My wonderful Mac Book Pro (vintage 2008) is expected to give up the ghost at anytime. I won’t be writing any more posts or special “100 list” emails until I get a new computer — and reprogram everything — and learn to use the new one.
Hopefully, all that won’t take long — but I would say the best I could do is 2 weeks and if all doesn’t fall into place — it could be a lot longer.
I think I have it figured out how to get my emails on Bill’s computer — so feel free to email me. (Hopefully, I really do have it figured out.)
Hope things are going great in your garden. It’s been a wonderful spring –BUT everything is slow growing.
From the way my peas are not germinating — I may experience the first crop failure for peas EVER. They are always the prettiest things in the garden in the spring and it’s just not going to be the same if they don’t pull through. Not to mention that we depend on them in the winter.
On the bright side — the coolness and the great rains have allowed perennials sufficient time to grow and look great before the dry, hot weather starts.
No matter what the variables — there is always something nice to offset the not-so-nice.
Wishing you a wonderful Spring!
Warmly,
Theresa
Just an interesting note. This spring I have learned how delicious the flower buds and stems of my bolting kale and collards are. They are tender and wonderful cooked or raw.
I ate the kale and collards all winter and now this surprise.(to me anyway)
Good luck with the computer.
Theresa,
Good luck with the computer change over. I will miss your postings during the time while you are away, as I look forward to reading them. All is well here in Florida. My garden is in full swing, I already have a lot of veggies ready to harvest. I had a productive winter getting ready for spring, even build two raised beds and rented two plot at the community garden besides my own garden here at the house, so I have been a busy girl. Enjoy the spring and hope to see your next posting soon.
Regards,
Karen
Theresa, I hope you get back up and running with relative ease. I’ll miss your cheerful, encouraging posts while you’re ‘away’.
Thanks to your common sense advice and enthusiasm, I didn’t give up on my vegetable garden, and am feeling more comfortable & confident in what I’m doing now. Even though we’re off to a slow start, we always rejoice in nature’s bounty and balance. Happy gardening!
Just get another Mac, the transition will be seamless. Since switching over to them in the late 90’s, our family uses nothing else. You’ll be back up and running in a matter of several minutes. And if you get stuck with a question, just ask the Mac people. Easy peazy. Look forward to seeing your next post.
Rob Mac
I planted four long double rows of peas this year and two whole rows didn’t have one pea germinate. I was stunned. I’ve got flowers on the others though so I should get a few.
Sorry to hear about your computer problems. Hope you get it sorted out soon.
My special lily is growing well. Just thought you would want to know. (smiles from me.)
Carol
I’m on Bill’s little Dell computer. (Bill’s doesn’t use a computer very much — so thus — a pc rather than a Mac.)
Anyway — what a wonderful surprise to see comments this morning! Thank you!
Beppy – I’m going out this afternoon and pick some flower buds and stems from my Russian Kale and have them with dinner.
I guess you sauteed them? I never thought about eating the buds. Thanks for the tip.
Karen — Sounds like you’re doing great with your gardens. It’s wonderful that you already have a lot of veggies to harvest. I’ve been eating lettuce and other greens of course — but that’s about it.
I think for most of us who live further north than Florida — things have been cool and slow. I got an email last night from Stephanie (a reader in the mid west). She just put her tomatoes in the garden thinking it was safe and now the weather is calling for 30s and possible snow! Keep us posted Karen on how you progress and how the community gardens are doing as well. I enjoyed hearing from you.
Shelia — I was very glad to hear that you are feeling more comfortable and confident about what you are doing in your garden. It seems no matter how long we garden its easy to think — when something goes wrong — that it’s because of something we didn’t do. But in the majority of cases — it’s probably just another variable of nature that causes thing to be different than what we might want. Keep up the good work!
Rob — I agree — once you use a Mac — nothing else will do. They are sooooooo GREAT! I just wish I knew more about computers in general. Even in the descriptions of the product — there is so much I don’t understand. My old Mac was so “comfortable” and I don’t look forward to reprograming etc. but I guess I’ll get through it. I’ve been trying to tell myself all morning that this is an opportunity to learn more and be better at what I do. And I know it is — I just feel a bit apprehensive about all the new stuff. Your comment was so encouraging and I appreciate it very much!
Carol – That is so interesting (sad though) about your peas. I have heard this from several people. Always makes me wonder if something happened to the crop grown for seed that is unaccounted for. I don’t know how wide spread this is — but it would be interesting to know how many others are having the same problem. Thanks for letting me know and also for letting me know about your lily. Let me know how you do with your knew island bed this year.
Quick Garden Update
I’m off to the garden to pick lettuce for lunch.
I’ve got 9 tomato plants in already.
Onions doing ok — but not as far along as in prior years at this time.
I’m transplanting some peppers today — although I still think its a bit cold.
I’m backing up everything because I want to make sure I don’t have any total losses.
Even with the peas — I pregerminated some and filled in the empty spaces. I don’t know that that will solve the problem. Even the pregerminated ones have not come up.
Also I read something that indicated your don’t get a lot from pregerminated pea seeds. Well — we’ll see.
Oh – one more note — I cut some of my winter rye with my hand cycle. SO EXCITING! And to use Rob’s phrase — cutting the rye was easy peazy!!
I’m also letting some mature and go to seed so I can gather seed and then use the biomass.
As usual — this year is different and not without its share of problems, but I’m looking forward to seeing how things do and to learning lots of things.
I have lots to share with you if I ever get settled enough to write them down.
Thanks for your encouragement and updates.
Theresa
Theresa, You might try poking your finger into the row where the peas were–You may find that there is a tunnel running right down the row, where a vole has eaten each pea. That happened to me once.
Good luck w/ your computer!
I know what you mean about voles Tom. I’ve got lots of those critters. Trapped about 30 the first of the year, but there are still lots out there. I checked the blank spots for peas when I planted the pregerminated ones. Many were there — just not germinated.
I ordered a computer today. Should be here by end of week. Hope I can figure out how to set stuff up. Thanks for the good luck wishes. I sure will need them when it comes to setting up the new machine. 🙂
Nice to hear from you Tom.
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
I was just wondering where you were. Thought perhaps you were busy working on your book. Hint, hint!
Looking foward to future posts and emails from you with all the great information you’re so generous to share with us.
Sharon
Oh No!! about the computer. I will miss having your updates and the common sense and helpful information I always get from each one.
I converted over to your lettuce growing method and it is wonderful!! Much better than direct seeding and much easier to do succession planting. I made a raised bed out of an old wooden bookcase that I can rig up a shade cloth cover for so that I can (maybe) continue to have some lettuce through the hotter weather that will be coming for Florida. I have grown some of Johnny’s summer lettuces before and they pretty good. This raised bed is full of compost and a bunch of leaf mold and so far things are going well.
My tomatoes are BEAUTIFUL so far this year. It was worth the major battle of getting them under and out from under my makeshift green house (two big & really heavy double paned windows suspended on straw bales) because of the continual and extreme fluctuations in my zone 8a temperatures which alternated between 27 and 80 degrees from Feb on to now. We had 45 degrees just the other night! But I have 15 tomato plants and 9 different types of heirlooms. All of them have little tomatoes on them.
Fortex beans are slow but growing. My peppers and cucumbers are a totally different story. And I have just now thought about your grow bag idea for the eggplants. I think I will try digging them up and putting them in those as they are being ravaged, as usual.
We will miss you. Come back to us soon as possible
Thanks for that encouragement Sharon. That book will take me while but I’ll get it done. The first one will most likely be just basic info. I think it’s really needed for folks you have never gardened before and feel like its overwhelming.
I’ll be so glad to get my computer. Hopefully I won’t have any trouble recovering all my notes etc. Keep your finger crossed for me !
That was a WONDERFUL garden report Cynthia! I am delighted that things are looking so good and that you’ve been able to use some of the info on TMG to get you there.
I miss my regular routine of writing for TMG, but am trying to look at this as an opportunity to “refresh” myself and write even more meaningful posts for you in the future. It helps me MORE THAN I CAN EXPRESS to know that you are reading, learning, and benefiting from TMG and that you miss the posts when you don’t hear from me. Thanks for telling me!
Raining today. Grabbing my umbrella and heading for the garden to pick lettuce and spring onions for lunch!
Theresa