with plenty of snow and cold this past week i think today
was the fourth day in a row we had to shovel and the most
snowfall in a single event (about 8 inches or about 15cm).

this morning i got out there early to shovel the snow
as i had to run some errands and we were also hoping to
get the propane tank refilled.

as it turned out the propane truck went past me as i was
heading into town for the errands and the driver was said
to have been happy that we shovelled the pathway for him
to get to the tank to refill it.

the sun was very bright on the snow and we've had so
much snow that tha back yard is pretty well topped up.
this afternoon i was looking at it and could not see a
single animal track anyplace.

this evening's forecast is supposed to be down to -8F
or about -22C. that will be the coldest evening so far if
it actually turns out.

in the meantime i'm working on some indoor projects
and starting to think ahead to spring planting.

aside from the various beans i'd like to try out and
all the bean projects i have going i'm also hoping to
see if i can get some adzuki beans to grow and to cross
breed.

i want to plant more edible pod peas early to increase
the production and enjoyment. i sure liked the large
pods i had last year and hope to expand my dry pea supply
of those too for future replantings. they were good and
crunchy and grew so easy and gave plenty of seeds. that
has not been common in the past so to find one that grows
here was a great find.

as for indoor projects i've been trying to get my
photography stuff set up and going and that is coming
along, but still a ways to go. i did improve one aspect
of the whole process by getting a colorimeter and changing
some display settings which have helped actually show
more of the colors. still though i think in the next
few years i'll probably step up to a better monitor as
this one is not as good as it might be.

are you keeping warm? got any new plans for the coming
season?

here i think mostly we'll be planting about the same
kinds of plants as before with only a few exceptions.
we've found a mix and schedule of plants that works for
us so i don't want to mess with success too much.


songbird

wrote:
songbird wrote:

are you keeping warm?
Not a problem. Early afternoon temp in low 60s under unifgorm overcast
with scattered very light rain down here in the "sunshine" state.

heh, overnight low was -8F, so we're going to be 15 degrees
warmer than that this evening.


got any new plans for the coming
season?
Nope. just hoping to get some of the garden planted before too
late. But there's always okra....

okra. it seems that the most popular way for people to eat
it is friend, is that true with you too?


songbird

songbird wrote:
....
it is friend, is that true with you too?

obviously meant "fried", my eyes are tired these days and i'm
not catching the typoes as well as i used to.


songbird

On Wednesday, February 17, 2021 at 5:46:21 PM UTC-5, songbird wrote:
songbird wrote:
...
it is friend, is that true with you too?
obviously meant "fried", my eyes are tired these days and i'm
not catching the typoes as well as i used to.


songbird

It's been colder than usual here in Maryland but no single digits, just days on end below freezing. My wife has been working in the greenhouse for about an hour a day, planting seeds in flats to get ready for spring. We've had more citrus fruit than usual this winter. Otherwise, just waiting for spring.

Paul

Pavel314 wrote:
....
It's been colder than usual here in Maryland but no single digits, just days on end below freezing. My wife has been working in the greenhouse for about an hour a day, planting seeds in flats to get ready for spring. We've had more citrus fruit than usual this winter. Otherwise, just waiting for spring.

dirt therapy is always good for the soul even in the middle of
winter.


songbird

songbird wrote:
songbird wrote:
...

obviously meant "fried", my eyes are tired these days and i'm
not catching the typoes as well as i used to.


Being from Texas I've eaten a lot okra in my life. I do love fried okra,
but I think my favorite might actually be pickled. It's hard to say. I
also really like it right off the plant. It's great cooked whole and
salted in a little oil in a skillet. About the only way I don't really
like it is boiled. It gets so slimey. I know you rinse it, but that's
too much effort.

rust buckett wrote:
....
Being from Texas I've eaten a lot okra in my life. I do love fried okra,
but I think my favorite might actually be pickled. It's hard to say. I
also really like it right off the plant. It's great cooked whole and
salted in a little oil in a skillet. About the only way I don't really
like it is boiled. It gets so slimey. I know you rinse it, but that's
too much effort.

i don't really seem to mind it about any way with fried
being the most popular to many people. since i can eat
oatmeal i can handle a bit of okra if it is cooked up and
a bit slimy. doesn't bother me. we're not much for
growing it here ourselves so most experience i have with
it is remote. my brother grows some if he manages to put
in a garden.


songbird

On 2/17/2021 5:04 PM, wrote:
songbird wrote:

okra. it seems that the most popular way for people to eat
it is friend, is that true with you too?
yep.


I should check in here more often ... we've just came out of a
sub-zero spell mixed with a foot of snow . Both unusual for this area .
I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting through my seeds and
planting 66 cells of assorted veggies for planting in late April . The
rest of the stuff I have planned will also come from my stock of saved
seeds . I've heard that seeds are one of those things that are in high
demand and getting hard to find . If I buy anything it will be onion
sets and maybe some seed potatoes .
--
Snag
In 1775, the British demanded we give them our guns.
We shot them

In article , says...


I should check in here more often ... we've just came out of a
sub-zero spell mixed with a foot of snow . Both unusual for this area .
I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting through my seeds and
planting 66 cells of assorted veggies for planting in late April . The
rest of the stuff I have planned will also come from my stock of saved
seeds . I've heard that seeds are one of those things that are in high
demand and getting hard to find . If I buy anything it will be onion
sets and maybe some seed potatoes .



As I only plant a few things other than about a dozen or so tomatoes I
have been ordering my seeds from this place for the last few years.
Usually around December.

Most of the things I plant are some hybrids that I can not save the
seeds from and know what will actually come up if anything.

https://tomatogrowers.com/

I started ordering the seeds because I could not find some of them or
plants locally whenI wanted them. I now have 6 tomato plants up a few
inches that were planted near the first of Feb. I will put some more
seeds in cups in about another week. They should go in the ground about
the 3rd week in April as I am in the middle of NC.

Snag wrote:
On 2/17/2021 5:04 PM, wrote:
songbird wrote:

okra. it seems that the most popular way for people to eat
it is friend, is that true with you too?
yep.


I should check in here more often ... we've just came out of a
sub-zero spell mixed with a foot of snow . Both unusual for this area .
I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting through my seeds and
planting 66 cells of assorted veggies for planting in late April . The
rest of the stuff I have planned will also come from my stock of saved
seeds . I've heard that seeds are one of those things that are in high
demand and getting hard to find . If I buy anything it will be onion
sets and maybe some seed potatoes .

check around for seed libraries and seed saving organisations
or people in your area. our local library has one going now, but
i'm not sure how many people are using it. i need to check it
next time i go into town to see if anything i've donated is out
and needs to be restocked.

or start your own seed swap. the large one that i've
attended and given away a lot of bean seeds and other things
has been cancelled this year so that's sad, but hopefully it
will be back next year.


songbird

On 2/22/2021 1:15 PM, Ralph Mowery wrote:
In article , says...


I should check in here more often ... we've just came out of a
sub-zero spell mixed with a foot of snow . Both unusual for this area .
I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting through my seeds and
planting 66 cells of assorted veggies for planting in late April . The
rest of the stuff I have planned will also come from my stock of saved
seeds . I've heard that seeds are one of those things that are in high
demand and getting hard to find . If I buy anything it will be onion
sets and maybe some seed potatoes .



As I only plant a few things other than about a dozen or so tomatoes I
have been ordering my seeds from this place for the last few years.
Usually around December.

Most of the things I plant are some hybrids that I can not save the
seeds from and know what will actually come up if anything.

https://tomatogrowers.com/

I started ordering the seeds because I could not find some of them or
plants locally whenI wanted them. I now have 6 tomato plants up a few
inches that were planted near the first of Feb. I will put some more
seeds in cups in about another week. They should go in the ground about
the 3rd week in April as I am in the middle of NC.



I prefer to grow heirloom varieties , just because they almost always
breed true . I'm also looking at the 3rd week of April or so , weather
permitting .
--
Snag
In 1775, the British demanded we give them our guns.
We shot them

On 2/22/2021 5:54 PM, songbird wrote:
Snag wrote:
On 2/17/2021 5:04 PM, wrote:
songbird wrote:

okra. it seems that the most popular way for people to eat
it is friend, is that true with you too?
yep.


I should check in here more often ... we've just came out of a
sub-zero spell mixed with a foot of snow . Both unusual for this area .
I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting through my seeds and
planting 66 cells of assorted veggies for planting in late April . The
rest of the stuff I have planned will also come from my stock of saved
seeds . I've heard that seeds are one of those things that are in high
demand and getting hard to find . If I buy anything it will be onion
sets and maybe some seed potatoes .

check around for seed libraries and seed saving organisations
or people in your area. our local library has one going now, but
i'm not sure how many people are using it. i need to check it
next time i go into town to see if anything i've donated is out
and needs to be restocked.

or start your own seed swap. the large one that i've
attended and given away a lot of bean seeds and other things
has been cancelled this year so that's sad, but hopefully it
will be back next year.


songbird


We usually have a seed swap meet here in February , but last year we
didn't , probably not this year either . That's OK though , I have seed
for all the stuff we usually plant . I did plant some stuff this year
that I usually don't , like 6 cells of Osage Orange . It's a very useful
plant around a survivalist homestead ... not that we're exactly
survivalists , but I gathered the seeds a couple of years ago just to
see if I could get it to grow .
--
Snag
In 1775, the British demanded we give them our guns.
We shot them