Joe: Why couldn't it have been a tom and 2 days earlier on the last day of turkey season, just my luck! I did give your idea consideration. Thomis: She should be stuffed with corn and milo, she has been eating the grain the chickens kicked out of the pens on both sides of her for 2 days now. Harvestman: Thanks for your comment, "I just wish they ate squirrels. I about laughed myself out of the chair. The squirrel population here is low enough that they are still adorable. The turkey population in our county (highest in the state) however is so high that other states come here to get birds to transplant to their own states.

Scott, I can't understand why after all this time you automatically suggest Surround AND bagging for the northeast. As I've explained here many times, and you apparently can't believe, in the northeast if you protect the trees for the 3 or 4 weeks following petal fall of latest blooming apples it is quite likely that bagging or subsequent sprays will be unnecessary. The orchards I manage cover a fairly wide swath of territory and direct fruit pest insects haven't been an issue for me after the above mentioned time in my part of the northeast. I think it a reasonable assumption that as you go further north there will be less pressure rather than more. Apple fly maggot is the only big question mark, in my opinion, as to whether further protection will be necessary. That and indirect pests like JB's which can't be bagged out. The one exception I've had in my own orchard and not the ones I manage is later plum curculio damage on Euro plums, but out of all the trees I manage I consider this an aberration. She, on pest issues, you should know that the closer the advice comes from your region the more likely the relevancy. I manage orchards from coastal Greenwich up to Canaan CT and from Kingston down to Ossining NY and areas in between.

Lots of anecdotal claims, but little conclusive evidence that ivermectins have any significant effect on earthworm populations. See study linked below. On the dog poop deal...I'd be more concerned about the risk of visceral/ocular larval migrans from Toxocara(roundworm) eggs than I would bacterial contamination - and then only on 'drops', but if you washed them, the risk would be infinitesimally minimal. Hand-picked fruit... no problem whatsoever. 'Wildlife' are not pristine and blameless; there have been cases of E.coli O157/H7 infection traced to unpasteurized cider made from apples collected in an orchard frequented by deer - and the exact strain of O157/H7 was isolated from deer droppings as was isolated from the human cases. cuznfloyd - I wouldn't advocate fertilizing herbivore pastures with manure from non-herbivores. I see Sarcocystis cysts in muscle tissue from virtually every mature cow I look at, courtesy of dogs & coyotes defecating in pastures. Additionally, two of the leading causes of abortion in sheep/goats(Toxoplasma gondii) and cattle(Neospora caninum) - are associated with accidental consumption of oocysts from feline(T.gondii) or canine(N.caninum) feces. Here is a link that might be useful: anthelminthics & earthworms This post was edited by lucky_p on Mon, Aug 4, 14 at 15:29

Well, this bad (good? LOL) boy is STILL blooming. Very slowly, but there is almost always one open bud at all times. Every time I think it's just about done, I see more buds forming. Was curious if this is regular blooming behavior? I'm sure different varieties act differently, but in general, do inflos keep pushing buds and blooms like this? One other question if I may... if a cutting/plant is going to push an inflo coming out of dormancy, is it always before the leaves form or is it more cultivar dependent? Both of my inflos this year formed before any leaves and I was curious if that was something I could watch for next year. Thanks in advance for your time and more important, KNOWLEDGE!