Spring Is Right Around The Corner
Greetings from the island everyone. I hope all of you are doing well and impressed your Sweetie on Valentines Day. . you know the saying, “happy girlfriend/wife, happy life”. Fifty bucks in flowers and candy (or even better a handmade item ), is such a small price to pay for happiness!
Last week I was literally stranded on the island, unable to get my boat off, because of extremely low tides. The previous back to back to back hard blowing northers pushed and kept the tide out for five consecutive days, making it impossible to even float my boat thru the narrow shallow inlet to access the deeper bay waters. On my last day of chicken feed, I was finally able to lift the motor and pole out of the cut and then pole back in later that afternoon. It’s unusual for the tide to stay that low for that long, but once again, Mother Nature calls the shots.
The one advantage to the low tide were the exposed oysters along the shorelines and the inlet cuts. So being one of my very favorite foods, I slipped on the hip wading boots and gathered up three dozen. And luckily, without jabbing the oyster knife into my hand, those plump beauties were shucked and fried later that same evening. Nothing better than a mess of fresh fried salty oysters!
Well, Spring will be here before we know it, yay! I’m sure a few stray cold northers will blow thru before, and even after, it officially arrives, but it’s still on the way. This past week I planted three low chill hour peach trees that I had ordered, in hopes of getting them to produce. I don’t get many chill hours ( between 32-45 degrees F, Nov-Mar ), so it’s difficult for fruit trees to flower and produce fruit. That’s why I’m hoping these varieties, Eva’s Pride and Florida Prince, requiring 100-150 chill hours, will do well on the island. All I can do is keep trying different varieties until I find one or two that will thrive out here.
I’ll start my tomato seeds this week, probably 8-10 different varieties, and then put the plants, 20-30 of them, in the ground around April 1. There’s just something about growing a delicious vine ripened tomato from a tiny seed that brings a true sense of gardening satisfaction. The watermelons and cantaloupes, started also from seeds, will get underway about a month after the tomato plants go into the ground.
The injury to my lower leg that I suffered the middle of December has healed very nicely, leaving only a small scar and a depression from the large amount if drained fluids. That was one freak accident that I don’t care to have happen again!
Well that’s it from the island for now, everyone take care and smile for Spring being on the way.
