Born and raised in northern IL, currently residing in central IL... we did pick up one gardening zone moving south a bit. I'd give anything to live in central coastal Cali, but I'd never get my husband to agree to moving. He claims to like the winters, and does have a good reason... the cold kills off a lot of bad things, and keeps nature genetically strong. I'll buy that, but I still don't enjoy the bone-chilling cold! I get chilled in fall and don't thaw until spring! And the older I get, the more the cold bothers me physically... I'm old enough to dislike winter! The only way we'd ever move to warmer climes would be if our children moved their families there first... only then would my husband agree to a move. So, it looks like I'm stuck gardening in IL... where I must emulate a warm climate to grow orchids and other tropicals, dragging them out for summer and back in for winter... but I do get to enjoy lilacs, peonies, tulips and other bulbs and plants that are deciduous or require a chill in order to bloom. I guess it's not so bad... we have white Christmases, germ killing cold, and can enjoy plants that need the lower temps... and summer brings all the warmth and humidity that makes the garden bloom so beautifully... It may make orchid growing a challenge... but real gardeners aren't afraid of a challenge, and in fact, we welcome the chance to prove our prowess! What the hey, my Epi is still alive... I must be doing something right! :-)

I didnt get back here last nite! Question first! Ian, is the 1/4 tsp. of yeast really correct, or is that a typo? That sure doesnt seem like much yeast for that much flour, or is that because its used in a starter? Ive never used a starter before! And do you know if it makes any difference to use regular or rapid rise yeast? I happen to have both around here right now. Jennifer, I really cant help with the high altitude question either! When I bake, which really isnt all that often, sometimes I "adjust" the recipe for high altitude and sometimes I dontand Ive really never been able to tell much difference, so mostly I dont anymore! Ive also noticed that when you use a mix, they usually call for a little bit more water and a little bit more flour, and that just doesnt make ANY sense at all to me. A little more of one or the other maybe, but BOTH! Whats up with that! I did find the site below with some good basic high altitude cooking info that might help you since youre so much higher than us "low landers!" Since Ians rolls are made with such a "wet" dough, I think Id try it just the way it is, making sure, as Ian says, that it seems wet enough. Youre 3000' higher, but Im gonna try it just like it is the first time. Happy baking, Skybird

Yes the green hard to see caterpillars i think are the most common and have damaged my tomato plants a little bit before i caught them. You have to look at every inch of your plant thorougly because they can hide anywere and not be seen. I found a little green worm under my pepper plants leaf one time (not sure what it was) but havent seen them since. I just recently started seeing my tomato plants stems turn hollow so i looked it up and there is a different type of caterpillar that will make entry into the stem of your tomato plant and will eat it from the inside. I had to throw my plant away because it was completely hollow and dead. I also had a watermelon plant which did really good until it started getting infested with melon aphids on the backside of the leaves. I heard that lady bugs are really beneficial for your garden and they say an adult lady bug will eat up to 5000 aphids in its lifetime. I will try this method and will post how it works but i seen someone post about wasps helping with problems in their garden and would like to know more about how the wasps work.

Shiela, we don't know. Billa was so under age but as he grew strong and received all his shots. When he started to spray the house and with vet advise to have him sprayed. He was very healthy and happy cat. We did not do any autopsy because they charge a lot. But the vet believes it is anesthesia that may have cause it. He said he used recommended for cats but after I been googling and talking to a lot of cat breeders like the second cat which was a pure breed. The ACK breeders told us this docs used too much meds but when they have theirs cats spray after shows and all. They put them on lower dosage . So when time came we ask the same vet if not we will take Ragmuffin cat to recommended vets where most AKC breeders go to. The vet told us he followed the protocol of the recommendation provide by state but he can make an exceptional and used less medicine for us. He agreed that it can be too strong for some cats. Our vet is not private but works for Animal hospital by State . The Siamese kitten we found must be thrown away by someone. It was not a stray kitten. It was so young that he can only move by two front legs and he was dragging his back hind legs. Barely opening his eyes believe he might be less than 3 weeks old. We look for a nest the next day and basically the whole week. None at all and no other kittens or cat. His chances without a mother was barely 10 per cent and we follow very strick schedule until he grew stronger and stronger. We wrap him up with baby blankets / towels. We bought best milk from vets, bottles, heating pad and all. We believe he gave Billa too much medicine or maybe allegic reaction. The vet has never lost an animal except for 2 in his life time. Even he believes it could be the above too much or allegic. It greatly affected him so he went with lesser amount for us. Jin