For the most part, my Palatine roses did ok this past season. Altho one did die on me for some reason. I plant them all in big pots and mulch them well. Don't know why, but BONANZA FREELANDER gave me a nice couple blooms right away, and then suddenly turned brown and died. I didn't ask for a replacement, as it was at the end of summer, and it had gotten off to a good start, so it was just a fluke. Not their responsibility. I ordered another one because I liked what I saw. LAGUNA FREELANDER was a bit of a disappointment. I'd seen pics on the Kordes website a couple yrs before they offered it, and was expecting a much more "lavender-purple" color, but it ended up being a pinky-almost magenta sort of color. But that could change with subsequent bloomings as it matures. All the rest I got from them were good growers and decent bloomers. As for Pickering's roses... they faired ok also. I just wish CREME CARAMEL would've been a better bloomer. But it's really hard to judge roses in the first season anyway. This time around, I opted to have my Palatine's delivered in the very early spring. Thought I'd see how that goes. I never really had any problems with any of the Canadian rose coming later in the season. In fact, the Horticos sometimes do better later, but I do have theirs coming in a week or so. I'm so ready for winter to go away!!!

Looks like yo have no idea about growing plants from seeds! The seeds/plants you mention, do best when started indoors in small pots with sterile soilless mix. That means no dirt or potting soil. The use of a soilless mix is things like shreaded coconut and peatmoss which are great for starting seeds. Because you don't want young tender plants to die from bugs or diseases, thats the reason for sterile seed starting mixes. Thinning refers to removing smaller seedlings nearby others that are growing better and bigger seedlings. For instance, if you were to plant a very tiny seed like a Portulaca, which is smaller than a grain of salt, its very hard to plant just one seed in one place. Hence, because the Portulaca seed is very tiny (fine), they do best if just dropped onto the surface of the seed starting medium (the sterile soilless mix). Some larger seeds are actually casings or tiny fruits where inside there may be more than one actaul seed, like in the case of cilantro and even beets. Becuause you will see several seedlings emerge, you would have to remove some to 'thin' out the plants, so they are not crowded. Allowing plants to crowd will reduce the sizes of the seelings and if planted outdoors, you will have difficulty seperating any seedlings that are clumped together. Some plants like to have a lot of space between each, while some like closer spacng. Make a row 1/4 inch deep, and make another row next to it spaced 1 inch away, also 1/4 inch deep. This method is obviously for planting seeds outdoors directly in soil, and is something used for small sized herbs or flowers. Most every seed packet has some planting info in it, regarding their needs as to sun, fertilizer, watering, plant spacing, and seed depth. No two seed types are the same in most cases. Aslo some seeds germinate (sprout) in darkness, while others like bright light to sprout. Some sprout in cool areas below 65 degrees, while others sprout better in warmer areas above 75 degrees. Transplanting is the method used to get plants a head start in very early spring indoors, and then give them a few days outside in the sun to get used to the outdoors. The plants are started indoors in small pots, and then are 'hardened off' by exposing them to the outside for about a week. Then, you sinply dig holes in your garden where you want these plants to grow, and then remove the plants from the small plastic pots they were started in, and plant them in the holes you just dug. Thats what transplanting means. Bay, is a tree, and will probably not grow well in your climate. Seed slzes vary greatly, compare small basil seed to a carrot seed, which is smaller, and a pumkin or suquash seed as being big. The bigger the seed, the deeper the seed should be planted. Some plants/seeds do not take to starting in small pots and moving them outside to transplant into a garden, so they usually say to direct sow these. I cannot elaborate any further, whithout going into very fine detail and describe each and every plant you want to grow. In most areas of teh world there are libraries as well as thousands of books on seed starting, stransplanting and growing all kinds of plants. Suggest that you head to your local library t o learn more about some of the very simple terms mentioned here. If your unsure abot seeds, your better off buying plants athat have already been started in a professional greenhouse, so you only need to dig holes in the soil, and plant these (transplant) into your garden. Keep in mind a 5 inch tall plant, may grow to well over 3-4 foot tall, as in the case of things like tomatoes. If these are planted close together, the tomatoes will be small and will be in shrt supply. Richters can only give simple generic instructions on every thing they sell, as the individula instructions for every single seed type sold, could fill volumes, and overwhelm most people.

I got the same exact thing going on with my Shaw. The cab has been cut and the left side at the curve of the sink has about a 1/8 to 1/4 inch gap. Right side is fairly tight. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do. Seems I have seen mostly white caulk used for filler. I did ask my KD what he thought (he's never been in on a Shaw install) about using clear and he said no, that would cast a shadow or something??? He said white caulk or maybe even a cream caulk to match my painted cabs. I'm leaning towards the white. I haven't ordered a grid yet, but now that I see the sink, I think I will. I have gotten satin nickel faucet so will go with satin nickel grid. Hope someone else gives you (and me) a more definitive answer...and hopefully a pic.

I can't thank you enough for all of the replies. It looks like dark wins, which was my husband's choice. After reading several of the posts indicating the light trim doesn't look finished, I have to say I finally "got it". Several of you suggested I paint the front door dark as well. I know you can't see it in the picture, but it actually is the same color as the dark trim. Magnaverde, your post made me laugh. When we were building the house, I had terrible anxiety about the garage, but it was my husband's dream and is now his "man cave". Luckily, we live on 25 acres at the end of a private, dead-end road and the house is set back far from the road. We've also placed several pine trees in strategic locations to try to mask the doors. So, when someone comes to our home, the garage doesn't smack them in the face until they are parked in front of it. :) Here are some pictures showing the the house from a different aspect. Thanks again, everyone!