That's the earliest.......

[addy1]

Teemkay, buy no honey from the store, it can be from anywhere and a lot of it has corn syrup in it. Farmers market only. My allergies hit when I left dry Arizona moved to damp pollen soaked Maryland. I was raised here, do not recall issues when living here, but bodies do change.
My eyes drain, nose drains, sore throat etc. So far this year, we have tons of pollen, not having one issue with allergies, did good last year to. I have been eating local honey, almost daily for a few years now. And I LOVE my own honey, so darn sweet.

CE if it crystallizes, warm in just warm water, heating it will destroy the good stuff in the honey. I just use crystallized, I like the sweet crunch. The honey crystallizes mainly due to the filtering, better filtering, less crystallizing. Also the higher the fructose content the less crystallizing. The honey we got last year was black locust, mainly, which has a high fructose content.

And to get the most benefit from the honey, teemkay, you can use it in tea, but if it is real hot tea, it destroys the benefits. Use with only cool stuff.

 

[HARO]

And I LOVE my own honey, so darn sweet.

Yes, yes... we know!! He's a really great guy!
John

 

[CountryEscape]

LOL, Haro!!!
Addy, I had no idea putting it in the microwave killed the good stuff, but guess it doesn't matter, since it's not local from Farmer's market, but good to know for future reference. I am going to get some this year that is locally grown. I know a person needs to get it from local around their own area for it to make a difference, otherwise I would get it from UT! I sometimes would get a few tablespoons of their raw stuff and just sit down and nibble on it all evening long.

 

[teeemkay]

Good suggestions from all--thanks. Can't wait for farmers markets to get up and running.

I noticed today the irises in the pond have already sprouted. The leaves are about 7-8" tall with plenty more room to grow. Haven't seen much from the corkscrew rush yet. The fish also have come up to the surface to say hi and look for food a couple times this week. Last year I don't think I started feeding them until late April, so they have a little longer to wait.

 

[tbendl]

I've got a lily blooming and we had a frost warning last night.

 

[CountryEscape]

Exciting, T! My lilies are just beginning to start growing in the pots. I need to divide some of them, and others look like they are not coming back, but they probably will. It's still early. Thought we had heavy frost yesterday morning, but this morning it's in the 40's and looks the same. I think it was just very heavy dew. Whew, because I didn't cover my little patio peach, which is beginning to bloom. Weeping Cherry and regular and weeping Red Buds are also beginning to bloom. Simply love this time of year!
Went on my yearly trip to Garden Center about 2 hours north of me. Their stuff is usually pretty expensive, but it's usually neat stuff that I bring home. I've gotten some really cool ceramic pots there for 75% off, that were very slightly cracked or chipped. Yesterday I got this very cool Banana Plant called Ensete Maurelii. It was so different than all the other Musa type bananas, which were much narrower at the base (like less than half as thick) and leaves tend to fold in half lengthwise. I'm in love with this new plant! Yes, it's tropical, so can only go out for about 3 months of the summer, but is going to go well in my large pots on my deck, which this year will have a "tropical" theme!

 

[tbendl]

It's beautiful! I love the fat red base!