I havent paid my dues for this year yet....would you like to see the reminder letter they send you...errr me or anyone absolutely anyone who wants to join. I did call the four season farm, a woman named Barbara answered ( She didnt offer her name nor speak in any manner about herself! So I guess! I asked her if she was Barbara and she said she was too busy writing an article for the Washington Post. But she did brag about her husband being so busy that if he was around if I happened to come vist unannounced ( they prefer not to take reservations, instead please drop By - best not Monday or a Thursday. SHe was quick to put a plug in for the Natural Living Center and she started talking about the Nerrings in a very kind and so respectful...but did agree that their methods were very diferent as the Nerrings were more composty more exclusively with vegetables. While "Eliot" ( dont know why I envision Eliot to be a silly looking dragon and barbara like some brainiac) None the less I am going to drop in on them perhaps this next week and perhaps I'll get lucky and get some autographs- I mena photographs of their rotating greeenhouse. SHe did offer to say that the chicken hoop house that moves around the yard is down- they no longer have any animals! I l'll tell her to get all organic animals or she may pierce the cloth of organic gardening.lol Any ways she said they plan on getting animals to aid in fertilizer for the gardens. I want to work on the rotating garden shared with the goats and the geese and chickens all together if possible and change their residence each year in order to get a healthier top soil. I joined the mandala farm today. I aked for a 250.00 share. This would provide enough food for one year for 2 families. I am too insecure that the garlic I grew is what I hope the season will bring. I am hoping to take it to a farmers market or knock on doors to peddle the 3 varieties I massively planted this year. As I see it the garden area is on the crest of a hill....however the hill becomes like a mesa of wetlands...drainage is poor in Spring, unfortuantely as we all know the rain fall may be drowning my bulbs for a extented length in time since the ground is starting to thaw. Then in a more positive note I know that the garlic may be safe because we had great snow coverage this year...the only problem being too much snow doesnt allow enough photosynethesis or light signal to make a go....I am thinking that that must tell the bubl a message when it cant get any warmth or energy from the sun directly. So, if the bulb was properly fed prior to being pulled for cloves (planting) then there may not be the hardiness in them to survive when energy is very demanding. I hate traveling (I decided). I wish there was a safer and more healthier way to travel than with cars to get to Arizona...any suggestions? How about from Ellsworth to Bar Harbor? I like the thought of a horse drawn cart or wagon. And although I paid taxes that are used to build fine roadways, I am only privilged on them if I can afford to operate a car or be transported by a vehicle allowable by law. Otherwise I have to stay on private property. Help me map a 2 horse or 4 horse wagon drive to Arizona. I also will be taking the chickens and the goats...not sure about the geese. ( I am half heartiedly kidding- but would pursue hypotheticly/curiousity) In bad weather I would need shelter for my animals. What camp grounds would allow me to tent me and my animals and family for the night or to get through poor weather? Awww--- just go along with it and dream with me for a cotton pickin' moment. Would I make it and how much money would it hypotheticly cost. (I had a brilliant idea to apply for a Fulbright or a Watson, and see what they might encourage, but I would have to go back to school. Meanwhile I got to get back to Maine to crack the whip and besure that my gardeners are doing the sowing. At the many garden centers I went to I noticed nobody was carrying the Echinacea double decker. Only one greenhouse actually offered to mail it to me if she found it! Wow, it was a brand new garden center (ornamentals and landscaping) called Pardee ( thats thier real name- the family that owns it!) The women at the sales office was very friendly and I told her to get on the organic forum- yuck lots of roundup there....but the greenhouses and potential and the people there are like really truely caring horts! O especially enjoyed talking to the woman who is married to a man who is the "last of his kind" LIke species like! I told her that he must not be and she assured me he was. She also said she was way past 40 and wasnt thinking nor could have any more children. She would like to change her name back to "Farmer" (n because she really loves that name)but is afraid she will hurt her husbands feelings. I thought that perhaps he could take her name instead, I think at that point she directed me where to find the echinacea I might be looking for- and I didnt but the place is brand spanking new and the people are extremely happy to be there and to help! Very refreshing. So Iam home and there is alot of organizing and cleaning to do- darn it, winter is over, its time to work! How is everyone else doing with Spring Cleaning. (Spike- might we get a conversation forum- I feel displaced) OH yeah, I dont know Barbara at all. I just called information from the book called the New Organic Farmer by Eliot COleman. I knew that his name continually comes up on many different forums and his wife Barbara. I know that he lives within one hour or so from where I do, so I would like to better compare notes and ask a true gardener of organic methods how I can manipulate and convience a bunch of mainstream gardeners and caretakers/landscapers how to go organic and understand it. I told Barabara when I decided it was her, (and guessed that it was actually her) and not an employee "that I felt very honored" I also said that she was spoken on on the organic forums and such, she was surprised that I told her I spend about 1 hour a day at gardenweb visiting and researching ideas and updates. She may be lurking now as she seemed surprised that Garden web could be as progressed as when she was last visiting here....so Hi Barbara, if you are out there! The cart must also be able to hook up to bicycles and or goats for exercise and to assist the horses and be able to carry them too. I Also , I do intend to pay my dues to the garden Club in Bar Harbor. They always have some really great speakers...sounds similar to the garden club that veilchen attends or has spoken of. Hope everyones day was a good day. Cheers Does anyone else attend any of thier local garden club ? :) I may be all talked out now....so what to sow and clean and organize first? I got tulip bulbs trying to bloom through a few boxes in my porch, and there is still too much snow and too wet to plant. I'll try ot pot them in containers instead and see how they recover....long and leggy ....adios for now

Hi Everyone, Well, adding the rain that fell overnight to what we had yesterday, we ended up with 11.5" of rain here at our house between 11 a.m. Wed. and 7 a.m. Thursday. For the same time period, our county's Mesonet station recorded 12.89". Obviously we needed the rain and have needed it for a long time. I feel fairly confident in saying everyone's ponds have completely filled up. Around the county, and of course, the closer you are to the Red River, the worst the damage, we have roads washed away, at least one broken water main (in the Falconhead golf and retirement community), bottom land pastures flooded and cattle that had to be moved to higher ground, plenty of homes that seem to be standing in lakes, gravel driveways (including ours) almost completely washed away, standing water everywhere, damage to bridges caused by the rushing water and esp. when the water was carrying trees, etc. The Red River is a madly rushing wild thing this morning. While the river is not the highest I've ever seen it, it is the highest I've seen in rise in less than one day. Lake Texoma has already risen two feet from the runoff and will rise more over the next few days. My garden is probably in pretty good shape considering the rainfall. Some of the raised beds look wet but virtually untouched otherwise. Some had the mulch washed out into the path, but putting it back will be easy once everything is a little drier. Some raised beds that weren't planted yet had major erosion, but all I have to do is shovel that soil back out of the pathway and into the bed. The corn is in the lowest-lying part of the veggie garden and not in raised beds, to it may drown and die. If it does, I don't think I'll replant. It is getting late here to plant corn. I did notice as we drove to Gainesville this morning that several people who have very large gardens had much more erosion in their gardens than ours, but it had more to do with the lay of their land and erosion from the rain and runoff--not anything they really could have done to prevent it other than perhaps build raised beds. I guess now we'll have to wait and see if the veggies can survive the inevitable waterlogging of their roots. Of the four rows of tomato plants that I'd planted, two should be fine. Those beds are well above grade and ought to drain well enough that the plants survive. The other two rows may be in trouble. They are barely raised above grade and sit in the part of the garden where water drains down madly from the neighbor's higher ground. I will watch these plants for a couple of days before I even try to decide what to do with them, if anything. The broccoli, potatoes, cabbage, onions and herbs ought to be fine. I don't know when the soil will be dry enough to plant beans, melons, cucumbers, watermelons and okra, so I'll probably start all of them in 6-packs or paper cups on the back porch and transplant them out when the soil is a bit drier than it is now. I hadn't planned to plant them in cups and transplant them, but you have to work with what you have, and right now I have a lake instead of a garden. Water is standing in the pathways of the garden instead of flowing downhill. That's sort of comical. You wouldn't think water could stand still on a slope, but it is. And, I guess I don't have to tell y'all that the ponds are overflowing, the creeks are running like mad, the swamp is swampy again, the springs are running, etc. Now we can look forward to snakes, mosquitoes and fire ants. : ( Don't get me wrong. We needed the rain in the worst possible way. I am glad it fell. However, I would have been happy if we'd only had a more reasonable 6" or 8". Our Keetch-Byram Drought Index which had been in the upper 600s in Jan.-March when we were having so many fires has now dropped all the way to "0" from the rain-improved index in the mid-400s that we'd had for most of April. A KBDI score of "0" essentially means that the soil is 100% saturated down to a depth of 8", and 8" is as far down as the KBDI goes. Joyce, Drought is much more common here than flooding, so we are grateful for every inch that fell. Even sandy soil in the Thackerville area is too wet to drain well right now, but I think their soil will dry more quickly than our clay does. Scott, Keep your eye on the radar. I haven't even looked at the forecast (I'm almost afraid to) but my son told me we have rain the forecast for either 8 or 9 of the next 10 days. If it falls, we're looking at a 2007-type flooding situation again here along the river and the lake. Personally, I'm hoping the rain misses us these next couple of weeks and heads for the parts of western Oklahoma and southwestern Kansas that still need more moisture. I don't think I'll ever forget this rainfall. It wasn't as scarey as the April 2006 storm which literally washed cars off roadways and into rain-swollen creeks, but it was close. The poor emergency workers had a long, hard day yesterday. Moni, I hope you have a fun trip west and that you have exciting news to share with all of us soon. : ) I'm glad you got rain too, but I would have been happy to share ours with you if I could figure out how to get the water from here to there. Sally, Thanks to the miracle of having a GPS in his Blackberry, DH just punched in an address in Gainesville and his Blackberry told him what rural back roads to take to get around the flooded portions of I-35. He arrived home late and tired, but safely, and that is what really counts. I was thinking of you down there in Dallas yesterday as the "Swine Flu" news in Texas continued to worsen. I hope it is not going to be as bad as it sounds, and I think everyone is over-reacting. (Hope I'm right about that.) When I heard that the Fort Worth ISD had suspended classes for the next week, I was stunned. Y'all stay safe there and chase away any sickly-looking folks that are coughing around you. Laura, I'm glad y'all got some rain but I wish you hadn't had a river running through your place. I hope your land didn't erode too much. It is a shame about the grass. I noticed similar areas today where some folks near us had plowed large areas and planted either corn or grass and it looks like most, if not all, has washed away. It is hard to take the economic loss of the seed and having to replant, but rain is still a blessing. You're right, we needed the rain just as much as you did, and we all just have to take the bad with the good. : ) I always joke that our four seasons here are "Drought, Drought, Drought and Flood", but you know, it really is pretty close to the truth. Here in southern OK, we NEVER have a year where we get, say, 3" of rain per month every month. Instead, we have months and months of "below average" or even almost nonexistent rainfall, and then we have a deluge of rain all at once. So, in the end, the annual rainfall total looks normal, but it isn't normal in the sense that we had consistent rainfall every month. Y'all, I am grateful for every inch of rain that fell but I wish it could have been spread out over a few days instead of a few hours. To be honest, though, I more or less expected a major downpour at some point this spring because we always have a huge downpour following a long period of drough. I just didn't expect quite so much moisture to fall in a relatively short time. I am very concerned about the forecast for the next 10 days, but that is something we can't control, so I'm just going to do my best to not worry and fret over it. I hope all of you who need rain get some. And I hope we don't get any more here for a couple of weeks. Finally, I hope the Swine Flu leaves us all alone. I haven't followed the news too closely during the last 24 hours, mostly because the rain knocked out the satellite TV so all we had was the local stations and their news was almost entirely weather-related. Today, though it sounds like the flu situation is worsening and I am starting to think that I haven't taken it seriously enough--I just keep thinking the government and the media and the school officials are over-reacting. I hope that's all it is. Dawn

I am afraid I have to drop out to and won't make it this weekend to the swap. I had potted most of my stuff weeks ago and only had a few last minute things to dig, but there you go. :-( My sister is in the hospital, probably nearing the end of her battle with cancer and one of Chip's cousins recently passed away and they are having the memorial service tomorrow. :-( To top it all off, the new job has kept me out of town for most of this month, so that's why I've been so quiet. I think we may be heading south to Boaz, Alabama, either tomorrow (Friday) night or early, early Saturday. Would it be possible for me to drop these plants off with any of you to take to the swap for us? I'm not sure if anyone had any of my plants in mind, and I hadn't had time to arrange any swapping (boohoo! I need a Mexican Sage), but I'd like these lovely plants to go to a good (read: someone else's home but mine now). Can anyone help? I should be able to label things so at least folks will know what they are. From memory, I have: * 'Coronation Gold' Yarrow * Chinese Foxglove (heh, think several of us got this one at the plant swap; likes to move around, but it sure is pretty...) * Amsonia hubrechti(sp?) Great native plant! * Birdseed Sunflowers * Homestead Purple Verbena * Lamb's Ears * Sundrops (if I get them dug...) * Blue Spruce Sedum * Angelina Sedum (probably will have) * Airplane plant * Walker's Low Catmint (if I get some time to dig it up...) * Ladybells (if anyone wants some; let me know) In addition to a Mexican Bush Sage, I was also looking for white cleome (seeds or plants), white cosmos (seeds or plants), Foxtail Lily or Yellow Perennial Foxglove. Sorry I won't make it. :-( I'm very disappointed to....I could have used a de-stress day... But hopefully this fall will be better. --April

Guys I really appreciate the kind words! Trust me, we are going to get the fall MTPS turned around and back under control. I'll be contacting several of you soon for some serious planning. Lavonne and I are still pretty much wiped-out but we're recuperating little by little so thanks for your concern. Hold on to your hats and relax..... Now that I've had a couple of days to reflect here's what I came up with. Ok this is like me, pretty long-winded but here go my props: First and foremost to Jan and Jim: You guys are so gracious to let us hold the swap at your business even though it takes away from your ability to fully operate that business and costs you additional finances and labor for a weekend at your own expense. I doubt that any of us will ever know or can really appreciate the actual tangible cost that you two incur because of us. Thank you, thank you, and thank you!!! I cant say enough or show enough appreciation to you for what youÂve done for all of us over the years. You are uncommonly wonderful generous Christian people and we love you very much! I only hope that the debacle Saturday might garner you some additional business revenue in the future. Maybe some folks in that mass of humanity Saturday will go back to their congregations and suggest a weekend outing for their group at Buffalo Canoeing! Now there is some advertising that you canÂt buy!!! ;-) (BTW if your church group, school, Scouts or club are looking for an enjoyable day in natureÂs splendor, call Jan and Jim at Buffalo Canoeing and show them that you REALLY do support them for what they do for us!!!) Chef Ziggy: Way to go dude!!! You pulled double, triple, quadruple-duty all day with the photography, setting up the signs, being my eyes and ears for everywhere else that I wasnÂt at the moment and for eating dirt all day doing traffic control. IÂm sure you did more but I didnÂt get a chance to see most of what went on Saturday because I was usually several hundred yards from the Swap. My hats off and I owe you Bud. Thanks to Kathy and Judith for letting you work like a dog, totally ignore them and not help them with your table either. What a cool family you guys are! Love yaÂll! Lavonne, Marianne, Renee, Martha, Cindy, AprilÂ.How could I possibly thank you guys enough for the job you did grabbing the bull by the horns and taking over registration, logistics, organization and control of the "lower end" traffic of the Swap where all the action was? I canÂt believe what a disaster you averted by your hard work!!! When I think of how easily this could have turned into an ugly mob scene without you guys it makes me cringe. No way could this have gone off as smoothly as it did without yaÂll. You are all strong, intelligent and capable women that I love and admire greatly. (One of you more than the rest!) ;-) Marty: Great job! Even I didnÂt fall asleep. As expected you provided us with and, effortlessly commanded by your presence, the most organized; controlled; informative; relaxing and enjoyable part of the day. Duh! As if we anticipated something else? YouÂre just freakin awesome! We all needed that. Norman and Barbara: How could any of us have a good time without you two? I know that it makes the whole day worth while for Lavonne and I when you are there. You two will always own a very special place in our hearts! Robert Holt: What a kind and thoughtful man! For a "first-timer", like Martha, you guys exemplified the true spirit of what this whole thing is all about. I still canÂt believe that yaÂll were so helpful. We are all better people for meeting you and we are very happy to now count you among us. Mary Hance, aka. Ms. Cheap: Now thatÂs what I call REAL publicity! Even though there was something lost in translation between me, you, the article and the readersÂWow! What a statement it makes for the readership and strength of your column!!! We really do appreciate the pub and it sure did get the word out to folks that never knew we existed. We will benefit from this growth pain and become better and stronger because of it. I generally need a good swift kick in the pants and I sure got it! Thanks a lot. Many peopleÂs lives will be touched for the good by coming to the MTPS so before we get too wrapped up in the few negatives of the day letÂs remember to put things in their proper perspective and focus on the positives in this big picture that will surely come as a result of it. I know that I saw several others that helped with dinner but like I said, I didnÂt see much of the Swap Saturday. I know that I also spied countless others picking up the slack and busting their humps by taking on different responsibilities as they arose. IÂd sure like to name each of you personally but my memory is still a little blurry about the whole event! I realize that IÂm forgetting the names and faces of many who dared to roll up their sleeves and jump into the fray and I apologize for that but you do have my most heartfelt thanks. Suffice to say that this was a HUGE group effort on a lot of peopleÂs part and I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for carrying this Swap and me on your shoulders. To everyone that attended: Everybody from the "old guard" to the "first-time newbieÂs", thank you for coming and sharing your plants, food, wisdom, advice, hospitality and good will. We can all agree that this event is about people that have a common bond of growing stuff and sharing it with others. You are one incredibly diverse group that comes together crossing all lines and every type of stratification just to be generous to each other! You are all the most selfless and magnanimous folks around. Where else can so many different people and backgrounds meet under one umbrella and kick off a day that is so cool for EVERYBODY? If your heart and spirit arenÂt lighter and uplifted by the fellowship with these, your swapping buddies, then you need to check yourself and look hard into the mirror. For those that couldnÂt attend because of circumstances beyond their control: To Mona and David especially (we love you so much) but no less to Doug and Bec & the kids, Cheryl & the kids, Ann Bell (who donated tons of stuff) and all the scores of other regulars that really wanted to be there but couldnÂtÂ.you were sorely missed. We benefit from your presence and are diminished by your absence. Did I miss anybody? IÂm sure I did. A big "Thank you so much" to all of you for your support, thoughts and prayers. IÂm sure youÂre sick of hearing it but this is why I always say (over and over and over and overÂ.) "YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST" !!!!!! Jeff