Yep, we are doing a lot better.
Texas Gardening Forum #1 yesterday 1-10-08
I was working yesterday and couldn't post much! Today isn't much better. My oldest has a doctor appt. and then both girls go to their teen theater class for 4 hours! Then, it is off to work. I tried to start a couple of threads the other day. Check out 'my boring backyard' and post some responses! (It is ok with me if you just want to say, "yes, your backyard is quiet boring!" or "yawn, I'm bored just reading your post!" HeHe!
=)Necia
Necia, I did respond and i think you are doing a great job.
Yes, Josephine! You and Cocoa replied! I am trying real hard to think of posts to start that may be interesting to get our conversations a goin'! Wait, I just had a thought! I'm going to start a new thread now!
Necia
Good deal Necia.
:-) Love all the new threads.
Me too.
glad to see our forum waking up again...
Well, we were #3 again yesterday 1-15-08 so keep up the good work.
Josephine.
Hey Guys, we moved up to #2 yesterday 1-16-08
Just under Games with 570 posts
Texas Gardening Forum 436 posts.
Good job, keep it up.
Josephine.
You guys just don't have enough to do. You need to pile in the car and come help me squeeze orange juice. I still have 12 bushels to finish.
jameso
No James, the object is to encourage member participation, and sometimes it is easier to put in a word than a whole sentence or paragraph.
You should try it in your spare moments, it is fun.
By the way, where did you get all those oranges?
Josephine.
I'm on a school board of a charter school in the Rio Grande Valley, Weslaco and McAllen to be exact so I spend about a week a month down there for the past 10 years. They have a big citrus industry down there & I usually buy about 25 bushes of Marrs oranges each year and a few bushels of the rio red grapefruit. You would not believe the difference in taste of the oranges as compared to what you get in the supermarket. Doesn't even taste like the same fruit. These are as sweet as honey. I usually have about 300 half gallon containers of orange juice in my freezers which is a three year supply in case they have a freeze down there and lose trees. I try to squeeze about a half bushel each night until I finish. My wife thinks I'm nuts.
Jameso
Well, it does seem a little excessive, but if you love it and you are no overcrowding your freezers, that is o.k. but don't forget that drinking your food can lead to a lot of calories.
It only recently came to my attention there is even compeition between other forums, likely only the regional ones, for who tops the most posts. Seems funny to me! Glad to see the Texas spirit can't be dampered. :)
Well Tir, it seemed silly to me too, but the Texas forum was almost at a stand still, so anything we can do to encourage participation withing the rules is good.
It certainly seems to have helped, so let us have fun.
Josephine.
You can have fun! Wasn't saying "no fun" ;)
Likewise, I've tried to bump up the forum with thread topics, some even borrowed from other forums that continue to bring about conversation on those same topics. Here, they seem to fall by the wayside.
Hi Tir! Nice to 'see' you!
Necia
You are right Tir, I know you have tried, I guess we have to keep trying until we hit the right note.
:) The games are fun!
Help. Is there anyone out here? I've told my wife that there must have been an alien abduction. I'm following this thread and all of a sudden "puff". Must have happened at Stephenville.
Jameso
One member had issues with some of the threads - so we have started a bunch more about Texas and Gardening. The issues was some threads were not on "gardening" and "Texas" - so we are working to change that.
Yes, the other treads were moved to the games forum, but we are not playing them any more.
I worked in the yard today...weeding and tearing out (or TRYING to!!) an area that is overrun with EE's. Did anyone else get to work outside today?
I didn't get to work in the yard because instead we went on a walk to a nature preserve to learn to identify plants in winter, we had a great time, and saw a lot of neat things, including some beautiful mosses, and endemic yuccas.
I will post some pictures when I get them up.
The weather was great, sunshine and no wind.
Josephine.
Are you going to the Roundup, Jo?
Yes, to the College Station, the Waxahachi one too. So I am going to be quite busy.
Josephine
If you don't get the bee brush from Mitch, and if I didn't trash an extra one I had, I'll save it for you. It's about 4 foot tall. I had three but decided one was enough due to my limited space and my desire to acquire other plants that are more east texas host plants. I feel pretty sure I didn't throw both away. I'll also save the giant coneflower plant, or cabbage plant, for when I see you. I think it will take the seeds awhite to get to the size the plant is. It's pretty big also and I've got quite a few of those. Hopefully I'll make it to one of the swaps, but once tax season starts its hard to get away.
Mitch, I went ahead and bought the lead plant seeds after talking to you but if no butterflies use it this year I'll have to send people after you.
Jameso
Thank you James, you are so thoughtful, I surely hope to see you at one of the swaps.
Josephine.
James - lol - they will come.
HEY someone that is close to Tyler...WOW!!!!
Hi Jameso...ya gotta get around to the other topics in the Texas Forum so we all know you are here *LOL*
I read your post about the oranges and grapefruit and you are soo right.
My folks are down in the Mission area right now and have a grapefruit and fresh orange juice every day.
they found a place near by them that they can pick their own grapefruit for 14cents a pound so I am figuring they will be bringing me a far amount on the way back to Illinois.
I"m trying to get them to go to nurseries down there and bring me back orange and grapefruit trees LOL but I know over in Kilgore I can get ones that grow in potsLOL
Hello Mibus2
So your parents are winter Texans. I hope they do bring you some oranges and grapefruit. The grapefruit are always good, but the Marrs oranges are almost out of season. They are much sweeter than the Valencias which are just comming in season. At 14 cents per pound is pretty cheap in Mission. I used to buy my bulk oranges there several years ago but they were charging 14.00 to 18.00 per bushel then. I stay in Weslaco each month which is only 30 minutes from Mission and I've only been paying 7.00 per bushel and that's up a dollar from previous years. Also tell them they need to go to Harlingen and eat Mexican food at Los Asidas...they won't regret it. If you are in to butterfly or bird watching you should go visit them. There's several butterfly centers you can walk thru and see all kinds that are there as they pass on their migratory routes. that's very big business down there. Birdwatchers come from all over the U S to look at the birds. If they do bring you Marrs oranges and you juice them, You'll start spitting on the orange juice in the grocery store shelves.
I have some friends in Flint and they groan about the property taxes there. Sorry to ramble.
Jameso
We like rambling. That's how we learn about so many things. No way I could have posed a question to you that would have given that much information.
Ramble on.
Christi
Well James I know they are staying at the Americana RV Resort this year in Mission I forget where they were last year but they only go for the month of January.
They used to send grapefruit from Mission Growers but mom said they were outrageous in price
am talking to her right now on the cell and she is wanting to know the name of the market you get them from?
she says there is a place in Donna they go to that cores pineapple LOL
she is saying they are gonna go get grapefruit before they head back LOL and she has the book open to the RGV birding center down there and was talking about going to it and there is one just down the road on Bentsen palm state park LOL adn some in Pharr too
Phyllis
Phyllis
I get the oranges and grapefruit at Thompson Groves in Weslaco. If your parents want to drive to Weslaco (should only be 30 minues max from Mission) towards Harlingen on the Expressway, they will exit at highway 1015 which is called the international highway because it goes to Progresso, Mexico. They'll go to the right after exiting. After they cross the old freeway which will be the first light after getting on 1015 they will see a sign that says Thompson's groves in about 1/2. Ftom there they follow the signs for a few blocks. I don't have their number handy or else I'd give it to you. When I go to my office in the morning I'll get it to you. I think the place they told you about in Donna where they core the pineapples is a vegatable and flea market. I've been there many times and sometimes the pineapple smell is so sweet. If they can get you some Valley lemons (Meyers variety)and Valley avacodes you'll like those. If they want to call me my office number is 903-759-0091.
Jameso
alrighty then ....she says yes to the place in Donna so she has made a note on the lemons and avocados. She says there is a girl there that used to work at a pecan/nut place in Pharr and is now in Donna and gave them a card so if they go back and show her the card they will get a 10% discount on pecans from her.
And they are going to go find the grove tomorrow.
Gee maybe I should talk to you about your job and what it entails...I drove a school bus in Illinois for 12 yrs and was a certified school bus instructor for 4 yrs and now I am driving for TISD now here....I could handle going down there every month LOL
Lord..You must be one patient person to drive a school bus. From what I see in the papers and hear on TV, many times that's a war zone. Evidently many of the kids are very tough and unruly and many times the school administration does not back their employees, regardless of what happens. I'm on the school board of a charter school board down there and the chief financial officer and am also hired to be kind of an internal auditor. Mainly to make sure our superintendent spends money appropriately and to make sure we stay out of trouble with the State Education Agency and Internal Revenue. I try to spend one week a month down there, but I have an accounting practice here in Longview which I hope to get rid of about three hundred clients the next two years. I really have more clients than I can handle. My yard's really a mess because I haven't had time the past two years to really take care of my plants. Even though I work a lot when I'm in the Valley, it's such a neat place plus I don't have to take 50 calls a day. they always have some crop coming in every month. ou can see truckloads of corn, cabbage, sugar cane, carrots, citrus, onions, or whatever. Plus you can slip accross the border into Mexico to eat or to shop. Neat place.
ahh but now 2008 you have to have a passport to get into Mexico.....as for the school bus driving I've been lucky with the kids I have had back in Illinois and down here. In Tyler they have a school police department so any issues they are called to where the bus is.... kids could go to court and have a fine or public service ....But I have a monitor that rides with me and her and I don't seem to have any problems
Accounting uh such fun I worked seasonal help last year for a place back in Illinois ...got to double check the papers for any errors the accountants might have made in figuring your taxes. they seem to think they bring stuff in one day and it is ready the next. Thank goodness for calculators math has never been my subject LOL
I haven't even thought about where we are going this year to get ours done....will be fun since we have to file Illinois state taxes on top of federal, plus a few questions and details in the selling, moving and buying here. ( no I am not thinking of asking you you have enough )
now as for Mexico my mom takes vases down with her and gets them painted while they go shopping ....I sent some with her this time since I gave the 2 I had back in northern Ill away afraid they wouldn't make the move.
they picked me up one 10# bag of the oranges and I tired talking them into a dwarf tree to bring back for me only 18.00 but no such luck they say find someplace around here that has dwarf trees for sale.
18.00 - that is great... there is a place in Tyler but that want that just for the shipping!
ok so the name of this place please?????
I'm looking for the dwarf Marrs orange and Rio red grapefruit trees LOL and maybe lemons if I can talk them into them