that PT wood (new kind) has been linked to some odd condition in people that no one ever thought of. Thus the decision to use untreated wood and look for things that are very likely safe. -Allen

Our decking contractor built us a deck out of Trex Transcend (wood grained plastic coating on the top and sides Trex--"rope swing" color) on the top side and dark burnished chocolate brown on the underside of the Trex boards. The framing, floor joists, posts, and glulam beams are all out of" Douglas Fir." The posts are all being wrapped in white vinyl. The fascia perimeter is also covered with Trex Transcend. We had to add additional post to make the deck freestanding, because of the brick veneer. They will also be wrapped in vinyl. I would love any suggestions on how to make the the beams on the inside next to the house look better too. I would greatly appreciate any input on what is the a very good low maintenance long lasting sealant for Douglas Fir wood that will look good with this white and taupe color combo. I have heard that solid body stains will eventually flake and peel and have to be sanded down and restained in 5 years, which isn't very appealing, although I like that look a lot and it covers up most of the woods' imperfections. Clear (non-pigmented) stains can be sprayed on with a garden sprayer, but I've heard it's better to brush it on, so it'll soak in better, and doesn't risk getting spray droplets on the top side of the boards that might stain them. Transparent or translucent stains with pigment look very nice, but really show when they need to be re-done, and you have to mask everything off to avoid getting stain on the Trex boards. Our deck is on the west side of our home and wraps around to an upper smaller deck on the south. About half of it has a roof over it. Does anyone have a stain/sealant they've used that they really like? How long did it last before having to be re-done? Also, it's too late to seal the top side of the floor joists, which I now know should have been done. Any suggestions or tips about which sealer(s) works best and how to protect the bare "Douglas Fir" wood that shows between the Trex boards, now that the deck is nearly completed. We have the metal hidden fastener system. Anyone have any info or experience about which lasts the longest--oil or water based stains? How long you can go before having to re-seal them? How long will a Douglas Fir framework last if you keep it sealed? Which last longer primer & paint or stain? Many thanks for your help!