Really good tip, Gail! One thing I noticed is that since I can't flush my indoor plants (in winter) as thoroughly when I water as I can/do my outdoor plants in summer, I get some tendency for an upward creep in pH (shows up as a pH-induced Fe [iron] deficiency). Because of that, I add enough white vinegar to lower the pH of my irrigation water to 6.0. I use 12-15 drops of FP 9-3-6 per gallon of water, along with the vinegar, every time I water. Keep in mind this works very well with fast soils that drain well and can be watered properly; but it won't work with heavy soils you're forced to water in little sips so the soil doesn't stay too wet, too long. How much vinegar you would need to adjust pH will vary from water supply to water supply, so get some pH paper and test it. Keep track of how much it takes to bring a given volume of water down to your desired pH level, then add that much vinegar to each gallon of water. Actually, it might be necessary to take 2 or 3 different measurements if you're not using fertilizer regularly and if the Pro-TeKt is only added intermittently. If that's confusing, I guess I could say it like this: You might need to add different amounts of vinegar for each of these combos: water only water + fertilizer water + fertilizer + Pro-TeKt water + Pro-TeKt ...... but that's only if you have what my Asian friend calls a 'white man's stick'. ;o) If you don't have the stick, then adjusting the solution you use most frequently to 6.0 and using that amount of vinegar in all the solutions should work just fine. Hapy New Year! Al

Thanks to all. I have no concerns whatsoever about going the sulfuric acid route, particularly as I have a boxed bag of same sitting in the basement. To those who do the same, seems like I've seen a couple methods suggested on www searching, some do so at all watering with the pH of the water adjusted to a higher level (5.5-6.0), some do occasionally with pH adjusted down around 4.5-5.0. And then some suggest mag sulfate (epson salts) or vinegar instead with all watering. Anything optimal? Plants did have some yellow veining at beginning towards the end of their hardening stay and then first month or so after transplanted. Now all heavy green foliage, well being this is AK and all, now getting a hint of red, like I said maybe the Chippewa will have time, maybe not. My rock is granite mostly. The 35 year old AK log house foundation is get this pressure treated wood for the full basement. Who knows what is leaching from that, it is the old stuff with a lot of copper obviously and who knows what else, but the plants are about 8 feet out from the wall, I'm not too concerned. I'll go with the suggestion of bamboo_rabbit today and water all with water adjusted down to 4.5 or so. Thanks again.

What no one has mentioned is the difference a variety of trace elements in the soil can have on the taste of the figs. A "rich, complex depth of taste" may require a "rich, complex depth" of different fertilizers in small amounts besides the top three. Supplementing the basic x/x/x fertilizer in pot culture with proven "organic" fertilizers containing kelp, fish emulsion, trace minerals, or diluted, aged, manure/alfalfa teas might help improve the flavor of figs. I've had good results with these supplements on the taste of other fruit crops. University research programs are more concerned with commercial factors such as size, appearance, productivity and shipping potential rather than taste.

OK, I do have to speak up in defense of the canning standards of our neighbors to the north. The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving was indeed published in Canada. The Canadian government was generous enough to subsidize publication. However, the book itself is a collaborative effort. Kingry is a Consumer Services Manager at Bernardin (Canada) and Devine is a Research/Test Kitchen Scientist with Jarden (U.S.). As far as I can tell, the book is, if anything, more stringent than the current USDA standards. The only apple recipe that requires lemon juice is applesauce. Plain apples are canned as per usual. Apple pie filling calls for additional lemon juice, but that seems to be for flavor. We had a lengthy discussion last season about the difference between the Ball Blue Book and the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving as the first does not call for lemon juice in applesauce and the latter does. You can check the link for the complete thread. It appears that the Ball Complete Book is requiring lemon juice for applesauce because many thrifty types use windfalls for applesauce and windfalls are lower pH. Here's what I said on that thread: "The only way I think it could potentially be an issue if someone is canning bruised apples, either tree-picked or windfalls. In 'The Microbiology of Fruits and Vegetables' the authors discuss changes in pH for whole undamaged tree-picked apples and bruised dropped apples. So a fresh-picked Red Delicious is somewhere around 3.98 pH but, and this is interesting, the bruised tree-picked were 4.57 mean pH and bruised windfalls were all the way up to 4.9 mean pH. Which means if the variety is one which tends to less acidity and the condition of the fruit is less than optimal, it is possible for the applesauce to be low-acid. Condition is all." On the thread you'll also see an email from Ball regarding the issue. I went through the entire boiling water bath section, all 378 pages, and found not a single open kettle canning recipe. The only inversion I found was to distribute solids in canned Habanero Gold Jelly or other recipes of that sort. The only "uncanned" recipes I found in the entire book were brined limes and lemons which are held at room temp for two weeks then refrigerated. Carol Here is a link that might be useful: Confused About Lemon Juice for Applesauce