ps

Oops, forgot to say, had to commit more blossomcide! Oh those flowers are so pretty, such a shame to pick them, but the plants do better.

Dawn, you made me laugh with your celery dreams! Try planting it now, hon, and see what you get--after all, if your frost-free fall lasts until October, you will have *some* celery even if it's skinny and short... and if your gamble pays off well, you'll have the celery of your dreams! Otherwise, you can wait until very early spring and start it under some form of row cover, either the fabric kind or else the fancy pants recycler's bell jar substitute--yep! Ye old plastic milk jug (with the bottom cut out!) buried around the plant, lol... You take the lid off when it's bright and sunny and close it back up at night, then remove it entirely when the weather is frost free. High tech, nuthin' but the best for this recycle girl! *wink and a grin*

Cindy, purslane is really pretty good; it tastes like a lemony spinach, which is why it's so good in my spinach pies. The stems are a little crunchy like celery (not quite as crunchy, just reminiscent) and also they have a milder flavor than the leaves. I took off the flower buds, then chopped the leaves and stems and cooked them with the spinach in olive oil and lemon juice--they were doggoned good before I put them in the pies!

Pam and Ursy, I am SO with you on the heat. It was pretty hard to take the last couple weeks, but nowhere near as bad as I'm used to. I have to say, I did mourn when the last of the snow melted and I knew there wouldn't be any more for months.

Although if we got snow here like you get there, Pam, I think I might change my mind! *big eyes*

Welcome to my blog, The Queen of Fifty Cents! Tis lovely to have you here and I REALLY enjoyed your blog also!

Celery

According to my garden books, celery needs rich soil, regular water, and liquid fertilizer every two to three weeks. It likes long periods of warmth but not high heat... that means if your summers get above 95 degrees F, you would probaly do better to grow celery as a spring or fall crop. It's slow to get started, so most people probably buy seedlings; the garden books recommended that.

Celery, being a heavy plant, tends to fall over, so most people hill it up (heap soil around the base) as it grows. This also gives you white bases. If you wish the stalks to be white farther up, you can wrap them with a bottomless milk carton or something similar, but be sure the leaves still get sunlight, and allow for the plant to expand as it grows.

If you are an organic gardener and don't wish to use chemical fertilizers, you can use fish or seaweed emulsion or compost tea as the liquid fertilizer. You can also dig in a regular fertilizer if you would rather not bother with liquid.

Let me know what kind of climate you're in, Dawn, and I'll look for more specific info.