Dianne - Mark didn't answer your question, but the answer is "yes". The DeLand Farmers Market on Wednesdays is at the Fairground. I have been away on vacation to Virginia. We checked out Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, and the Yorktown battlefield sites. The area has lots of planted fields of tobacco, wheat, and corn. It was a very nice area to visit. After growing bush lima beans last year, and getting no harvest, I am proud to say that the Black Jungle Butterbean seeds that Silvia sent me produced nicely. Thanks so much Silvia. I didn't take a picture of my harvest because they look just like Luthur's photo. Luthur - What is the difference between the Alabama butterbean and the Black Jungle? In you picture, they look the same. I see that you have replanted. Do you think that I could get another crop if I planted another row soon? Last year my fall plantings of Black Jungle beans bloomed but wouldn't set to make pods. Silvia - As I mentioned before, my Seminole pumpkins turned out to look like the seeds got crossed with a butternut squash. No complaints about production. These are from only 2 plants: Silvia - I have so many figs ripening now too. Your fig preserves look delicious. Do you use packaged pectin in your recipes? When I make calamondin marmalade I don't have to add any so I was wondering if figs have a lot of natural pectin. Loved your vacation photos! Christine

Hi Otis! I always try to check any threads that are active 'cause you never know what will pop up! It is really hard to define how much water is 'enough' without it being 'too much', but I'll try. You want your plants to get enough water that they grow and produce melons. Beyond that, you want to give them as little water as possible. I water the vines more early on in the growth cycle when they are actively growing and flowering. Once the flowers set fruit I try to water little, if any. Of course, in a drought year like this one, I will probably have to water some just to keep the things alive. How can you tell if your melons aren't getting enough water? Once fruit has set, it should develop in the proper watermelon shape....which, of course, is long and oval for many melons, but short and round for some of the smaller melons like Sugar Baby and Black Tail Mountain. If the melons are misshapen, maybe curving like a gourd, for example, they need more water. By the way, once you see a fruit form on the vine, you can expect to have a ripe melon in approximately 45 days. So, if you noticed when the fruit formed, you can water during the first 25 days or so, and cut back the watering to almost nothing during the last 15 or 20 days. Sometimes that works. How to know if you watered too much? The flavor of the watermelon will be "watered down". I think learning how much water is enough is really a process of trial and error. Muskmelons, by the way, don't like excess water any more than watermelons do! It is actually easier to get good melon crops in dry years, because then you are in control of the moisture they get! I hope your melons are doing well and taste yummy when you get to harvest and eat them! Dawn

Hi Jules...Yes I agree, you have probably got that dear little birdy for life. It is so cute they are a joy those magpies we dont have many here any more They go over the road now, too many other birds here, hubby used to feed them all the time. They used to come over at 3pm every afternoon as they knew hubby used to dig up lawn grubs for them. Very clever birds. I miss them, Good luck with your little one you are doing a fantastic job. Well done ......Cheers..MM.

Lea the storms missed us here. There was wind damage in about 4 locations, 3 in Ohio, and 1 fairly far north of here. We got a hint of rain. between the time I decided to go out and get the pulled onions and when I actually got out there. I think we got about 1/100" We need rain bad here. Good news is we're in the middle of 6 days in a row no hotter than the 70's. The city closed all the pools. I got a letter from my health insurer approving "Removing and Replacing your single lead Defibrillator". I only bring this up because I jokingly said they R&R'd my pacemaker not knowing how up I am on current terminology.