It's a Blackberry Weekend..........

The blackberries are ready........we must pick this weekend.........
Oh my aching back...........
Oh my aching belly..........
Oh Boy.!!!!!!!!!!

Yup...It is Blackberry Season.............

Yes, they are ripening fast in the blistering sun.........fortunately there still is enough moisture in the soil to support nice fat berries...Yum, Yum............

Corn Pollen.............

Are your eyes feeling a little itchy these days...........maybe it is corn pollen...... The pollen below is from the tassels from 12 corn plants. Imagine the pollen from a 100 acre field on a dry windy day. Makes my eyes water just thinking about it.

Here is how to harvest your own pollen for pollination.
Step 2: Above: pollen dropped from 12 corn tassels that were cut off in the morning and placed in water jars on newspaper for the day. This is the pollen collected that evening. Not the depression in the column of pollen - it is about 1 cm deep.

Step 3: Funnel the pollen into a salt shaker. I use one with smaller openings in the lid.

Step 4: Here is one days collection of pollen. There are several anthers sitting on top of the yellow pollen pile.

Now take this pollen and sprinkle on the nice recepting female silks. Then take a shower....

Step 1: Cut of the tassel with exposed anthers and place in jars containing water.

Under the Yum Yum Tree........Class is Over........

Class is over for another 2 years........so now it is time to sit under the loquat tree, relax and eat......
There is a good crop this year.......big and sweet........some fruit 2 inches in diameter.....
That is a good way to fill the teaching void.....Now is the time to catch up with everything else that needs to be done.......especially relaxing and eating..........
2011 loquat crop.....

In Case You Think Plants Don't Make a Difference....

Below is our teaching greenhouse this past February....... Below is the teaching greenhouse this past March 2011...

Below is the teaching greenhouse this morning (April)........nice and inviting huh.....

Now you just try and tell me that plants DO NOT make a difference....

Those of us who work in the plant world everyday are truly lucky......

Student Planters............

On the next to last lab the students made a few mixed planters for a plant fair booth next week... There were not a lot of nice plants left to choose from but their work is below... Then they took home all the leftover plants.....happiest they had been all semester....they earned it...

Now the teaching greenhouse is again bare.......not sure if that is good or not......

2 more classes.......

It is hot........the pansies are toast now......and I am fading fast too....... But, after today there will be only 1 more class to go before the final.....

Not too soon for me that is for sure....

The students have been fine but it is a strange mix of paying credit students (6) and auditing students (12) who do not pay.... Credits sit in a cluster on one side of classroom and the audits on the other side in another covey - interesting to be sure.....

Oh well we had fun and I may get out of this alive.....I did learn a lot but now am ready to move on....next spring should be less hectic.........NO CLASS.......aaaaahhhhhhhhhhh......

Fish Fillets...............

They may not be the prettiest but they are the tastiest..... Those be my pompano from last week's little trip....this is about a third of what we had......... Had a great trip........perfect water, weather and fish catching......Soon will have the perfect dinner...

Flying Flamingo.............

I saw the flamingo below flying overhead on Saturday morning..........It says "Powerball Now 187 Million".....I guess that means dollars..... Did not get aroung to buying a ticket........cleaned the pool instead.......since you might note that there were no clouds in the sky.........

Last Weather Report

and..........one oak tree was tipped over behind the teaching building....... I feel like tipping over too after this week..........or tipping a few back.........then tipping over........ Time will tell........I won't........ It was a very good week in retrospect........do not want to do it again though..........