Serving Corn Beef in Walkertown Area
Blackberry Winter has arrived
Before the nights of May get warmer, we have to go through "Blackberry Winter." This is the time when wild blackberries are white with blooms along the fields, meadows, and country roads of Surry County. As they bloom for the next two or three weeks, we can expect a few more chilly days and nights.
A trip to the Surry strawberry patch
The scent of the wild honeysuckle mingled with the sweet aroma of strawberries emitting from fields of pick-your-own strawberry farms in the rolling hills of Surry County on a May morning is an experience to remember. Whether you pick your own or buy them ready-picked, it is a fun place to visit. There is something extra special about picking your own berries and being close to them and getting the stain and aroma on your fingertips.
Total eclipse of moon is May 15-16
A total eclipse on the moon will occur on Sunday and Monday, May 15-16, and it is an event that will last from 9:26 p.m. Sunday until 1:55 a.m. Monday. The length of the lunar event will be four hours and 19 minutes. The eclipse will be visible all over North America and begins at 9:26 p.m. Sunday night, Eastern Daylight Savings Time, when the moon enters the penumbra and at 10:27 p.m. the moon enters the umbra. The moon leaves the umbra at 1:55 a.m. Monday. The moon leaves the penumbra at 2:50 a.m.. Totality will last one hour and 24 minutes. The eclipse ends at 2:50 a.m. Monday. In referring to the penumbra, which is the Latin word for "Shadow" or the darkest part of the shadow where the light is completely blocked. The umbra is the area not only some but all the light is blocked.
Strawberry cream salad
We kick of the 2022 season of the strawberry harvest with a strawberry cream salad. You will need two quarts of fresh strawberries, two three-ounce boxes strawberry Jello, two cups boiling water, one cup cottage cheese, one pint dairy whipping cream, one cup sugar, one teaspoon strawberry flavoring. Cap and cut strawberries into halves. Stir the berries into one cup sugar. Dissolve Jello into two cups water and one teaspoon of strawberry flavoring. Chill the Jello in refrigerator until it is slightly thickened. Stir in the strawberries and cottage cheese. Beat dairy whipping cream until thick. Fold whipped cream with tablespoon of sugar added to it and fold the whipped cream into the Jello mixture. Pour into a bowl sprayed with Pam. Chill in refrigerator until firm. Makes eight servings. Keep salad refrigerated.
The sweet perfume of honeysuckles
The first warm evenings of May evokes the fresh scent of the wild honeysuckles and their blossoms wafting in the twilight breezes. The white and coral blooms are things of beauty. In the twilight air of the deck, they are a treat to the nostrils. Pick a bud vase of honeysuckle blossoms and place them in the kitchen, den or bedroom for a sweet spring perfume.
Nights become warmer
The nights of May are now beginning to have a hint of warmth. This is good news for the warm weather vegetable crops. Frost danger should be a thing of the past. Green beans in such varities as the Top Crop, Strike, Tenderette, Kentucky Wonder Bush, Blue Lake Bush and Derby can now be planted. Wait another ten days to plant squash, cucumbers, pepper, tomato plants and egg plants. By that time, soil temperatures will be consistent and warm and so will the nights.
Starting a container or a pot of Coleus
Coleus or Josephs coat adorns any deck or porch with a coat of many colors. Coleus comes in colors of pink, cream, maroon, yellow, mint green, red, purple and lavender. The colors are framed in a mostly green border. As they continue to grow, they produce stems of very light purple flowers. When you continue to pinch these flowers off more leaves begin to form and you will have plenty of foliage till frost.
Planting summer squash for sonkers
If you live in Surry County, you are no stranger to sonkers because they are a tradition as well as a treat. My mother-in-law, a native of Surry County, made squash sonkers with a layer of biscuit dough and fresh summer squash, milk (evaporated), butter, vanilla, sugar and thickened with corn starch. It was unforgettable and we still remember its wonderful flavor. You can use many fruits and a few vegetables such as squash and sweet potatoes to make sonkers. We think squash make the best because they are so unique. The very first sonkers made way back when, were probably made from squash simply because they were so available and everyone had plenty of them. You can use canned squash to make them all year long. The season for planting summer squash is almost here with the soil warming up. Several varieties of summer squash make better sonkers than others. The best varities for sonkers are the straight-necks simply because they are meaty with less moisture. Several varities that meet these conditions are Early Prolific straight-necks, Saffron by Burpee Seed, Enterprise by Park Seed. These are all straight-neck varities and they can be split and seeds removed easily for a more tasty sonker, meaty, without seed or much water. Better squash make tastier sonkers. Long live the sonker!
Make waves with the wave petunias
Of all the petunias, the wave variety is the best, especially the hot pinks. These waves are available in several colors including white. They produce bountiful hanging baskets of continual blooms that cascade over the sides of the baskets. You can also set several out in large pots or containers. Feed them with Flower-Tone organic flower food once each month. As they finish their bloom stage, pinch of spent blooms to promote new blooms. As the season advances, trim off long runners to strengthen blooms for a longer season.
Irish potatoes greening up
Warm soil will cause potato vines to grow and also attract Colorado potato beetles. If you detect any, spray a mist of Sevin spray directly on the foliage. Check soil underneath the vines to see if any potatoes are forming. Pull the soil up to the base of the plants on each side of the furrow.
Planting a piece of true American history
The American Bee Balm plant has been an important plant in our country's history since before the revolutionary war. It's leaves were used as a substitute for tea after British tea was dumped from their ships into the Boston Harbor in the Boston Tea Party. This act was done in protest to British taxation as well as British dominance. American colonist boiled the leaves of the bee balm to make a form of tea. It most likely was a common plant that grew wild in the New England woodlands. You can plant a piece of American history on your front porch and enjoy pretty pink or lavender flowers and mint green leaves all spring and summer and perhaps make some bee balm tea. Most nurseries, garden shops, hardwares, Home Depot, Lowe's Home Improvement and Ace Hardware have it. Transplant them from the small pot they came in to a larger container filled with a fine textured potting medium. It will grow fast after being transplanted. Feed it with Flower-Tone organic flower food once each month. Some varities will grow taller than others. You can winter them over by trimming them back and move to a protected area on the porch and cover with a towel on freezing nights. We have one that is several years old and produces new foliage every spring. We believe the American colonists used the taller varities.
Setting out a few early tomato plants
It is still a little early for setting out the bulk of the tomato plants harvest because nights are still inconsistently cool, but a few varities such as Early Girl, Celebrity and Oregon Spring which are determinants can be set out for an early harvest. Set out only what you can cover for warmth at night. You will need just a few because in a few more weeks, you can set out the main harvest of tomatoes. You can stake the early tomatoes and cover with plastic bags (clear). Cut clear plastic bags and cover soil around base of plants to promote warmth in the soil. Anchor bags with a layer of soil. Feed with Tomato-Tone organic tomato food.
Hoe hoe hoedown
"Doing the math." On the first day of school the teacher of the first grade said, "If anyone has to go to the bathroom, hold up two fingers." A small voice from the back of the room said, "How will that help?"
"Not me." The preacher said, "Prepare to meet thy maker. Every single member of this congregation is going to die." One man in the congregation seemed to enjoy the preachers words, "What's so funny?" the pastor asked. The man answered, "I'm not a member of this congregation."
"Sign me up, sir!" Army recruiter: "What do you mean you want to join the army? You're still in high school, you are only an infant!" Teenager: "Yes, sir, I want to join the infantry."
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com/opinion/107401/blackberry-winter-is-arriving-2
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