oh Flora, what is a Garbanzo or Chick Pea called over there? My friend and I were on the phone and I was teasing him about taking him on an American Vegetable tour when he comes in September. Apparently some veggies are named differently over there. Chick Pea is Chick pea That's right, they have aubergines and courgettes.... egg plant and zuke I remember being in a supermarket in the UK with an American med student and ozzie Physical therapist, and a huge but good natured debate that went on for hours, well into pub time! alcohol help but basically our dispute was courgette in UK, Zuke in USA (can't even spell it) and baby marrow in OZ! American miss out on the greatest of UK fav veg Runner beans which I assumed moving here last year, was a Europian veg, looked it up and found it was native of New England where I am living! the scarlet runner is old fashioned, furry and get tough and stringy quickly, I like polestar smooth not stringy or tough until very old, prolific, and I shudder to tell you where you can get them, incase I can't buy any next year! also people in the know in the UK call broccoli calabrese, but broccoli that is so amazing it ranks with asparagus is purple sprouting broccoli ! I will share but trust me I will be upset if I can't get any, Thompson and Morgan, sold out at the mo on PSB.

The advantage to fall clean-up of bearded iris, in my experience and in the experiences of those who taught me about it, is that it's *easy* to do a thorough job of preventing several common bearded iris problems if you do the work in the fall. Cutting the foliage enables a gardener to look closely at the rhizomes, the leaves and the ground around the plants. It's easier to see some things in fall than it is to see them in spring, and fall is a good time to make sure there's no scorch, leaf spot or rot on the plants. Sometime between late Oct. and mid Dec. (depending on weather and when I happen to get around to it), I cut all of the fans on all of my bearded iris to about 2", sometimes even a little shorter. After I've done this, it's easy to see any leaves that died during the growing season. (This is a normal process for bearded iris.) Sometimes, these leaves are attached to the rhizomes but have fallen away from the fan. But usually, the dead leaves have already detached from the fans and are lying on the ground around the plants. These dead leaves are the ones most likely to carry disease (leaf spot, etc.) and borer eggs. After cutting the fans, I also usually see 1-4 outside leaves that are on their way out--they're still attached to the fans and still somewhat green, but they've begun to yellow or brown. I pull the dying (or even only just brown or yellowed at the base) leaves right off the fans every fall. One could do this in the early spring, yes, but with wet, snowy winters and many freeze-thaw cycles, the dead leaves tend to decompose--to a surprising degree--over the winter. It's a lot harder to find them in the spring. It's also a lot harder to find them (regardless of season) when the iris foliage is uncut, since the dead leaves tend to fall off in-between the rhizomes. Jo is right about leaf spot. It's best prevented the way one prevents botrytis in peonies, by cutting off and disposing of diseased foliage in fall. Don't compost anything cut off of a bearded iris, except maybe the flower stalk. I also use cutting bearded iris leaves in the fall as an opportunity to get a really good look at the rhizomes. I like to make sure that I haven't accidentally mulched over them or covered them with dirt (while planting something else nearby, or what-have-you), and that none of the durned norway maple leaves have matted down over or between the ehizomes. And it's a good opportunity to make sure there's no sign of rot before heading into a wet, cold period. I love the evergreen iris foliage. But I've come to like the cut fans just as well, if not better, over the winter. They give me peace of mind. My iris increase rapidly, bloom abundantly and have no borers, soft rot/scorch or leaf spot--haven't for as long as I've been doing this fall clean-up (ca. 7 years, I think). I use no pesticides or fungicides on them. For a few years, I tried a "control group" of various bearded iris hybrids, which I did not cut but which I cleaned, as thoroughly as I could, in spring. Some were fine. But a number of them got scorch their first uncut year and several had serious borer issues plus scorch and soft rot during their second year. That ended the control group...no more problems. So (again, in my experience), fall clean-up is easier and more thorough than spring clean-up, especially for organic gardeners and/or those who rely heavily on prevention of various plant ailments. If cleaning in the spring works for you, by all means, do that. But if you're new (or new-ish) to growing bearded iris, I'd recommend cutting the fans to 2" and cleaning up all dead or yellowing leaves in the late fall. Amanda

LOL, funny you should say that --- NO Sonny & Cher! I guess they didn't want to pay for the rights maybe. It was fun. I'd said to the kids in advance ... this might be a little different, you are seeing their first preview, there could be a snafu or two. Indeed. I think the audience really appreciated the actors' efforts. Oh yeah, and we were all there gratis ( I still don't get that). I decided to "reinvest" my refund in tickets to see Bette Midler in Hello Dolly. Loved coming across that on UHF when I was a kid! Iowa, that movie sounds funny! I will look for it. BTW the stage version is more adult.

What's this, cynic - you brought tinder ... but no matches/(lighter?)? Yesterday, I visited the snowmobile-accident-confined landlord in the hospital, then went to United Way to work on this year's list of charities that my tax-free-capitaI-gain-stock-when-sold-to-support-a-charity is to assist. Then came to this city library till I'd planned to visit my son ... ... visiting the bathroom on arrival and, after my two-hour limit on the city's computer ... ... again when I stood to leave. On becoming aware that my bag was no longer with me ...pretty sure I didn't pick up my bag n the bathroom at the time of the second visit. Returning today ... no report of a bag turned in. Didn't take it in to son's place, or to a store or two I visited. Did someone pinch it out of the car? Whatever ... the stuff in it is no longer available. Guess I'll have to start out my accumulate my (bag-carried) stash of survival stuff all over again. Wait a minute - my bank book was in there, too! (Rarely-used credit card ... in wallet in my pocket). Oh, well!!!! ole joyful ... most of the time.