"Sulfur would be my second choice b'c it just isn't as effective." Carolyn, I have never heard this before--do you have a source? I always see sulfur listed as a primary control on various university sites. I always consider it first when I think of powdery mildew. Ray, I would not consider sulfur against septoria or early blight so if you are trying to prevent these diseases as well as powdery mildew you could use Daconil (unless you want to say you are growing organically). For the treatment of PM alone sulfur is considered an effective option. Follow label as per temperature restrictions. You would want to use other fungicides for other diseases but it is a good idea to alternate anyway. Here is a 1998 study by the Univ. of Conn. that evaluated 5 fungicides for controlling PM. Sulfur was considered superior over Daconil (Bravo) (chlorothalonil). ""We recently evaluated the efficacy of five fungicides for control of powdery mildew under field conditions in Windsor, CT. On 2 Jun, 1998, five plants of Celebrity tomato were transplanted per plot to each of 5 replicate field plots in 3 rows 5 ft apart with 2 ft between plants in each plot. Two additional untreated border rows were planted to act as a source of inoculum. Plants were staked and tied but not pruned or suckered. Tomato plots were left unsprayed or treated with either sulfur (Kumulus, 15 lb/A), benomyl (Benlate®, 12 oz/A), chlorothalonil (Bravo®, 1.5 lb/A), copper hydroxide (Kocide®, 2 lb/A), or azoxystrobin (Quadris®, 5.6 fl. oz/A) on 24 Jul, 7 Aug, 20 Aug, and 4 Sep. Plants were evaluated for percent foliage with powdery mildew on 10 Aug, 31 Aug, and 10 Sep. Ripening tomatoes were harvested from plots on 25 Aug, 3 Sep. 10 Sep, and 17 Sep. Data were analyzed by the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis analysis at P=0.05. Severe powdery mildew developed in the border plants and spread to the field plots (Table 1). Other foliar diseases, such as Septoria and Alternaria leaf spots, were low in incidence and not seen in the field plots or borders until late in the season. All fungicides evaluated resulted in less powdery mildew than developed in untreated control plots. Sulfur and Benlate® had superior efficacy early in the season, and Benlate® and Quadris® were superior at the late evaluation. Bravo® and Kocide® were intermediate in efficacy. While the trend was for lower yield in unsprayed plots, there were no significant differences in fruit yield as a result of the late season powdery mildew that developed in these experiments."" Here is another link that discusses the use of sulfur against PM (LT). http://utahpests.usu.edu/plantdiseases/files/uploads/PestMonitoring/tomato_powdery_mildew.pdf Ray, I would definately treat this early to try and stop its progression. Advanced cases are very hard to control no matter what you use. THis would be an opportunity to experiment with Serenade --using it preventatively on some of the plants that don't have it as it doesn't seem to be all that effective controlling existing disease. Sulfur , or whatever you choose on other plants. Then compare the results. Your plants are very close together so you will have to keep on your toes combatting this. Good luck.

Most DIYers can achieve a smoother finish with semi and satin paints/finishes than with gloss. Getting a smooth finish when using gloss requires some practice and good or better---not average or cheap---equipment. A $3 paint brush will leave a streaky finish when using gloss paint, for instance. I think gloss is better.

Getting ready to paint the exterior of our 1 story home, Front of house remodeled and has pre primed Hardie plank and the rest is T111 siding. As much as I would like to put more Hardie siding on its just not in the financial cards at the moment. Power washing--I'm hesitant because I know it can do damage on old plywood siding but I feel we could do lower sections safely and would have to do the old scrub brush and garden hose on the upper gable ends. Borrowing our SIL 2000 psi electric power washer and will use widest tip. Will also give a full week for drying, maybe pick up a moisture meter? House Wash-- I know about TSP but BM store recommended Jomax products. Any preferences? I heard simple green can leave a residue? Mold-- Since I live in the rainy PNW I know there will me mold. House is painted dark brown but in shady area there is some brown muddy looking spots. Is bleach solution good enough some kind of moldicide (sp)? Scrub brush-- Is a deck scrub brush appropriate? Its pretty stiff bristles but anything smaller would take forever although we've got time. Scrape first or power wash first, then scrape and rinse again? Filler-- Anybody have a favorite brand of filler? MH Ready Patch? Plastic wood? Minwax wood putty? Mostly for a few nail holes that were sunk to deep but also for a few gouges here and there. Gutters-- Do metal gutters need a different kind of paint than house paint? We don't have fascia boards the gutters are spiked onto the end of the rafters but they are in good condition. Soffits-- I don't have true soffits, it's just the plywood roof decking and the 2x4 rafter tails. I know this isn't the best but its what we got. There are a few tips of roofing nails poking thru here and there which will make it hard to scrape and sand. Can the tips be snipped of with some bolt cutters? Below are pics of the worst offending T111 where the paint is checking and the next pic is where I used a carbide scraper and then painted the center 2 strips with existing paint. This is the sun baked side of the house I think this house was originally stained brown and they threw on some brown Valspar paint and primer to "freshen" it up before we bought it. I don't think this house has seen more than 1 coat of paint in its 40 years. They may have re-stained it more than once but I'll never know but there wasn't more than 1 coat of paintThoughts? Comments? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Happy Friday to all of you and thanks for taking the time to check out my post! Karen

I have a white kitchen and I am debating painting my island SW Riverway. My floors are Ipe and they are a red tone as well. Here are a few Riverway kitchens I had saved. SW Riverway Here it is mocked up in your kitchen. I left the pantry side the light color. I added a white and grey veined marble or ”marble-look” counter that you have planned. For the backsplash I just happened to pick a white or very light grey in a tiny herringbone pattern. I would keep it light and match the counter. Of course you would have to see samples of the teal green color in your kitchen’s lighting. I brought home a gazillion little color chips before finding one I liked. My next step is to get an actual paint sample to try. Like others have mentioned, because of the lack of windows, you may decide it is just too dark. Could you play around painting the cabinets you have since you plan to get new ones anyways? Oh and check out the color just above riverway….Moody blue! Ha! I think I remember some pros here saying that SW paint is not for cabinets. Your cabinet maker will know what kind is to be used for cabinets. I just thought it would give you an idea of how the colors would look.