Yeah, our pH is way up at about 7.2. In terms of alkalinity, it is only worth mentioning given the generalization that eastern US has acid soil. If you look at a soil map, you will see pockets of lime both in the highlands and in low areas that get soil from the eroding limestone highlands, and spend time under water when glaciers recede and thawing waterways are dammed with debris. (We've been out of water for thousands of years now.) I don't know what Rosa canina's optimal pH range is. I've seen it happy on both sides of neutral, but more extreme than that, I can't say. Rosa multiflora on the other hand, looks unhappy in soil that is barely above neutral. How is this unhappiness manifest? The foliage shows signs of chlorosis. The plants are also more prone to powdery mildew than they are in more acidic soil. We see the same behavior in roses with considerable multiflora ancestry. To be honest, we haven't had a problem with roses budded onto multiflora. Maybe the roses run off onto their own roots faster than they otherwise would, but this is speculation.

This can work out very well for all concerned, just don't skip any of the steps. Getting an appraisal done to provide a basis for pricing is probably worthwhile. Most realtors will want their 6% if they touch the sale in any way, so tread carefully there. A realtor can provide help in pricing, but at a stiff cost to you. A good real estate attorney can handle everything that's needed to carry out the transaction at a much lower cost. We sold to a friend and saved considerable money, but had the advantage that it was a corporate relo and the relo company provided the appraisal and pricing services that a REA might have. Plus we got paid a bonus for not using an agent, a nice deal.

Hi Wasamkins, Welcome to the forum. I'm not the greatest painter compared to some on this forum but I do have fun with it. It gives me peace and relaxation. I'd like to contribute to the sites for free project by giving you this site "quickandeasypainting.com" They are a monthly mag in the stores and always have a different monthly free pattern. Have fun painting and please post some pics of your projects when done. As for buying painting books, do you have a Michael's or Joann's craft stores near you? Michael's has coupons in the Sunday newspaper here and at Joann's you can sign up for their bi-weekly flyer and get 40% off coupons so a $10 painting book is only $6, good deal. You can use the coupons for paint and other supplies too. As for other freebie painting sites or even wood cutouts, just type that in your web browser line and I'm sure you'll come up with a ton of sites to look at. Again, welcome to the forum, sure glad you joined. Sal

Agree that it is asparagus beetle larvae damage. It is the classic appearance. Adults will usually skin away round patches while the larvae do narrow trails as they inch along. It is far more apparent on the purple spears but on green spears you may not even notice it. So the issue is how aggressive you want to get in eliminating it. Organic controls are limited - hand picking, earlier harvesting, botanical sprays, importing beneficial insects, etc. - so usually some percentage of damage such as you see is accepted. Otherwise it means bringing out the chemical insecticides. That is a choice only you can make. Dave