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Cooking with Randy 2006– Use of fall vegetables. Excellent food! Check out Randy’s business Dining by Design.

Quickly relieve Poison Ivy itchiness!
To quickly relieve your craving to scratch poison ivy,
soak the affected area in hot salt water.

To kill Poison Ivy...
Mix 3 lbs. of salt with 1 gallon of soapy water and spray the solution onto the leaves and stems of the plant – it should die.

Evening Division

Hypertufas
Thanks to Gwen for showing us how to make hypertufas! Here is the recipe for the mix and the steps in making them.

Forms:
Have your container prepped before you start mixing the water into the mixture. Good containers are: wash basin, plant pots, bowls – any container with a slight taper so it will be easier to get the dried hypertufa out. Line the container with a plastic bag. Tape it to the outside of the container.

Mix:
1 part Peat Moss – bagged is better than peat packaged in a form of a block. It should be not too wet/too dry and fine not clumpy.
1 part all-purpose Sand – don't use beach sand.
1 part Portland pure cement
Put all 3 into a wheelarrow. Mix well with a spade or shovel. Break up any clumps that are in the mixture. Add water alternating mixing and adding water. The consistency should be similar to what you would want to use for "mud-pies" – a good way to test this is to take a fistfull and squeeze it, if water squishes out, the mixture is ready.

Putting the Mix into the Form:
Add a few handfuls of mix into the container. Pat it into the bottom. Use a ruler to measure the thickness of the bottom. It should be 1-1 1/2 inches thick. If not, add more mixture and continue to form the bottom. When the bottom is thick enough, start to build up the sides in the same manner. This should also be about the same thickness as the bottom. Flatten the tops of the sides. If you find the mixture is too dry sprinkle some water ontothe surface as you from it. If it is too damp and colapses, blot with a paper towel. Add 3 holes in the bottom, for drainage, for small-medium containers and 5 for larger sizes, using stick or shovel handle.

Allow the hypertufa to dry for 1-3 weeks in your basement, garage or house. Be sure to keep it out of direct sunlight or heat, as it will crack. remove from form carefully. Let sit for a couple of weeks before filling with soil and plants. There are many plants you can use, some examples are: succulents, alpines, pansy, etc.

If used outdoors, the containers will begin to weather and moss may grow on the outside. Enjoy!