On 3/18/2016 4:17 PM, Derald wrote:
George Shirley wrote:

Had the two of them side by side in Louisiana, both useful trees.
I very much would like to have a sassafras tree but they are rare
in these parts. In my youth, when my toes were still webbed, we had
trees in the wetlands that closely resembled what I'm seeing on the w3
but I can't say they're the same or whether any are left. Suppose I
should get out more. We use filé infrequently enough that I usually
just buy a new bottle and compost the old. It'd be nice to pick and dry
for myself as with the bay. I'm not so sure a sassafras tree could
maintain here; too dry and sandy. However a magnolia tree transplanted
in during the late '70's, not my doing and for which I had low
expectations, now shades the garden for most of the year so....

Our property in Louisiana was on an ancient sand dune, probably made
when the Gulf of Mexico was a sea lapping against the high land to the
north and east. Had to dig down two feet of really nice soil, mostly
from plants dying for many years, to get to the sand. There were lots of
clam shells mixed into the sand. We were actually at the highest point
of land in the city at 12 feet above sea level. Pretty much it was toss
a seed in and jump back. In addition we amended the soil with compost,
including cleaning out a few cow barns for friends. They thought we were
such nice people to help, we felt really good for getting several pick
up loads of composted cow manure. Over the 22 years we lived in that
house the gardens were amended at least three times a year with home
compost plus the cow manure. Never took any horse manure, to many drugs
go into those critters that I would not want in my vegetables.

Had a pear tree, a Japanese persimmon, a peach, two plums, and a very
nice kumquat tree, all fed compost on a annual timing. Lots of good
fruit. This place is two inches of sand on top of five feet of gumbo
clay. I don't think I will live long enough to amend so, therefore, the
vegetable garden is raised bed. Works for us but makes me wish we had
bought a house on real earth. Builders did it this way to keep us out of
paying for federal flood insurance.

We have a kumquat, a fig, and a pear here but we have to amend them
nearly monthly to keep them growing. I'm not digging through five feet
of clay to help my plants, don't have a machine that can do it either.
Emptied the compost barrel the other day. The barrel got full so we just
turned it twice a day and left it alone. About a quarter of the barrel
was really good compost when we opened it. Nice, smelled like a good
loam, put some in the trench where I planted the black crowders and then
we potholed it with the tomatoes, etc. It just takes so long to make the
stuff. I think I mentioned the pear tree is totally full of wee pears
and blooms. It's going to kill my soul to have to thin out the pears but
it will be necessary to get a decent crop. Plus will fertilize at least
once a month until harvest.

Waiting on rain again here.