The point has been well made here about not only the taste, but also the surviability of various fruit varieties in different locales. For ex, you CAN grow an Apricot near Atlanta, but would rarely ever get any blossoms to survive the late frosts. There are so many variables that impact flavor and survivability. If you try GA apples, then a Carolina apple, then a VA apple you will see the differnce both in flavor and in how long they will store. Some of the old regional varities such as the original Winesap are delicious, but many, such as the Ben Davis, taste like sawdust and were grown primarily because they were hard as a rock and could stand up to the earlier, longer shipping methods. Too, the climate changes as do pest problems...hence GA and South Carolina having really fallen in the number of peach orchards. Rootstocks that will succeed in one part of the country would never live in the heat, humidity, and soils of the south. Mosty fruits rioen in accordardance with the climate, hence California North Coast Grapes always making far better Zinfandels than any you will find in the SE. Pears are notorious for fireblight in the south, which is why you so often see the rock hard Keiffer. Other than the Warren pear, few will thrive here despite the best of efforts. In NC, Lee Calhoun is an excellent resource, as is Jim Lawson IN Ball Ground GA. There are others. Just because an apple is an old variety, doesn't mean it is superior, but there are many old U.S. AND European Varieties. One beautifully printed guide is the classic...Apples of NY. The fun is in the discovery and the occasional failure. I discovered scrumpy and real hard cider in the west country of England, Perry in Normandy, and Kreik in Belgium. BUT, also lost an entire orchard of hand grafted trees due to my absence another year when a little beatle in NC destroyed everything. Here in GA, dug up some six year old dwarfs only to discover that there were no roots thanks to the GA clay and resident pests. If you want successful fruit trees in the south, you do need to spray.

Trudi, Cecilia lives close to the location and posted some suggestions which I have quoted here: **************************** The closest hotel to the park is a Quality Inn a mile or two from the park, just off the I-95 exit. It used to be a Holiday Inn Express, but changed hands and was renovated a few years ago. It has an Italian restaurant adjacent to it, which just opened (I haven't even tried it yet!) . The reviews I've read about the hotel on the internet are mixed - some folks say it's a dump, others have praised it. Its address is 1401 Bloomfield Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21227. There are several nice hotels in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, which is about 5 miles from the park site - I don't know what your budget is, though, and some of them are rather expensive. If you stayed downtown, however, you could enjoy some of the nearby tourist sites - Harborplace, the National Aquarium, etc. Another option would be to stay at one of the hotels near BWI Airport. The park is only a 10 minute drive or so from there (I even know a back way that avoids major highways). ************************ Balmer is a nice town and a day in the interharbor full of nice stuff. I was just at the aquarium with the kids last weekend; you can buy tickets online. There are many nice resturants we ate at McCormick and Shmidt. Also, if you like baseball Camden yards is also walking distance and tickets are cheap. Greg

Hello All, I discovered Campari tomatoes at my grocer's several years ago and liked the little fellas a lot. Contrary to what people say, I do put mine in the fridge all the time and find they last very well and longer than if I would keep them on the countertop. They seem to develop a little tang, which I love in a tomato, when they are in the fridge, especially when they are cut. So many people seem to like sugar-sweet tomatoes and I never have because I like the sweet/tangy real tomato flavor. My favorite sandwich is ham on toast with mayonnaise, lettuce and tomatoes and that acid bite is great in that combination, IMO. Anyway, that's not what I am posting about--Just wanted to share that with y'all. I read posts about fermenting tomatoes to get the seeds. What does that mean and why is it done? Can't one just let the tomato dry out and then get the seeds out of it to plant? That's where "volunteer" plants have come from, but there must be an advantage to the fermentation method of getting seeds, so I'd like to understand it because I'd like to try growing the Camparis from seeds from the ones I buy at the store. Also, does anyone know if the Rutgers tomatoes will grow in South Louisiana's climate where it's bug and disease heaven? I was born and raised in NJ and remember when my big brother raised Rutgers tomatoes and they were so good. (He went to Rutgers. We lived in East Orange waaaaayyyy back when.) I'd like to be able to have a list of tomatoes with rich tomato flavor and a great balance between sweet and acidic tang. So many seeds I see advertised are for super sweet tomatoes, these days. Right now, I have Celebrity growing and a Creole plant, which I've read, here, can be any kind of tomato, which baffles me, but I'm trying it anyway. I have a Sweet 100, which I got before I found this forum where it says that they split in the heat and humidity. I'm going to move its container where it will not get full sun all day and see how it does there. What does the F1, F2, etc. mean? I appreciate all the information on this forum and wish everyone a great tomato season, in fact a great all-round gardening season this year. :) Thanks, Vivian

I've never seen root rot on a jaboticaba. Mine, which are in ground of course, are in the lowest point in my entire property. There have been some multi-day rain events that have left standing water in this area for a full 10 days without any root issues. During dry season, I'll let the hose run completely flooding the area. That doesn't leave any standing water for more than a day, but I usually have to do it a day or two in a row before flowering commences. Good luck. Harry