Solarization of the soil will kill some parasites like Giardia, which is quite common, and can be carried by most mammal species. To solarize your soil, water the area very thoroughly, then cover with CLEAR plastic (all one piece), and seal all the edges with soil, to keep all trapped heat contained under the plastic. This only works in full sun, not in shade. There is more info in the link below. However, roundworm eggs are extremely difficult to kill, not being very susceptible to heat or cold. Most dogs and cats are born with them. (Talk to your vet.) They are known to survive quite a few years in soil. Any food grown where animals may have defecated should be thoroughly washed before eating. The eggs would be be in the soil, and are not absorbed within the plants. Mulching heavily will also help to prevent soil from splashing onto the plants. Tell your husband that a garden area is not a garbage site. Sue Here is a link that might be useful: Solarizing soil, U of CA, Davis

Here are the bunnies! Two years ago, I went out to my raised beds, in which I had planted a winter cover crop of vetch. Me being me, I never turned it under when I should have, and so it was well over 18 inches tall when I finally got around to tending to it. There was a big indentation in one part of the vetch, and lots of fur. These beds are cinder block, two levels high, so I was kind of confused as to what caused the big indentation - did a deer fall over into the bed? LOL, it was odd, to say the least. So I just happened to show my husband to see if he could figure it out. So he picked up a stick and poked at the fur, not wanting to touch it with his fingers. Well, we got the shock of our lives when the fur poked back, lol! We must have both jumped back a few feet in surprise! Then it dawned on us that this was a nest! But a nest of what? These teeny tiny little heads poked out and they were so small we couldn't figure out what they were. I thought perhaps chipmunks, my DH thought squirrels, mostly because of the grey fur. It wasn't till a few days later that the little critters morphed enough to tell that they were rabbits! While I was over the moon with how friggin cute they were, I also groaned because I had visions of my destroyed garden (even though it wasn't even planted yet!) What luck - a nest of goodness knows how many rabbits smack in the middle of my veggie garden. DH says, "You want me to take care of them?" I laughed and asked who he was, Tony Soprano? But I couldn't harm these little things. How could I? And luckily for me, they grew up and moved away. Never had a bit of damage... thank goodness! A few days after we found the nest: Another few days later: And still another few days: As cute as these little guys were, I'm content to look at the pictures and hope that I don't find anymore in my vegetable garden! Dee

Claire - visiting herereally made me think of the concept of the "blank slate". I've always thought that my property was a blank slate when I bought it - since there was nary a flower blooming. But it wasn't a blank slate in terms of landscaping - the house was already sited here, as was the pond, driveway, garage, septic system, and tons of large mature trees. So as I have attempted to garden, I must do so within these constraints. So I really started thinking about what I would do if I truly had a blank slate. If I was handed 7 acres of open land, and I could decide on my own where to situate everything - house, trees, gardens, etc. There was just something about this place - I guess because it is so "different". I was really in awe. I guess it also "spoke" to me - just in terms of that dichotomy of these formal linear gardens, interspersed with whimsical topiary animals. So often I visit a garden and I come home with 1 or 2 good ideas - usually in terms of how to pair plants together. But this place - I just got this whole sense of wow - who ever came up with the vision of this formal whimsical topiary garden. And I really started thinking of the what ifs - if I truly had a blank slate, would I want to create a zoo of bushes?

OIF We usually have a good garden crop. Plenty for canning and freezing and the rest we sell and some for give-away. Thanks popppy and GLTY! dd That horse manure is two years old, well composted, and lime free. I till about 8" in depth so the manure really gets ground in. It usually works out very well. Mom likes chicken manure for her onions but this year we are trying both. We use 10-10-10 also and sometimes a barrel or two of manure tea on the tomatoes. The below pic is from two years ago when we went roadsiding with our overflow. I'm always looking for ideas to get a bigger and better crop even though mom seems to have it down pat after 60 some years of gardening. I can tell you that I learned a lot from reading this board when I found it and googling after I started helping her with the garden. She's going on 90 and just loves her garden. I do all the hard work. I was in the construction business for twenty some years and had absolutely no interest in gardening. All I did every year was take one of my small dump trucks and haul up a load of manure. When I went up to the folks on the weekend I could take whatever canned or frozen veggies I wanted. Mom always raised enough for a year for the whole family. She would have seedlings in boxes in front of windows and on the sills..so I researched and built two grow lights...and both of us were just amazed how well plants grew under lights. Hardening was done in a makeshift glass door/windows against a retaining wall at the back of the house. I did some mental designing for an hour and built a small greenhouse. Well, now I can tell you that I find it kinda cool and rewarding to place seeds in a cup, watch them pop and grow and then harvest the fruits of your labor months later. If you knew me you would never think I would be the type of guy to be into gardening. Gardening is kinda interesting if you gain a little knowledge of the process and employ some common sense. For us I guess you could say it's a spring/summer hobby. The pic below, a thousand words! Here's a link with info on the manure tea I mix up along with info on onions. http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg1116545016871.html?9 TY anna I always raise extra plants and give them away to friends and relatives. Our garden is close to 4800 sq ft. We aren't raising quite as much as last year so I have the rows spread far enough apart so I can easily till between the rows after the plants are fully grown, which I usually do every 2 to 3 weeks. GLTY this year. Here is a link that might be useful: Mom's Garden Pics