Gary

Willow Bend at Stella Link. Getting stuck at the westbound Willowbend signal is rediculous, especially seeing that very few cars pass north or south on Stella Link. Last time I checked the light was almost three minutes.

No joke... Maybe if you guys got a hummer every once in a while you wouldn't be so uptight.

They're absolutely worth it. The cool thing is that many of them now have dual intakes for Natural gas, or propane. The propane is obviously the easier on hook up, but the way the connectors are designed for the gas makes it almost as easy. Of course you'll have to move the stove, etc out of the way. Edit: I forgot to mention that using propane versus gasoline gives a lot more time per refuel.

There are a number of reasons to go with with Natural gas or propane when choosing a generator, and no, you don't need professional instalation for natural gas. Most brands have what's called a "quick link" which allows you to install it directly to a gas line such as a line to a stove. Obviously you need to know where your shut off is before installing. Natural gas and propane generators have far less moving parts which means that the carb, etc won't gum up like a gas or diesel will, thus giving the generator longer life. Also, you'll be dealing with less noise and fumes.

So they are not done with the engineering phase? I was under the assumption that this was already a done deal and we were waiting on the allocation of funds. As a Katy resident, I'm really anxious to get this thing going since I have to travel to the Telge/290 area weekly. This will also add the flyovers at 99 and 10 which are desperately needed.

LOL! His post count.

"Ugh" is right, at least where your goof ball posts are concerned.

LOL!!!

That is one butt ugly skyline...

Great news for Carolyn, she deserves it... She's been working her butt off in the club circuit for years.

That's the stuff... The company is Nitro-Phos and they're local. They make the granules larger than most so that you don't get as much washout during heavy rains, and it's formulated specifically for our Zone. If your using a Scotts standard rotary spreader, set your dial at about 6. In general Nitro-phos doesn't have a spreader setting for the Scotts rotaries, just the drop spreaders. Anyway, spend the extra few bucks on the good stuff. It's worth it now and in the Winter.

Good luck... Stay with it and I can assure you by the end of the summer you'll be looking good. Remember to irrigate, irrigate, irrigate. St Augustine needs a good inch of water per week during our Houston heat.

I'm with American as well and they've been pretty good. My policy requires a $50.00 deductible and applies to almost everything connected to the house save my water line out to the meter. Having the warranty (about 7 years now)has paid off, especially since last year I got my downstairs AC replaced for next to nothing. I've also had several plumbing issues resolved at one time for the measly deductible. All in all they've been very good.

DON'T DO IT! Stay away from the weed and feed, it's poison. Go get a 19-4-9 fertilizer (or similar), deal with the weeds for about three weeks then apply a pre-emergent herbecide for the fall weeds. I know it takes more time to see the results, but it's more than worth it. The pre-emergent herbecide is much different than a weed and feed in that it sterilizes the seedlings which means they won't be back next year. All the weed and feed does is kill the root system, but does nothing to the seedlings. Remember that the weed and feeds are loaded with surfactants and are hazardous to almost any plants, save St Augustine/bermuda grasses, not to mention how terrible they are for the organic matter of your soil. If you'll use the proper fertilizer plan, have decent sunlight and irrigate properly, your St Augustine will thrive and choke out many of the weeds(clover, nutsedge). As far as leveling... Top soil from Houston Garden Center works great.

St Augustine is perfect for Houston because it's one of the best shade tollerant grasses in the world, and Houston has a lot of trees. Bermuda is fine here as well as long as you have a whole bunch of sunlight. Bermuda is actually a great grass if cared for properly. It's much more resistant to disease than is St Augustine and doesn't require as much irrigation. St Augustine on the other hand will stay far greener that bermuda during the Winter months, so there are give and takes with both.

Red's right, as long as you have adequate sunlight. Much of it also depends on how well you irrigate. I would still recommend putting down a good leaf/mold compost or at least top soil with humus. Also, like Red said, rough up the soil a bit about two days after watering. techinically using an aerater is the best way to open up compacted soil which allows oxygen to get into the soil/clay, but they are difficult to work with and are a pain to rent, especially if you don't have a truck. I aerate every Spring and it has made a huge impact on my lawn. Of course I'm putting down Gypsum, compost, and fertilizer afterwards and you may not want to go to that much trouble. It's just a hobby of mine that I push to the point of being excessive, at least that's what my wife says.

The 15-5-10 is a quick release fertilizer and is designed for a quick greenup. The problem is that it's only good for few weeks. You still need to apply the slow release that I mentioned. It'll make a big difference in a few months. Try going to a Houston Garden Center, they have all of the good fertiilzers like Nitro Phos, etc. DON"T BUY SCOTTS BRANDS. They have WAY to much salt content and over time will cause problems. HGC also has darn good deals on compost mixes, at least for the bagged variety. I think they want $11.00 for four fourty pound bags of any dirt they sell.

You've got to sod it... One thing that can be done for the remaining problem areas is to go get several bags of compost (humus, etc,) and place it in the problem areas. This will add organic matter to the soil, help break down the clay, and also make it much easier for the grass roots to spread. It also doesn't hurt to drop the compost on good areas either. Remember that if you get good sunlight, your St Augustine will spread quickly if cared for. Also, remember that St Augustine requires a lot of water, about an inch to an inch and a half per week, and it's much better to "deep water" (half an inch at a time) than to water daily. Another note: Right now is the perfect time to put down a 19-5-10 slow release fertilizer. This will help during the summer when the grass is under stress and will really make a difference in the St Augustine's growth rate. Check out the link below. It's great website from Texas ATM's Randy Lemmon. There's tons of good info. http://www.ktrh.com/pages/gardenline-lawn.html

Osteen and his character (or lack thereof) have nothing to do with my comment... The fact is that anything of a Christian nature whether it be political, religious, etc is met with smart A#$, and insulting comments all the time on HAIF, regardless of subject matter. I'm sick and tired of anti religious biggots like Attica and his "ILK" poisening this site, and quite frankly, would bet a thousand bucks that Mr Finch wouldn't run his mouth like he does face to face. If you would like to discuss some of these things in person, It's very easy to find me and the venues I play around town via my web site Mr Finch (see link below). No, I'm not threatening you, but would love to have a face to face chat to maybe explain to you the error of your ways. I'm no holy roller boys, but I do have my limits with classless wimps that constantly run their mouths about those of us who believe in God (or might be Republican). There are ways to discuss religion without throwing the baby out with the bath water. It's called having respect for each other, something that a few of you should consider. True that this thread is more benign than other religious ones, but it's still making HUGE assumptions about a man that happens to have a big church. What the hell do you know about him and his relationship to God? Maybe he's changing peoples lives for the postive. Of course according to Mr Finch, he's a moron since he's a Republican, which in turn probably means that many in his church must be as well, so nevermind. And No Mr Finch, I am not confusing religion and politics. Maybe you could read the first few posts of the thread before making that comment. Let me be clear that I am not a John Osteen fan and dissagree with quite a few things, however, I have enough respect for him not to make such broad brushed statements as you have above. Obviously, most will think I'm blowing this out of proportion and I probably am for this thread in particular, but this is the straw for me. I'm also pretty sure that at this point, this post will either be edited or taken down altogether. In the past I would have been concerned, but no more. Wayne if you'll still have me after this I'll still lurk, but my posting days at HAIF are over.

How could you dissapoint? Aside from a certain other member, your the poster child of religious offense here. Edit: Still can't see my posts when replying.

How did I know that there would be nothing but sarcasm before I opened this thread? One of the reasons that HAIF is dying is because of responses like those above. I'm sure I'll get a "lighten up" from someone, but these kind of comments are really offensive.

Geeeez Niche, your knowledge and research is rediculous. I mean that in a good way. Thanks for the numbers. Edit: Still not seeing my posts when entering a reply.

Yeah..

It seems that so many forget that "The master of the Telecaster" Albert Collins started in the Houston music scene. He could play a heck of a harp as well.