I keep a list of the seed varieties I'm planning to WS and then estimate the # of containers/jugs of each seed type I think I'll WS. For example, I know after seeing the hummingbird more often this year I want to go heavy on Lobelia cardinalis/cardinal flower. I traded for seed to supplement what I harvested from my WS plants and have enough to WS 6-10 milk jugs. I've still got plenty of room to plant out lots more LC in a few beds so I'll go heavy with those. Last year I WS ten jugs of blackberry lily so I don't need to do those this year. I'll only do 1-2 jugs of Verbascum/mullein because the ones I WS last year will bloom in 2012. I've gotten very low germination from columbine the past two WS seasons and will sow those extra heavy this year. Apple & pear germinated 100% as did dogwood. I have more seeds and will WS them this year since I lost two mature dogwood trees to the October snowstorm. I'll WS as many jugs as I have turtlehead seeds. They were a hit with the bumblebees. I keep WS until I look at my pot ghetto and decide, "That's enough."

The critter on the blue background is a beneficial insect. Likely a syrphid fly larvae; They kill aphids. The aults are also called flower flies or hover flies and, because of their markings, resemble bees. You said you " watched adult mealybugs almost 1/4" long crawl out of that mess" If that critter had a shaggy white waxy covering, they were most likely a coccinelid larva- in the same family as ladybugs you see every day. One kind we have around here is Cryptolaemus. The leaf galls are one of those things that nature does. Seldom if ever damaging to the tree's health.

There are many factors that will determine how many cats become "too many." For some people, the answer is 1 - because they do not have the space or time or resources to dedicate to the wellbeing of their furry friend. I started with one cat (an adult rescue) and felt he would benefit from having a buddy. I got a kitten and they became inseperable. Only down side is the adult is a mellow, low-energy cat and the kitten was a hyper-active ball of energy. After much discussion, I got another kitten to balance things off... This sounded crazy to me but once cat #3 settled in, a perfect harmony existed between all three cats. Fast forward to today, I now have an additional rescue who is estimated to be about 15 years old. This was meant to be a temporary arrangement but it turns out that nobody wants to adopt a 15-year old toothless cat with all kinds of health issues (go figure!)... The addition of cat #4 has been a painful one and has thrown everything out of whack. This old cat is the nicest little ball of purrs when it comes to humans, but she terrorises the crap out of my other cats. Fights have broken out between my other cats as they are on edge and stressed. My youngest male (neutered) has begun to use the bathtub/shower/sinks to pee in despite having 5 litterboxes to choose from throughout the house. The old cat has brought with her fleas, which were a nightmare to treat and het rid of. Her vet bills have been enormous and she has made 1 of my other cats sick as well... She is on a special meat/pate diet that is a whole lot of fun because the other cats have an automatic food-dispenser that she cannot use (so going on holidays is never going to be as easy as it once was). I could go on. After a long, hard struggle of about 18 months, the last cat has finally mellowed out and now tolerates my 3 other cats. However I doubt that the average pet owner would have had the patience and understanding to allow this to happen. Moral of the story? Most people would have brought the first cat back to the shelter and not kept going (because he started off as a "problem cat"). You can have 1 or 2 or 3 or 7 cats... It all depends on how prepared you are to deal with inevitable problems that come with multiple pet ownership. In my case, there was an excellent balance with the first 3. A different 4th addition might have gone more smoothly, but then again the second cat could have been a disaster!

Looks like I'm having this conversation with myself now! Anyway, last night I got to interact with "Henry" again. I put a generous serving of food on a paper plate and put it out in the bushes where his area usually is. I went back inside for about 5 minutes... just long enough to plate myself a slice of cheesecake. Then went out with the flashlight to find not only Henry but another baby grey tabby chowing down fiercly! The new arrival is feral... it ran as soon as I shone the light on the feast. Henry gave me a HISS as I approached. I sat down right beside him and started petting him on the head and back. Even scratched his ears. He didn't even acknowledge my presence... just continued munching. He must have been STARVING. As soon as he finsished the food (3 minutes flat 2 cups of dry food was GONE) he gave a final hiss and darted off into the woods. I guess I've got a routine going now and I will just supply food until I can gain the trust of the poor thing! I didn't hear a single purr so I am assusming survival is more important than interaction at this point. Since there is a white collar (no ID tags!) and the cat ate in front of me I'm assuming he's owned a human before... just wonder if he ran away or was dumped!