Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.

Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

George

On Mon, 30 May 2016 18:39:53 -0500, George Shirley
wrote:

Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.

Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

George


I am not jealous of your Texas heat or rain, but just a tad so of your
earlier producing garden.

So far all we are harvesting are asparagus (at an end) radishes and
mixed fancy-pants lettuce. Spinach and romaine will be up for grabs in
a week.

The prune plum has fewer than half a dozen fruits. Go figure. Donut
peach has fruit, but both of these fruit trees are turning into items
best admired for their spring bloom than production. IT is very
difficult to grow stone fruit here in NJ without a very strict spray
regimen, and I confess, if Safer doesn't take care of things, I just
let Mother Nature take its course.

We'll be fine with the blueberries this year, the blackberries are
covered in flowers The tomatoes - and there are many varieties this
year, as doing well, but we won't get fruit until July,

Long beans are coming up, cukes are coming up, acorn squash is fine,
an unknown, family-passed-down bean that a friend from Alabama sent
are coming up, too, as are some beans I picked up at Monticello..
Pepper, hot & sweet are taking their time, but I have patience. What
gardener doesn't?

Regular wax and green beans are not doing so well. It took a while for
the soil to heat up, so they are just popping through, and then they
were raided by a possum (said possum was have-a-hearted and taken 5+
miles away. I'd have let it stay if it hadn't decided to use the lower
garden as a toilet. We tried mouse traps to scare it off and that
worked for a bit, but it outsmarted us. Damn illegal to move it, but
by law we are only allowed to do on-site kill. Long story.)

Meanwhile, the flowers are glorious right now, with rhododendron,
peonies, roses, and irises going gangbusters.

Spring is a nice time for me in the garden and I am always filled with
hope - before the intense heat (remember, much of my gardening is done
in tubs) and the bugs, squirrels and birds get to things.

George Shirley wrote:

Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.




Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

i'm just planting ours today...


Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

hope these all grow grow grow!


The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

blueberries, hmm, acidic soil and plenty of
organic material in the soil, mulched on top,
perhaps the many rains are leaching all the acidity
away?


songbird

On 5/31/2016 9:18 AM, songbird wrote:
George Shirley wrote:

Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.




Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

i'm just planting ours today...


Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

hope these all grow grow grow!


The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

blueberries, hmm, acidic soil and plenty of
organic material in the soil, mulched on top,
perhaps the many rains are leaching all the acidity
away?


songbird

We acidify that blueberry patch every year, reckon we will have to wait
until the next bout of thunderstorms pass through, if they every do pass
through.

Just back from another round of testing for the heart, nuclear stress
test, no big problem with the nuke or the rest, will have to wait until
tomorrow for the results. Last time was in 2014 and came okay then.

Eight of us in a small room, all veterans and all geezers. Nice visit
but had to stay there to long to suit me. Got there at 0915, left around
1330, that was tiring. We old veterans were having a good time. One guy
was actually older than me, the rest were a few years behind my
enlistment in 1957. Three old sailors, including me, one lone Marine,
and some doggies. Wasn't to bad as we were all in a good mood. Hope I
won't have to go back for awhile.

George

On Monday, May 30, 2016 at 7:39:56 PM UTC-4, George Shirley wrote:
Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.

Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

George

My wife just harvested an unusually large number of broccoli heads in the past few days; many are now in the freezer. The pea pods are ready to pick and throw into the salads. I just planted the pumpkins and squashes a couple of days ago; 13 varieties in 21 hills. What we can't eat are wintertime treats for the sheep.

Paul
Maryland, North of Baltimore

On 05/30/2016 04:39 PM, George Shirley wrote:
Picked a small bucket of sweet chilies, eggplant, kale, two or three
sorts of lettuce and one lone cucumber. Had a good bit of the pickings
in our dinner salad this evening.

Black crowders are making like crazy and the vines have climbed the
trellis and I'm now working them in and out. Tomatoes are a bit slow in
ripening but that is expected with all the rain and overcast we've been
getting.

Figs are getting larger every day and it looks, I hope, to be a good
harvest. The pears are about the size of a quarter and looking good.
This will be our first pear harvest on that tree if they make it. The
coloring now is a russet and we hope they are tasty. Supposedly good for
eating out of hand and canning both. Tree looks really healthy but I'm
doing my best to keep pruning off the "rain" limbs so the tree stays
open to sunlight.

The blueberries aren't doing well at all, will have to do some research
to see why they aren't. The "wild" tomatoes that came up this spring are
putting on fruit and, today, we ate the first "Indigo" tomato we planted
earlier.

George

My stuff is just starting to sprout (from seeds I potted two weeks ago).
We are not suppose to transfer to our gardens till the second week
of June, do to freezes overnight.

But, I did notice I will have some purslane to pick this weekend. :-)

And I dumped two gallons of high test vinegar (20%) on the weeds, so
the tide has turned on them! The ones I sprayed look really pathetic.
Chuckle. The dandelions will be the last and hardest to kill. I
hope I don't have to dig every last on up with my axe!

Be careful posting this stuff. Folks may show up for dinner! :-)

Definition of a small town: when you visit your neighbors, you
have to lock your car doors, otherwise you will wind up with
a back seat full of zucchini.

My neighbors have no fear from me, black thumb and all. I hope
to turn the tide this year with my holes as pots, peat moss,
and weeds at the bottom of the holes. You know, there is a
certain enjoyment stuffing weeds down holes.

-T

I wish I had 1/20 of your and Songbirds gardening skills.

T wrote:
....
But, I did notice I will have some purslane to pick this weekend. :-)

ours is just starting to show up.


And I dumped two gallons of high test vinegar (20%) on the weeds, so
the tide has turned on them! The ones I sprayed look really pathetic.
Chuckle. The dandelions will be the last and hardest to kill. I
hope I don't have to dig every last on up with my axe!

they're breaking up that soil for you.
some people eat the greens or make coffee
substitute from the roasted roots. can't
say i've tried either of them. worms like
'em after i leave them to dry on the surface
for a few days/week.


Be careful posting this stuff. Folks may show up for dinner! :-)

Definition of a small town: when you visit your neighbors, you
have to lock your car doors, otherwise you will wind up with
a back seat full of zucchini.

My neighbors have no fear from me, black thumb and all. I hope
to turn the tide this year with my holes as pots, peat moss,
and weeds at the bottom of the holes. You know, there is a
certain enjoyment stuffing weeds down holes.

for sure! some i have to bury deeply enough and put a layer
or two of cardboard or craft paper or newspaper over them to
keep them from coming back up too easily. i had a whole
five gallon bucket of old onions and garlic that needed to be
buried the other day. prime worm food...


songbird

On 06/05/2016 06:11 AM, songbird wrote:
The dandelions will be the last and hardest to kill. I
hope I don't have to dig every last on up with my axe!


they're breaking up that soil for you.

Ha! I wanted to dig a hole and had a dandelion dead in the
middle of the target. So, I axes an eight inch square around
it about two inches deep. When I pulled up the piece, the
the root threaded though it like a needle.

So, I repeated about five more times at about an inch deep
at a time (that is all I could beat through). Each time
it just threaded through the hole.

I finally got the root out. The root didn't do a thing to the
soil around it. The whole experience was a bit amusing.

Oh yes, I found that swinging an axe actually helps my blood
sugar. (I am one of the 20% that exercise backfires on
T2 Diabetics.) So, the weeds now tremble in fear from me.
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

In article , T wrote:
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

Get you a mattock.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by
Please don't feed the trolls. Killfile and ignore them so they will go away.

T wrote:
....
I finally got the root out. The root didn't do a thing to the
soil around it. The whole experience was a bit amusing.

how did that hole get there? dandelion
might have drilled it for you, but once that
root is down there then worms will follow
the root and perhaps another plant will get
in there.

those tap roots are what i was talking about.


Oh yes, I found that swinging an axe actually helps my blood
sugar. (I am one of the 20% that exercise backfires on
T2 Diabetics.) So, the weeds now tremble in fear from me.
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

i did a few hundred deep knee bends today
picking strawberries. i'm sure i will
be feeling it tomorrow...


songbird

On 06/08/2016 02:56 PM, Ecnerwal wrote:
In article , T wrote:
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

Get you a mattock.


Sort of like a pick axe. Hmmm. THahnk you!

-T

"Cats ... vices to live by" ???? You do realize that
Tofu -- colorless, flavorless, gelatinous goo, that rots in
your stomach and gives you gas -- is God's punishment for
humans domesticating cats ????? :')

On 06/08/2016 05:54 PM, songbird wrote:
those tap roots are what i was talking about.

I was hoping purslane would accomplish the same thing.
parts of my yard are not glowing red, so maybe a bumper
crop?

On 06/08/2016 05:54 PM, songbird wrote:
T wrote:
...
I finally got the root out. The root didn't do a thing to the
soil around it. The whole experience was a bit amusing.

how did that hole get there? dandelion
might have drilled it for you, but once that
root is down there then worms will follow
the root and perhaps another plant will get
in there.

those tap roots are what i was talking about.

That is one tight fit. And once the worms get down there
(root has to die first), what will the eat? Decomposed
sandstone? Rocks?


Oh yes, I found that swinging an axe actually helps my blood
sugar. (I am one of the 20% that exercise backfires on
T2 Diabetics.) So, the weeds now tremble in fear from me.
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

i did a few hundred deep knee bends today
picking strawberries. i'm sure i will
be feeling it tomorrow...


Plantain herb will help fix that.


songbird


Oh, in case I forget, death to weeds!

-T

On Thu, 9 Jun 2016 12:08:28 -0700, T wrote:

On 06/08/2016 02:56 PM, Ecnerwal wrote:
In article , T wrote:
By the way, an axe is not a real effective way to remove
weeds, but it SURE is cathartic.

Get you a mattock.


Sort of like a pick axe. Hmmm. THahnk you!

-T

Great tool. I swear by it.

T wrote:
On 06/08/2016 05:54 PM, songbird wrote:
those tap roots are what i was talking about.

I was hoping purslane would accomplish the same thing.
parts of my yard are not glowing red, so maybe a bumper
crop?

hope so, any ground cover is better
than bare dirt if you're not using the space,
but if you can get something else going there
instead (buckwheat or winter rye are both
excellent) it's much better. also looks like
we have a good crop starting up of purselane
this season.


songbird