adrock- I'm starting to think, with a low tunnel, I could protect down to 10F under optimal conditions (sun the day before), 2 layers of plastic (or tarp), frost blanket inside. Extended forecast now looks good. Outside temp is 33F and inside the hoop its 74F at seedling level (probably much warmer up higher). I left all my seedlings in the garage last night and they were fine. I'm sick of bringing them inside. Plan on planting in the ground tomorrow if the forecast looks good. I'm erecting another 20ft long tunnel too.

My driveway and patio were poured in late December without incident and was "walk on" firm in two days. The tin layer of ice and snow that formed on the "blankets" that first evening did not affect the pour. Although many cement contractors are reluctant to assist DIYer, many of their laborers are not. I gained a lot of information from a worker with 10 years experience in concrete work. The adding of calcium chloride is a boon to concrete work and has been successfully used for years. I am not a chemist: I am a creative artist. As artist we strive to create better and varied art pieces. We experiment with both new and old ideas (some work some don't) or like many other "schools" we stagnate, people lose interest, and the art form dies. I think I will try some calcium chloride in a batch of peat moss tufa just to see the effect. The heat generated by the calcium chloride might reduce the curing time that is such an impairment to many successful tufa projects. There is also the possibility that the inclusion of calcium chloride would be an aid when making thin set garden spheres. As far as, "less chemicals the better" I am lost. We humans are nothing more than a living, breathing chemical factory. However, here are some of the uses for calcium chloride (CaCl2) that you might find interesting. As an ingredient, it is listed as a permitted food additive in the European Union for use as a sequestrant and firming agent with the E number E509. The anhydrous form has been approved by the FDA as a packaging aid to ensure dryness (CPG 7117.02). Calcium chloride is commonly used as an Electrolyte and has an extremely salty taste, as found in sports drinks and other beverages such as Smartwater and Nestle bottled water. It can also be used as a preservative to maintain firmness in canned vegetables or in higher concentrations in pickles to give a salty taste while not increasing the food's sodium content. It is even found in snack foods, including Cadbury Caramilk chocolate bars (purpose unknown). It can be used to make a caviar substitute from vegetable or fruit juices or added to processed milk to restore the natural balance between calcium and protein for the purposes of making cheese such as brie and stilton. Calcium chloride's exothermic properties are exploited in many 'self heating' food products where it is activated (mixed) with water to start the heating process, providing a non-explosive, dry fuel that is easily activated. In brewing beers (esp. ales and bitters), calcium chloride is sometimes used to correct mineral deficiencies in the brewing water (calcium is important for enzyme function during the mash, for kettle protein coagulation (the "hot break") and yeast metabolism) and adds permanent hardness to the water. The chloride ions enhance flavor and give a perception of sweetness and fuller flavour, whereas the sulfate ions in Gypsum, which is also used to add calcium ions to brewing water, tend to impart a drier, crisper flavor with more bitterness. Aided by the intense heat evolved during its dissolution, calcium chloride is also used as an ice-melting compound. Unlike the more-common sodium chloride (rock salt or halite), it is relatively harmless to plants and soil

What I do now is keep them in my cold attic, right by a window sill. Temps get into the 30's, but I've never seen any water freeze. Do you have an unheated garage with a window? No garage or attic, I live in a teeny little house! The coldest part of the house is the kitchen floor, it's like ice when it's cold outside, but I don't want to risk him getting too warm and I worry about my devil cat eating him if he's on the floor in there. She mauls my little baby Violets enough as it is, I'm surprised I have any survivors to give away for x-mas! :) I do have an unheated metal shed in the yard, but no window, I think that would be just the same as being outside, but without any sun! :P So far I've been bringing him in whenever it looks like it's going to get under 30 degrees. That's been working great, in at night, out during the day. I guess I'll leave him in the fridge today, surely one day won't hurt, it's supposed to be 33 and sunny tomorrow so I will set him back out then, and they're calling for warmer temps for next week, so he should be able to get out every day. J

...when one of your shower doors explodes! No joke, last night a minute after Cathy stepped out of the shower the door exploded. She has quite a few abrasions and one significant laceration on her left shin that's going to leave quite a horse-shoe shaped scar. I'm sure glad it didn't happen while she was still in the shower or we'd probably be at the hospital today. Fearing the other door might do the same thing we had a handyman come over and remove it this morning. Rather than taking it to the dump he wrapped it in a blanket and took a sledge hammer to it so we could also put it in the garbage can. Danged if he didn't have to give it 6-7 good wacks before it would break. Go figure!