Late Blight Detected Already!

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Grrrrr! Here we go again!

University of Maryland: Late Blight of Tomato

"Unfortunately late blight was detected in a greenhouse in St. Mary's County on May 7, 2010. The grower has taken measures to eradicate the disease. We don't know at this time whether it will spread, or if the grower will be able to contain the outbreak. We also do not know if this outbreak is related to the 2009 outbreak. We are monitoring the situation."

And from Louisiana: Tomato Blight Threatening South Louisiana Gardens

"Scientists at the LSU AgCenter recently confirmed the presence of late blight on tomatoes in home gardens in Terrebonne, Lafayette, Livingston and Tangipahoa parishes. Symptoms include black lesions on stems and petioles, blackening of the fruit, and dark, dead areas on the foliage.

“The disease is probably being introduced on infected transplants, so be sure to check tomato plants for symptoms before you buy them,” said LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Don Ferrin."

Arghhhhh!!!

Keep an eye on your plants, people, especially if you've purchased (or plan on it) and didn't grow from seed. That's not to say you won't get it if you grew from seed, or that you shouldn't be vigilant, you should. One gust of wind and . . .

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May Apples, Cat Birds And Wire Worms

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Just a quick update -
Busy, busy!!!
I've gotten tons of WinterSown stuff transplanted to the flowerbeds . . . finally! This weather has been crazy. We had another freeze Wednesday night, so I was very glad I was a slacker getting things planted.

Time for some crappy pics. I think someone messed with the camera settings and I can't get a good pic of anything lately!

I finally got a bloom from the May Apple. Yay!



Unfortunately, something ate the buds off the Virginia Bluebells and there's no sign of the Blood Root this year. ~sigh~

But the Cat Birds are back (my nosey birdie), so that's another yay! They haven't been here long enough yet to start getting comfortable with me enough to almost let me touch them. It won't take them long. It never does :)



And (gross out warning!!!) the wire worms are already out there in huge numbers. I don't mind spiders, snakes, bugs, but these things totally gross me out! Ick, ick, ick! I imagine you're pretty darn glad that this pic is awful . . .



Happy (spring has started - for real) Gardening!
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The Tuesday Chuckle - A Little Early

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Since Tuesday is the first day for a while that we'll be having some nice weather (snow on Mother's day...grrrr!), I'll most certainly be spending every waking moment messing about outside. So, enjoy the Tuesday Chuckle a few days early!

A New Garden Infestation:


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I Want To CRY!

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I adore the country. I absolutely love it.
My parents lived in town, but I spent a good ninety percent of my childhood on my grandparents' dairy farm.
I had the best experiences of my life running across open fields, squeezing cow plops between my toes (what?!), learning to grow things, care for animals - both wild and domestic - breathing the fresh, clean air.

Wide open space was exactly THE reason DH and I decided to buy the old homestead. It was built back in the 1700's and began as an apple orchard before it became a working dairy farm. The land has been sold off in chunks to other farmers over the last few years to be used for pasture or crops, but there is still lots and lots of open space, the nearest neighbor a farmer a quarter mile away (and related).

This is the view across the road from my front yard, from one side to the other:









And this is what suddenly showed up the other day:



It says, "FOR SALE BY OWNER".

Oh. My. God.
Nooooo!!!!
The only thing I can imagine is some big freaking housing development or a f-ing Wally World sitting directly across the road.
It's being sold by the acre = Neighbors?! I don't WANT no stinking neighbors! They ruin everything. They just do. People are NOT smart. And they have dogs, and kids, and pesticides, and weed killers, and invasives. If I wanted to live in the hood, I would have bought a house there!
UGH!!
Will one of you gardeners please, please (oh, God, I'm begging you!) buy it!

I want to cry! I think I'll go do just that, right now . . .

Mr Bean's Lost Rhodie - Found

Coolio!

Exotic Victorian flower lost 50 years ago is unearthed in English country garden.

"A rare 'lost' species of the plant, thought to have died out 50 years ago, is causing a buzz after being unearthed at a country house in Dorset.

Ray Abraham, discovered the 100-year-old Rhododendron beanianum just two months after taking up his role as head gardener at Minterne House. It is thought to be the only one in existence in the country."

See, gardeners really will save the world.
:)

Happy (lost and found) Growing!
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