Hi, Just curious, I have a question about sphagnum peat vs sphagnum moss. By mistake, I purchased sphagnum moss at the onset of making the 511 mix. I mixed one batch and used it for one of my 3 plants. When I realized that I was using the moss instead of the sphagnum peat, I threw it out and purchased the correct one and used it to make the mix for the other 2 plants I have. My question is this, is it possible that the presence of the sphagnum moss in this one container could somehow attract any pests? The reason I ask is that I saw about a couple of black, winged, fast-moving pests (maybe thrips or gnats?) around this plant today. Upon further inspection, I shuffled some of the top mix and saw a single, tiny larva(e) crawling in the medium and suspected that I have pests breeding in my container. And afterwards, as I shook the container, a fast crawling, winged pest climbed out of the mix, and up the side of the container. I sprayed this plant with some insecticdal soap and plan on repotting it using the sphagnum peat moss instead. So could this (sphagnum moss) be the reason for pest-sightings? I want to solve a potential big problem now, before the real bug season begins. By the way, I haven't watered this plant for like a week and it still seems to be moist inside. I had watered every 3 days prior to the last time.

Ha - nope I restrained myself! First time in weeks...hehe... I ordered back in the fall from a lady in California that has a greenhouse and sells lots of succulents. The soil is actually pretty good, has a good amount of perlite in it and some bark. I can tell the plants are getting pretty root bound now but want to wait until spring to repot, mostly because I have to do it in the garage and don't want them to freeze. These little guys are in 2" plastic pots, all rooted cuttings. I have two other Crassulas other than my gollum Jade. One is a string of buttons. When I got it it was flowering but then it stopped because of whatever reason. I have it in a Southern window and it loves it. It never wilts and grows at a decent rate so I think watering it every week or two is working for it. The other one is a Crassula marchandii, not a popular Crassula at all and only one other member in the C&S group has one, though Norma knew what it was and said it is a hybrid. It's pretty finicky. I actually started a thread on it if you are interested, I'll post the link. The cutting I got from her had bloomed because I could see where the flower stem was and it was removed. Now it is splitting into two "branches" there which is exciting! So I think I'll keep that one around as pathetic looking as it is. It's one of mine that really likes the water. From her I also have a Sempervivum and two dumb Hens and Chicks (I don't like them, and they do not like me either, they started to stretch out and are fine now in a southern window but they look ridiculous with a neck and compacted head on top - I want to get rid of them but feel like I'm doing something really bad by tossing a living thing out). I ordered a "surprise" mix and didn't have a say in what I got, I just told her to keep in mind that I live in Illinois and they'll be inside lol. The Haworthia too of course that I mentioned. Two Aloes (I think one is a marlothii seedling, the one in the pure oil-dry and the other is a variegata which needs a lot more water than the marlothii right now, its leaves started to fold on me). One thing that's weird with my Aloe variegata is I swear it eats the dirt. The dirt keeps disappearing. When I bought it from HD it was healthy but a lot of dirt was missing. It was pretty much only any dirt that was stuck to the roots. Brought it home, threw in C&S potting soil laying around to hold it over until spring, and it ate it up again. It's bizarre and I don't know what the heck is happening to the dirt, but about 1/3 to 1/2 of it disappears. It clearly has a brain and knows it wouldn't do well in it! So I am obliging to its wishes and will not add anymore dirt for now. It's a really slow grower, both Aloes are. Hopefully they step it up a bit now that spring is coming - we have bulbs starting to poke through the soil already. I also have a Hoya compacta and a Sansevieria. Hoya is a rooted cutting so that won't do anything for years lol - the Sansevieria just sits there I swear it doesn't grow. I think that covers it. I really want a Gasteria next. Someone in the C&S forum had a pot full of Gasteria offsets and it looked really cool, and I guess they do great as houseplants. Here is a link that might be useful: Crassula marchandii thread

I love the idea of using the hair conditioner for shaving legs. I need to try that one. My husband has used dryer sheets in his pockets when he is out camping and it does work to keep the mosquitoes away. Baby oil is great to remove the oil sludge from your skin that you sometimes get down at the beach (and most of us are avoiding many beaches along the Gulf for that very reason!) We found this out last summer when we were down by Corpus Christi and one of my boys had it on his legs. Brunettes - Use soy sauce as a rinse in your hair to enrich the natural color. Comb it through your hair and let it sit for a few minutes, then rinse. I need to add this list of helpful hints link to my favorites so I can pop back and refer to it later. Thanks everyone for posting these great ideas!

Not all coconut oil products taste like coconut. LouAna brand (I get it at Wal-Mart and Dillons - a Kroger-associated store) doesn't have any coconut flavor. The Grain & Salt Society sold a brand (they called it Coconut BUTTER, and then had to change it to oil) that didn't taste like coconut (it was the first brand I ever tried). Carrington Farms Coconut Cooking Oil and NOW MCT Oil is also tasteless, so a good choice for salad dressing, which is one of the more difficult things to make with regular coconut oil because it solidifies so easily. But don't discount the flavor of coconut oil that does have a mild coconut flavor. It's my "secret" ingredient in brownies, without being over-powering, and works well with cocoa/chocolate. It's also a good choice in other baked goods and power/protein bars. I mix coconut oil with raw honey and use it as a spread like you would use honey-butter. Coconut oil by itself is used by vegans for a bread-spread instead of butter and margarine. Coconut oil aids in homemade breads keeping fresh a little longer than those made with butter or shortening. I found homemade bread made with coconut oil AND chia seeds stayed fresh for at least a week - soft enough to be used for a peanut butter sandwich after a week. Coconut oil has a long history in food and was commonly used in commercial baked goods pre-1960's because the commercial foods had a longer shelf-life when made with coconut oil. I often find recipes in older books calling for copra oil, which is coconut oil. If was often added to frosting in order to help it "set" in cool temperatures. Coconut oil was used for popping corn at stadiums because they could pop huge amounts ahead of time and the coconut oil kept it "fresh". Just stay clear of partially-hydrogenated or hydrogenated coconut oil. This process damages the oil and it doesn't have the same healthful effects on the body as unrefined coconut oil. -Grainlady