Wow! I want to be where you are! Maybe I should move?...nope, can't do that. I wouldn't have an income...but durn, I'm tempted! How the heck did you manage to prune blackberry's? They attack me anytime I get close with anything but a pickin' bucket!

It ain't easy! I wear a long-sleeve shirt or jacket, gloves, have long-handled pruners and hand pruners and go after them annually. I missed last year so this year was a killer. Then, before they leafed out good I sprayed the cheat grass with Gly-4, so now no ground cover of 18 inch weeds.

The raspberries need a little work because they are new and just now spread enough to have anything and I wanted them to produce one year to see what was what.

Here is just one little patch that spread from from the row that I just let be. After pruning.

Glenda,

I loved your description of all the fruit in bloom and I think such special moments as the one you experienced are the ones I enjoy most....quiet, special moments that only a gardener can really appreciate.

We've already picked strawberries, although I expect there will be more, although these are first-year plants. I noticed yesterday that some of the native dewberries are red turning to purple. Wow! It seems a bit early, but you know, we'll take 'em early. I keep looking at the fruit trees and trying to imagine what a magnificent harvest we'll have if the hail and the insects don't ruin it for us. This seems like it is going to be a really great fruit year. The only piece of the pie missing here is the native persimmon trees. They just don't like cold weather, so are blooming extraordinarily late...just starting to bloom now. Better late than never I guess.

With all that's going on at your place, I'm guessing your weather has finally managed to warm up some?

I harvested tomatoes and lettuce today, and a lot of Sugar Snap peas yesterday, so life is good.

Dawn

No, we are still pretty darned cold. Maybe this is Blackberry Winter. The blackberries are in bloom and is gets down to 40 at night and the high yesterday and today will just be 58. Then, the warm up begins.....again. So far no rain which we need badly.

Something ate all but one Sugan Snap pea seed from the 15 foot row! That's a first.

Well, if it is Blackberry Winter, at least it is a nice one.

We need rain badly too. It is so dry here, the clay ground has cracks about 1/2" wide and our pond is getting low on water and looks more like it normally looks in August than in May. One tiny shower moved across a few minutes ago and we got about 3 minutes of rain, which I'm sure didn't do much. More rain is in the forecast for today and tomorrow and later in the week, so maybe we'll all get lucky and get some badly needed rain.

I wonder what ate the pea seed? I sprout mine inside and transplant them out when they're a couple of inches tall or I'd never have a single pea. The garden is fenced or I wouldn't get anything at all, and it can't keep out all the voles and such. There's just too many hungry critters here. Last night there were rabbits all over the yard before the sun even set. I know they're out there every night looking for something yummy to eat, but the fence mostly keeps them out of the veggie garden.

Glenda,
Sounds similar to ours. Doesn't seem like it will ever end. But if they don't change the forecast again as it gets closer we will have possible 30's for lows Wed and Thur nights and then highs in the 90's starting around the 18th. Our plants had better hit the ground running. And we are getting real dry again. The wind on the tight ground is starting to hurt. Some has already suffered some permanent damage. Hoping we can get some this week. We will be getting the wind again this week. This spring has went like they did 2-4 years previous. Last year warmed up by the end of April and we had short period for things to grow and mature before the heat hit.

Did the pea seed germinate and come up or not? The only reason I ask is I have trouble with the black birds and now the ornery squirrel nipping off and removing some of my early plants. Most of the time they don't eat them. Just watch them hit the ground and go on to another one. I had almost 100% on my pea seed. They haven't grown very fast. Afraid the heat will shut them down before I have a chance to get any. And I planted fairly early. May try to sneak them in earlier and cover with a row cover next year.

Will have to make decisions about whether to start planting tomatoes today or not. Think some will start going it with buckets around them. Then will cover up on the cool nights.

Hoping everyone gets the moisture they need. Jay