Dear David, Welcome to our list. It's nice to have another Northern California member. And thanks for introducing yourself. Not everyone who subscribes to our list introduces themselves and then we never know where they live or what they grow. I was curious about your term "seed incubator". What technique are you using for starting seeds? I was amused by Jim McKenney's response to your introduction and his reference to growing in pots as being " just the thing for those gardeners who have reached the stage where digging trenches in the open ground is simply out of the question." It seems to me that it all depends on whether you can limit the number of pots you have whether or not this is easier. I started with just a few pots, but when I started growing more and more things from seed the number of pots escalated until maintaining all these pots has become a burden, especially certain times of the year. I'm not ready to chuck them out yet, but keep wondering about my sanity. Still, I don't have as many pots as some unnamed friends. I know a couple people who have more than 3,000 pots. It's all relative. Still there are some things that are so much happier in pots when you can more easily pay attention to what they need to do well. Adding them to the garden often means you are biding them farewell. Mary Sue Mary Sue Ittner California's North Coast Wet mild winters with occasional frost Dry mild summers