Well I have some questions regarding soil temperature in a container. The temperatures during the day where I live are perfect for cool weather veggies; 50's to mid 60's. Unfortunately, the nighttime temperatures are still dropping too low for even cool weather vegetables to be able to grow without problems (30's to mid 40's). Now I know that like with row spacing, soil temperature in containers is different than if you're planting stuff in the ground. I am assuming that because the soil is in a container the soil temperature is raised as a result. The question is, by how many degrees? This is without soil temperature aids of any kind (row covers, bottle cloches, cold frames, and/or covering the soil with black plastic mulch). Would the temperature be raised enough to the point where I could grow cool weather vegetables in containers now where I live? I live in Northern Michigan, the upper part of the lower peninsula. The snow has melted for the most part.

Hi Merricat-I've been growing banana plants from seed for the last couple of years. Though I've been growing Ensete not Musa (the true banana). I found the seeds in the spring at our local nursery. They are large, hard, marble like seeds that only come 5 to a package. They take 1-6 months to germinate and I've grown 2 out of 5 and 3 out of 5 each year. They grow so fast! The seeds I started this spring are already plants that are 4 feet tall with huge leaves. I'm sure they wouild get even taller if I was in a warmer climate and could leave them outdoors all year. I plant them out in 1/2 barrels and bring them in each winter. This year I'm going sacrifice one and experiment with leaving it outdoors. I planted it in a protected area and will cut down the foliage and mulch it. And keep my fingers crossed! Unfortunately, Ensete don't bear fruit or grow pups or I could send you some. When I travelled to Florida this winter, I tried to find banana seeds but the folks there just looked confused. They just pick off the pups and don't bother with starting from seed. Try this web site if you want to order some seeds. Here is a link that might be useful: Banana tree seeds

I've been on a dried bean recipe kick this winter and have found some that we think are delicious! We're cutting back on salt and meat, looking for fla'vor and protein in other ingredients, so these recipes do it for us. For all these recipes, I do not add salt, believing that if salt is used at the table, people eat far less of it. The sprinkling of salt on the surface of fo'od seems to use a lot less than adding it "to taste" while cooking. The tongue is fooled into thinking the entire dish is salty. But I included salt as designated in the recipes, so you can do as you please. Greek Baked Beans With Honey and Dill These beans become creamy as they bake slowly in a sweet and sour broth flavored with honey and vinegar. 1 pound dried white beans, soaked if necessary for six hours or overnight in 2 quarts of water and drained 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 large onion, preferably a sweet red onion, finely chopped 1 28-ounce can chopped tomatoes 1 large bay leaf 3 tablespoons honey, such as clover or acacia 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1/4 cup red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste ~ (less than) 1/4 cup chopped dried dill (1/2 cup fresh) 1. Combine the drained beans and water to cover by 3 inches in a large, oven-proof casserole or Dutch o'ven, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, preheat the o'ven to 375 de'grees. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a medium size, heavy skillet over medium heat, and add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender and lightly caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. 3. After 30 minutes, drain the beans and return them to the pot. Add the remaining olive oil, the tomatoes and the liquid in the can, bay leaf, honey, and 2 cups water or enough to just cover the beans. Stir in the onion, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover and place in the oven. Bake one hour, stirring often and adding water if necessary. 4. Add the tomato paste, vinegar, salt and pepper. Stir in the dill, cover and bake for 30 more minutes, until the beans are tender and the mixture is thick. 5. Remove from the o'ven and let sit 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve with thick slices of Texas Toast. Yield: Serves six. Ultimate Great Northern Beans 16 ounces Great Northern Beans 30 ounces chicken broth (canned or home-made) 15 ounces diced tomatoes with green chilies (ro-tel) 1 large white onion, chopped 1 tablespoon cooking oil 6 ounces smoked pork jowl, cut into chunks 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 48 ounces water Directions 1. Soak the beans in cold water overnight. Make sure there is twice as much water as beans because they will swell up. 2. In a large cooking pot, pour in the cooking oil and toss in the smoked jowl pieces. Stir and allow them to sizzle over medium heat for 5 or 6 minutes. After they brown a bit, deglaze the pot with about 4 ounces of the chicken broth. 3. Add the onion and allow to simmer until the onion is tender, stirring often. 4. Rinse the beans in fresh water a final time and, after draining, add them, plus all the remaining ingredients into the pot. This should include the 48 ounces of water listed in the ingredients. 5. Simmer, covered, over low heat until beans are tender, stirring occasionally (about 2-3 hours). If you wish, you can use chunks of ham or bacon instead of pork jowl. Serves six to eight. Greek Black-Eyed Peas With Vegetables and Small Pasta Since black-eyed peas require no soaking, you can cook this after work so long as you have some vegetables around the house. It is an utterly simple. 2 lbs beef chunks (optional) 1 pound dried black-eyed peas, picked over and rinsed 2 large chopped onions 4 large chopped carrots 2 large red bell peppers, seeded and chopped 1/2 cup tomato paste (6 oz can okay) dissolved in 1/2 cup water 6 garlic cloves (to taste), minced 2 bay leaves 1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes 1/2 to 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 cup small dry pasta, such as elbow macaroni or tubettini, or small square Greek egg noodles 1-2 cups cooked & chopped kale 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, to taste 1. Cover the black-eyed peas with water, bring to a boil and then drain. 2. Brown meat & remove from grease in pan 3. Combine the drained black-eyed peas, onion, carrots, red bell pepper, dissolved tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf, hot pepper and 1/4 cup olive oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. 4. Set aside the pasta, kale, & red-wine vinegar. If including meat, soak it in vinegar to tenderize it as the rest cooks. 5. Cover with water by 2 inches, and bring to a gentle boil. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low and simmer 20 minutes. 6. Add meat and salt to taste; continue to simmer until the beans and vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes more. Taste and adjust salt. 7. Add the pasta, increase the heat to medium-high, and simmer five to 10 minutes, until the pasta is cooked and much of the liquid has been absorbed. 8. Stir in the greens and the vinegar. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Yield: Serves twelve. This is excellent when served meatless as well. Enjoy!

I just remembered. I have had McDonalds burgers many times! Every time I traveled to a different country, I always ended up going to their McDonalds at least once. For instance, when I was in Paris, I was getting tied of French food the last days. Let me tell you, a French Big Mc tasted really good. When I was in Argentina, where they really like meat, I even had a Royal Cheese with wine. Yes, you can get wine with your "Big Mac" there. From Pulp Fiction ------------------------------------------- VINCENT: ...You know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Paris? JULES: They don't call it a Quarter Pounder with Cheese? VINCENT: No, they got the metric system there, they wouldn't know what the f??k a Quarter Pounder is. JULES: What'd they call it? VINCENT: Royale with Cheese. JULES: Royale with Cheese. What'd they call a Big Mac? VINCENT: Big Mac's a Big Mac, but they call it Le Big Mac. JULES: What do they call a Whopper? VINCENT: I dunno, I didn't go into a Burger King. -------------------------------------- dcarch This post was edited by dcarch on Fri, Jan 16, 15 at 14:36