steve bossie

black locust. its very hard and rot resistant. coppies well. grows fast. and burns hot. one of the most durable rot resistant wood in the u.s. ive heard people compare it to coal for the heat put out. i have about a doz.  they grew 6t from seed.in 3 years in my short summers in poor soil. they also fix N so no need to fertilize..

i bought a seedling from a discount store 5 years ago. i planted it out near my cherry. i mulched it well the 1st few years and when i remembered gave it some 10-10-10. it not only survived but has grown about 10in around. it dies back when frost hits it but comes back in the spring. apparently our deep snow protects the roots from dying out completely. i harvested some for the 1st time this year and got quite a bit.  its on a slight slope in heavy clay in full sun. everything ive read about rosemary tells me it wont survive winter but it does here with utter neglect. im going to divide the plant to try in in other spots next spring.

i have many currants, gooseberry, cane fruit, juneberry, aronia, hazelnuts , honeyberries etc all growing on rocky clay soil in my yard. some are heavily shaded after 230pm. and produce fine. my grapes are the only thing that isnt fond of shade.

i grew up using spinning reels. they are simple to use and fix. i even use them for bigger fish like muskie and lake trout. if you buy quality reels and keep them lubed they will last a long time.

Joshua States wrote:

Nancy Reading wrote:It's late in the season, I suspect magnesium deficiency.

Do you intend to keep the tomatoes going much longer? A dose of Epsom salts is the quickest/available source for a pick you up. If the frosts are due soon I wouldn't (personally) bother as the plants will die then anyway.

I do plan on keeping them until they croak. We have below freezing temps every night, but the greenhouse is staying pretty warm, so the tomatoes and a couple of holdout peppers are still hanging in there.
My wife came home today with a quart bag of Epsom salt from one of her yoga students who has a fabulous garden. I'll see her tonight and ask how to apply it. If you have any suggested methods, I'm all ears.

 my father grew fabulous tomatoes. he used to dissolve a tbs of epsom salt in a gal. of warm water and wet the whole plant down with half of it. the rest in the soil. they usually bounced right back after that if it was a MG deficiency. it definitely cant hurt even if its not that.

mine have gone though  a doz 25 f frosts and i just harvested some greens off them for a stew tonight. had to swipe away the 2in. of snow that fell on them last night. still bright green. they have survived -40 winters no problem. potato onions are equally hardy coming from eastern europe and russia where they still grow them regularly.. i also grow bunching onions and they too are very hardy. once established you never need to grow regular onions again.

my grafted mtn. ash has set probably 60 pears on it this spring. it was absoulutely covered in blooms last week. trees about 8ft and growing well. its in a very wet spot and is growing on a old spruce stump. looking forward to eating my 1st tree ripened pears. it has nova, patten, bartlett, sierra, pineapple, and stacyville pears on it. every branch bloomed . now to thin in another 3 weeks.

i stopped planting comfrey and now are dividing and spreading my Canada red rhubarb. still gives plenty of green with 30in. wide leaves but also gives food and never spreads. i cut off the immature seed stalks so they don't bolt. i give them some composted manure every couple years and they are extremely productive. been selling my extra at farmers markets and i sell out quickly.

Bangor, Memorial Day weekend is good for me. my daughter may come as well. ive never been to Fedco so that would be cool but I'm open to others suggestions.