Glenn i read the description at Nourse and I'm very excited if they are indeed zone 4 hardy. I'm already deciding where to build a 20-30 foot row with probably a few plants of each. I would be curious to know if they had a spreading habit similar to a raspberry or keep the normal compact growth at the base of blackberries. Micheal I already mowed my strawberries last weekend and plan on mulching them with leaves probably in a few weeks or when we start getting heavy frosts. Could be a while as we had 85-95 degree weather last week. But it rained yesterday and it's very cloudy so i think fall has finally come here. The only fallbearing raspberries i have are two rows of Fall Gold yellow raspberries, which I'm not too impressed with but if the yellow jackets were not so bad i could probably pick a few gallons before it frosts hard. I'm also considering not cutting the Fall Golds down to the ground this fall/winter. I may let them overwinter and just cut off the top parts that are fruiting now this winter. Or maybe just cut down one row all the way, and the other the new way. If i get a decent early crop in June/July maybe the yellow jackets won't be a problem. Also i have a row of raspberries that were labeled Caroline at my local farmer's market which had a small crop of say 2 cups this summer off the small canes that overwintered. I thought it was a summer raspberry when i bought it. I didn't realize Caroline was a fallbearing variety until i did some reading online this past couple months. But so far there have been no blossoms so I am questioning whether it was labeled wrong at the market or if it a late variety not suited for my area. I'll try to get a picture up of the canes to see if anyone can notice similarities or differences between my "Caroline" raspberries and any others who truly have this variety.

You can wrap trunks in layers newspapers or cardboard and leave then that way for the winter to protect the trunk. Severe frost use army blankets. I doubt we will have another frost like last year for a while. Watering the day before should be done in the morning as the water's purpose is to help the soil absorb and store the heat to let off in the evening under the frost cloth. Then at worst, to help prevent the roots from freezing if the protection fails in the early morning as the sun starts to peek up by its exothermic release as the water freezes. You should pull all organic mulch 4' away from the tree to allow the soil to soak up the sun in the day, and then cover with frost cloth before the sun goes down. Plus it can get too hot under the frost cloth in some times of the winter if you leave it on all day (like you work). I have been toying with the idea that you may instead be able to put a compost pile ringed around the tree, soak it and let the heat generated under a frost cloth keep the tree protected for days.

Interesting information. Me too Phil! I grew up like you, no indoor plumbing and it was the norn in our rural area. Only 'townies' had indoor plumbing in the 50's early 60's The farmers had running water to the barns,with windmills and electric pumping, but homes didn't get it till later. We all had electric and old wall crank telephones with telephone operators for other than our party lines. Those were the good old days?!? In a way they were. We had to find ways to entertain ourselves as kids. Nature was our haunt with trips to the woods, making forts, making boats to float down the bigger creek. Catching tadpols in the spring at the swanp, fishing and raising wild animals. Mink, raccoon, hawks, fox, pegions and groundhogs were a few my brothers and I raised. my sons never got to do the things I did as a child. For one thing we lived in town as they grew and didn't have access to the area I grew up in. I did take them there many times berry picking and hicking but we never got to spend the time I did. My family hunted and so did I but we don't even own a gun at our house. That's what happens when you marry a 'townie'! Connie

Taigen, You have a lovely array of herbs, and you are so wise to be touching, smelling and eating them. Rosemary, French tarragon, marjoram, basil, thyme, oregano and verbena can be dried successfully. Cut stems early in the morning, as soon as the dew is off. Gather several (4-6) stems and tie them together, then hang the bunch out of direct sunlight and where there is good air circulation. Depending on the herb and the amount of humidity in the air, the herbs will be crisp and dry in one to two weeks. Strip the leaves off and store in an airtight container out of direct sun and heat. Do not crush or pulverize the leaves--that offers more surface area for loss of flavor. It is always best to crush herb leaves just before using. Basil also freezes well--I chop basil leaves very fine, add just enough vegetable oil to make a paste, and freeze in ice cube trays, then store the "basil balls" in a freezer bag. Chives freeze well--just cut, put on a piece of waxed paper, and when frozen, put in a freezer bag. Sorry, I don't know about summer savory--it dies out fast here in Texas and we only grow winter savory. Summer sage? Don't know about that, either. We have culinary sage (grey-green leaves, slightly fuzzy, wonderful aroma) and it dries beautifully. Herbs can become addictive--an herb gardener always has to have "just one more herb" in the garden!