On 1/31/2015 7:28 AM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Fri, 30 Jan 2015 22:32:57 -0600, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

Boron Elgar wrote:

It is odd to direct sow here in northern NJ, but seed is cheap, and
after the first experiment, I have continued it the last 5 years or
so.

Then this starts daily happening in late July and continues until
frost in October.

http://i57.tinypic.com/11rdkp5.jpg

Nice ! Not exactly what we're looking for though . This year I'm trying to
maximize the type of tomato that we use a lot of for cooking . There will
also be slicers and cherry tomatoes , but the biggest portion will be San
Marzanos along with a few Romas . We're growing for later use , not only the
tomatoes but several other veggies - green beans , squashes , peppers ,
berries and other fruits will all be preserved for next winter .


The kids have all fledged, and there is just so much we can consume,
even over the winter, so I have cut back on some of what I grow.
And except for that bed up front, the rest of the food gardening is
done in tubs. We are critter-ridden, so using large tubs on the deck
is the best way to actually reap the harvest.
Ours fledged years ago, they are approaching their middle fifties now.
Of course we have grands in their early thirties so we still plant a lot
and share plus trade with neighbors for their excess. We find deer
tracks behind our fence but no predation due to a six foot board fence,
required by the HOA. Lots of empty land behind us but is now filling up
with more subdivisions, newest is 300 homes going in.


The blueberry bushes and the asparagus in down in the back garden, but
they are fenced/netted. Actually that tomato patch up front is fenced
and netted, too. The netting gets put on when the tulips start to show
in the spring, or the deer would have them for midnight snacks. The
deer cannot get into the back, but the groundhogs, possums, raccoons
and squirrels seem to have given me top honors on dining. I am the
first garden off a 150 ace woods, so I am the appetizer, I think.

Boron

Sounds like time for a little archery practice or maybe an air gun for
the smaller critters. Groundhogs, raccoons, and squirrels are good meat
in this part of Texas. My mother always had me catch possums alive and
then put them up in a cage for a couple of weeks to "purge" them. Never
liked possum myself but the others were okay. Might try one of those
water guns that operates automatically. Friend in Ohio got one and the
deer eventually quit coming around.