Hi all, I was going to post a qestion about the effects of all this rain here in the northeast. At the time of this post it is raining again. Most plants seem stunted and light green, which got me reading the books (Rodale). It seems that the rain may have washed most if not all nitrogen out. Calcium and magnesium also leach away. Pulverized lime is cheap today yet so I dusted every plant late in the day. I mean all including potatoes, lettus, amaranth, cabbage, brocoli, peppers, peas, beans, onions, ect.. Everything took a leap in appearance for the better. Greener and just plain better looking. As urine is endorsed here, I saved a milk jug of the liguid, cut it 50.50 with saved rain water and tried it on the brocoli. Success, so saved up some more, you can easily get 1 gal. a day, and donated it to the the balance of the plants. It works. Dear other does not know. In short try a dusting of lime followed a day or so later with some nitrogen whatever the source. You add the lime first I am told by some farmers. Anyway it works. Best regards to all.

I remember reading years ago that there were five plants that were so tolerant that you could "grow them in an unlit closet:"** Sansevieria spp. (snake plant, mother-in-law's tongue) Aglaonema spp. (Chinese evergreen) Aspidistra elatior (cast-iron plant) Philodendron scandens (heart-leaf philodendron) Spathiphyllum spp. (peace lily) At the time the book was written, nobody was growing Zamioculcas (ZZ plant) yet, but I think it could probably go on this list too. HOWEVER, there are some caveats. 1) If it's really that dark, the plant is not going to grow very fast, and any new leaves it does manage to produce may not be proportional to the rest of the plant. It also won't grow new leaves to replace lost or damaged ones as quickly. (On the other hand, if space is that limited, then maybe you don't want something that's really going to thrive and grow and spread, in which case this would be fine.) 2) It won't need as much water as a normally-grown specimen. It will be more prone to rot if overwatered. This is particularly a concern for Sansevieria and Zamioculcas. 3) Choose your cultivars carefully: the more green, and the darker the green, the more easily the plant will be able to adjust. 4) You can always add more lights, or a mirror. I'm growing two Philodendron 'Moonlight' in my bathroom, on a shelf with an under-counter fluorescent light (13W), backed by a mirror, and the new growth is pretty regular, rapid, and the same size as the old growth. Plus I think they like the extra humidity in the bathroom. So it isn't impossible to keep plants in spaces with no natural light. As with lots of things in life, a lot depends on your expectations. **(I know these cannot actually be grown in a closet. Please do not post to tell me not to grow them in closets or I will scream.)

I wouldn't worry if the soil is compact. You can grow tomatoes in clay if you really want to (and there are both pros and cons to this). If your area is arid, you might not have problems with fungal diseases from mud splashing on your leaves, either. With all that ground cover from the grass around, I'm guessing you wouldn't need to worry about that as much, though. That said, however, if you have really loose soil atop clay, tomatoes may hesitate to venture into the clay, and just fill up the loose soil. I've seen this happen in a container with about half clay (on the bottom) and half potting soil (on the top). The clay was almost untouched, by comparison. One thing you can do is grow your tomatoes out bigger before you plant them outdoors (give them more light indoors for faster, stronger growth). You don't need a special grow light (CFLs will work, even if they're not 6500k, but higher color temperatures are better for leaf growth; lower ones are better for flowering and protecting your seedlings from damping off disease, but they'll help leaf growth, too). Then, you can use a post hole digger to dig a narrow, but deep hole, and plant the plant. Because it'll be deep, competing with weeds shouldn't be much of a problem insofar as nutrient competition goes, unless the grass or weeds have deep roots or are parasitic. Tomatoes will also grow roots all along the buried stem. Normally, tomatoes don't need to be planted particularly deep, but it does help them get more water and nutrients. More nutrients doesn't necessarily mean bigger tomatoes. You have to keep in mind that the nutrient balance also matters (not just the pure amount of a certain one). Deep tomatoes seem to be easier to dry farm. However deep you plant them, though, make sure there's lots of foliage up top, still. If you plant them super deep but only leave a few leaves up top, they might take a long time to grow big, but if you have plenty of leaves up top, they should grow fast. If you want big tomatoes (since I brought it up) get a variety that gets big in your climate and conditions, and make sure it gets enough potassium, phosphorus and magnesium. Not all tomatoes are the same, and many have different requirements. Where do you live? I recommend saving your seeds every year (from tomatoes with the traits you like the most) and regrowing them, because it should help whatever variety you're growing to adapt better to your conditions. Landracing could be even better, but you might not have room for that. :) As someone mentioned earlier, container gardening can also be great. I know someone who said she got about 100lbs of tomatoes from one Early Girl tomato plant in a container with nothing but Miracle Gro potting soil. She may have fertilized with Miracle Gro, too, but I think the only fertilizer was that which the soil came fertilized with. The problem with containers is that they can dry out fast in at least some climates. Having a narrow opening at the top may decrease evaporation (but unless your soil drains well, it may make watering take longer).

Suggestions I made were based on your budget . And I was to mention Kevin (ewwmayo) - he has good set-up and has done many measurements too. But you'll need much more than $100 to replicate that. I have few vanity strip light fixtures (purchased at reStore, brand new, each for less than $10) that will hold from 4 to 6 bulbs and use CFL's bulbs in them. Works quite good. Actually, right now these are my main lighting. Won't win any decorating awards:) but works great for plants. It could be difficult to supply everything succulents need to keep them actively growing during dark winter months. With more picky plants, you already have heat mat which may be better than keeping room very warm. I haven't use one so can't comment. My goal isn't to push for extra growth in the winter, rather slowing etiolation somehow - don't get more sun than you, maybe even less? I have many succulents in the basements, with the lights on timer to go on overnight (after $ drops down...) and go off around 5am. Rina