UPBEAT TIMES • January 2014 • 21


Home The Garden • ConsiderThe Garden


Santa Rosa, CA. ~ Silvery ribbons of clouds lace through the azure blue sky, breezes dance with the winter chill. Bright orange Persimmons soften, crew-cuts of cro- cus poke through the dark earth and Asian


pear buds


quietly swell, dot- ting the dormant branches. The ‘root children’ are yawn- ing and stretching as things begin to slowly awaken around us in the garden. January is an exciting month and the nurseries are filled with fruit trees, berry bushes and more to tempt your sens- es. Whether you are planting a row of berry brambles or a small antique apple orchard, choices await. Berries are a wonderful addition to the fruit garden. Black Satin thorn less black- berries, Canby red raspber- ries, Cumberland Black Cap, Ollalie blackberries, yellow raspberries,


loganberries, red and black currents, you decide. Look for thorn less berries, not quite as sweet but much easier to handle. A good pair of protec- tive elbow-high gloves can be essential to your berry bram- ble armor. Berries require lots of sunshine as well as a soil rich in organic matter and bone meal. Add plenty of acidic peat moss to the soil mix and prepare the site before planting. It is recom- mended to plant two or more varieties for best pollination. To ensure a long harvest sea- son choose early, mid and late kinds. These shrubs not only provide an attractive addition to the garden, they will reward you with plump, tasty organic fruit rich in antioxidants. There are asparagus roots to plant now with a dependable harvest for up to 20 years! When preparing the aspara-


gus bed, dig trenches one foot wide by 10 inches deep, spac- ing roots five feet apart.


Fill trenches with four inches of JOKES & Humor # 9 by Kimberly Childers • kimberlychilders@att.net


Babe Nectarine and Pixzee Peach are dwarf varieties per- fect for smaller gardens. For something new plant Sweet Treat hybrid Pluerry, a cross between plum and sweet cherry, a delicious


combina-


tion. There are many varieties of blueberries to plant now, Brown Turkey figs and pome- granate Explore!


trees too.


fluffy, nitrogen rich soil and plant the roots 12 inches apart. Cover the roots with about two inches of soil, filling the trench slowly as they grow with more good compost-rich garden soil.


the growing tips exposed and water them deeply.


Always leave I rec-


boysenberries,


ommend waiting two years before your first harvest as this will allow them to build an excellent root system. Purple Passion is an exqui- site asparagus and cooks to a bright green color; Apollo has thick, larger spears. If you’re enticed by apples you can plant Fuji, Honey Crisp and Gala, Gravenstien, Pippin and Jonathan. Liberty apples are a favorite for eat- ing fresh. Pink Pearl, an apple variety hybridized in England, has crimson-pink blossoms in spring slowly giving way to a lovely cream and green skinned fruit with pink flesh. Decide on dwarf, semi-dwarf or standard trees depending on your situation and space. Try Mary Washington, Jersey giant and Jersey Supreme asparagus, Imperial Star and Green Globe artichokes, exceptionally


flavorful


Autumn Glow and frost hardy Harcot Apricots from Canada. Chojuro, Shinseiki and Kikusui are crisp, delicious Asian Pears to grow. Nectar


Children make your life important. ~Erma Bombeck UPBEAT TIMES • January 2014 • 21


Blueberries are hand- some, decorative bush- es in the garden land- scape and after shed- ding their fall color, their leafless winter silhouettes are equally orna- mental. Plant them three to five feet apart and offer them a five inch thick mulch of ground bark and peat moss. Keep the weak shoots and dead twigs pruned off and give


these moisture plenty of water. lovers


When you get your plants home be sure to heal them in by covering their bare roots with light soil and/or wood shavings, shielding them from light. Amend your soil before planting by adding peat moss or mushroom compost for easy root expansion. Save the organic all-purpose fertilizer for spring and initially plant them in inexpensive organic garden soil now. Good drain- age is always important. When you’re at the nursery have the experienced nursery profes- sionals prune your plants to stimulate growth and ask questions while you’re there. This January seems a bit like Juneuary! Tiny brown finches and Towhees trill and scatter from the feeders filled with black oil sunflower seeds. Ask for the blessings from Pomona, the obscure Roman goddess of fruit trees, gardens and orchards. It’s the begin- ning of a great new year!


A very slightly built bus driver named Bob was running his route one day when a big hulk of a guy got on. The man was


six feet-eight, built like a wrestler and had arms that hung down to the ground. He glared at the diminutive driver and said, “Big John doesn’t pay!” and sat down at the back. The very fright-


ened bus driver was upset, but decided it would not be smart to argue with Big John. It became a daily event. Big John would get on, say “Big John doesn’t pay!” and sit in the back. And each day, Bob got a little more upset about being taken advantage


of. Finally Bob could stand it no longer. He signed up for body building courses, plus karate and judo. By the end of the summer, he had become quite strong. What’s more, he felt really good about himself.


So on a Monday morning, when Big John once again got on the bus and said, “Big John doesn’t pay!” Bob stood up, glared back at the passenger and screamed, “And why not?” With a surprised look on his face, Big John replied, “Big John has a bus pass.”.


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