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Posted: 4/15/2014 8:23:07 AM EDT
No, seriously; the real killer was the asparagus. Once I started eating the stuff from my garden I just couldn't get myself to pay for the crap in the grocery store anymore. The garden stuff is so much better that the store-bought no longer looks appealing. I only have 1/4 acre yard ...this could be a problem. LOL. The ones I most notice the difference on are:
Blackberries Asparagus tomatoes sugar snaps figs* (hard to find fresh at all) Anybody else run into this? Since I only have a limited amount of space, can you share which produce you notice the most difference in? I'm debating shifting my garden beds to the stuff where it is really noticeable since I don't have room for everything. |
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I would not say it has ruined me, but, I am much less likely to purchase items now that are grown at home. I don;t buy in to the 'taste better' argument as much as the economics of it.
Why buy green onions for 1.99 a bunch, when I have 250 growing in the garden for under 10 bucks? Why buy lettuce, or tomatoes, or peppers when I can grow my own for soooo much lower cost per plant? It's also made me much more aware of what is a natural season for a a plant. For instance, at Wal-Mart yesterday, there were cantaloupes on sale for 1.99 each. Not a bad price, really. A pack of seed will cost a buck, and it takes 90 days of care and feeding. I can grow them, but, it will be 90 days from now before I can harvest any. They are also not a root crop, so, they would just being going in the ground as seed right now, at best. 2 bucks for one right now? Sure, fair enough. A fellow grocer asked me, "Are these from around here, locally?" Uh, no, lady .. they ain't. TRG |
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LOL. No, I don't notice for everything, as I said. Onions, meh, who cares. Potatoes? Again, whatever. Asparagas? I really notice, mainly in the freshness factor. Tomatoes are often a different variety and I notice a taste difference. What I am looking for is what produce DOES have a big difference, so I make sure to include them in my yard if I can.
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Tomatoes. When they ripen fully before being picked they are much better. You pay a lot for that luxury at the grocery store because they won't last long.
Most fruits: same reason as tomatoes. Snow Peas / sugar snap peas, bell peppers, some kinds of lettuce, fresh herbs: they start to lose their crisp pretty quick after being picked. Most root veggies, squash, gourds, beans etc. will not make much difference. |
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No, seriously; the real killer was the asparagus. Once I started eating the stuff from my garden I just couldn't get myself to pay for the crap in the grocery store anymore. The garden stuff is so much better that the store-bought no longer looks appealing. I only have 1/4 acre yard ...this could be a problem. LOL. The ones I most notice the difference on are: Blackberries Asparagus tomatoes sugar snaps figs* (hard to find fresh at all) Anybody else run into this? Since I only have a limited amount of space, can you share which produce you notice the most difference in? I'm debating shifting my garden beds to the stuff where it is really noticeable since I don't have room for everything. View Quote This and sweet corn are big ones for me. |
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Egg tastes like egg to me too (my sister has hens). But 10 minute old asparagus from the garden tastes a heck of a lot better than days old asparagus in the store. It even looks better. The stuff just does not store well. (no pun intended).
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The way food prices are going...we all may have a garden soon!
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The quality of the soil (and thus availability of nutrients) has a real effect on the brix numbers of produce. Higher degrees brix indicates more dissolved solids, including sugar content, and consequently sweeter produce. Soil that has been farmed for many years is likely to be depleted in minor and trace elements, even if the farmer replaces the macro nutrients each season. Garden soil tends to receive more care, plus usually doesn't have the added pressure of having been farmed for many generations so there is a greater availability of micro and trace nutrients. That leads to healthier plants, producing more sugars which we notice in the form of tastier fruits and veggies.
All produce will benefit from better soil but I personally notice the difference vs. store bought most in things that aren't necessarily sweet. For example, lettuce and peppers grown in my garden are noticeably sweeter than those bought in the store. These are produce that even under optimal conditions have pretty low brix readings, so going from say 3 degrees brix to 6 degrees is a large jump. Now, a garden grown water melon is probably sweeter than its store bought counter part but the difference is less noticeable to me because they are both pretty sweet anyway. In the case of the water melon, quantifying the difference may very well require the use of a refractometer since the percentage change between say 12 degrees brix and 15 degrees brix is significantly less than in the previous example, even though the difference between the two is the same. As someone else pointed out, ripeness at picking has an effect on the taste as well. Farmers pick their produce before fully ripe because they need time to ship it and sell it before it goes bad. Gardeners on the other hand can pick stuff when it is at its peak ripeness. As to the Penn and Teller bit, I agree with their sentiment. Organic is mostly a marketing ploy and you just ain't gonna be able to feed the world on organic kale. Organic produce grown in marginal soil isn't going to taste as good as non-organic produce grown in soil with more nutrients available to the plant. Likewise, produce grown in good, compost enriched, highly fertile soil will taste better than produce grown in poor soil, regardless of which is organic and which isn't. The key is the soil, not some label. Feed the soil, the soil will feed the plants, and the plants will feed you. Hydro guys, bugger off, I'm not talking about you. |
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I will only eat asparagus out of my garden. The stuff in the stores here is old dried out crap. When the season is over, it's over for me until next year. |
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Asparagus turns woody/fiberous/coarse when its over a day old.
I planted 200 crowns last year in a new plot, and intend to eat it all. We don't buy tomatoes from the store because they don't taste right either. |
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The way food prices are going...we all may have a garden soon! View Quote As it should be. I'm amazed that people will pay a buck for a rock-hard, tasteless croquet ball of a tomato imported from Chile rather than stick even a single tomato plant in their backyard. My stuff I really notice a difference in are asparagus, tomatoes, sweet corn... and strawberries. Hey, you're "super"mo? I'm only "mid"mo |
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I will only eat asparagus out of my garden. The stuff in the stores here is old dried out crap. When the season is over, it's over for me until next year. View Quote I do agree that fresh snapped, and eaten raw ... asparagus is hard to beat. The store bought, while not dried out entirely ... is just too damn expensive. EDIT: the 'once its over' mantra is becoming mine as well. I am learning to do without tomatoes in the winter, peppers in January. Vegetables, out of season and not from my garden, and becoming rare in the crisper. TRG |
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I have friends and colleagues that flip out over how much better my hen's eggs taste to them compared to 'store bought'.... I mean, they go nuts. Maybe my taste buds are wired funny, but ... egg tastes like egg. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5amLAMRQk5I TRG View Quote Not so much the taste in my opinion but the fresh eggs have stronger whites that don't flow all over the pan. The fresh eggs also poach in water a lot tighter too. Less whisps of whites all over the pan. Up in damn yankee land I've seen the quality of produce decline sharply as prices went up in the last 3-5 years. The major supermarket chains used to be very conscious of the quality in their produce section. Now I'm seeing them willingly putting in 2nd choice goods at premium prices. Add in with the high prices and tight economy people are spending less so the produce I believe sits there longer getting more aged. Last night I was pricing a new tiller for my tractor. leaning hard toward a King Kutter 60" or maybe the 48" offset. |
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Not so much the taste in my opinion but the fresh eggs have stronger whites that don't flow all over the pan. The fresh eggs also poach in water a lot tighter too. Less whisps of whites all over the pan. Up in damn yankee land I've seen the quality of produce decline sharply as prices went up in the last 3-5 years. The major supermarket chains used to be very conscious of the quality in their produce section. Now I'm seeing them willingly putting in 2nd choice goods at premium prices. Add in with the high prices and tight economy people are spending less so the produce I believe sits there longer getting more aged. Last night I was pricing a new tiller for my tractor. leaning hard toward a King Kutter 60" or maybe the 48" offset. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I have friends and colleagues that flip out over how much better my hen's eggs taste to them compared to 'store bought'.... I mean, they go nuts. Maybe my taste buds are wired funny, but ... egg tastes like egg. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5amLAMRQk5I TRG Not so much the taste in my opinion but the fresh eggs have stronger whites that don't flow all over the pan. The fresh eggs also poach in water a lot tighter too. Less whisps of whites all over the pan. Up in damn yankee land I've seen the quality of produce decline sharply as prices went up in the last 3-5 years. The major supermarket chains used to be very conscious of the quality in their produce section. Now I'm seeing them willingly putting in 2nd choice goods at premium prices. Add in with the high prices and tight economy people are spending less so the produce I believe sits there longer getting more aged. Last night I was pricing a new tiller for my tractor. leaning hard toward a King Kutter 60" or maybe the 48" offset. My eggs are the opposite. Watery, hard to peel. As to that cutter... I have a 60". It is my second most valuable piece of labor-saving devices. The tractor itself is #1. Not sure bout the offset's usage/tricks, but, mine is not offset. I can plant huge amounts of food with the tiller now. More than we can eat/store. It is: Till. Wait 3 weeks. Till again. Plant immediately with hand sprinkled seeds. Re-till 1" deep. Done. TRG |
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Cherokee purple tomatoes I grow can't even be found in stores most of the time and when they are they're 6-8 bucks a pound. Can't say when I've ever seen lemon basil or purple basil in the store either. For some cursed reason they don't sell okra much at all around here--these people must be mentally challenged. It's going to be interesting to see how Sea Island red peas turn out when I try to grow them this year.
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How difficult are blackberries?
EDIT: I remember coming across blackberry bushes as a kid. I never thought about planting some. |
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Around here they are almost impossible to kill - stand back and let them go. I planted 4 canes in a 4x4 block 2 years ago. Last year I harvested 3 gallons of blackberries. This year I expect 4 or more gallons. The berries last year were larger than the end joint of my thumb, and really tasty, and it went well enough I planted 3 more identical blocks.
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Do the Cherokee purple tomatoes taste very different or do you just prefer the aesthetics or size/shape? I tried black krim last year and the taste was good but they were outrageously large and rather odd-shaped. I really like a burger-sized slicer for, well, burgers (and blt's...and grilled cheese with tomato...lol)
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How difficult are blackberries? EDIT: I remember coming across blackberry bushes as a kid. I never thought about planting some. View Quote Red and black raspberries, black caps, and blackberries are all easy. I've had them grow well in sandy soil in both full sun and partial to mostly shade. Just make sure they get enough water, consistently, so the fruit fills out well. Red raspberries sucker, black raspberries grow from the cane tips rooting in the ground. Not sure about true blackberries. |
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Red and black raspberries, black caps, and blackberries are all easy. I've had them grow well in sandy soil in both full sun and partial to mostly shade. Just make sure they get enough water, consistently, so the fruit fills out well. Red raspberries sucker, black raspberries grow from the cane tips rooting in the ground. Not sure about true blackberries. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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How difficult are blackberries? EDIT: I remember coming across blackberry bushes as a kid. I never thought about planting some. Red and black raspberries, black caps, and blackberries are all easy. I've had them grow well in sandy soil in both full sun and partial to mostly shade. Just make sure they get enough water, consistently, so the fruit fills out well. Red raspberries sucker, black raspberries grow from the cane tips rooting in the ground. Not sure about true blackberries. Would you suggest buying seeds or plants from a garden store? |
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My eggs are the opposite. Watery, hard to peel. As to that cutter... I have a 60". It is my second most valuable piece of labor-saving devices. The tractor itself is #1. Not sure bout the offset's usage/tricks, but, mine is not offset. I can plant huge amounts of food with the tiller now. More than we can eat/store. It is: Till. Wait 3 weeks. Till again. Plant immediately with hand sprinkled seeds. Re-till 1" deep. Done. TRG View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I have friends and colleagues that flip out over how much better my hen's eggs taste to them compared to 'store bought'.... I mean, they go nuts. Maybe my taste buds are wired funny, but ... egg tastes like egg. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5amLAMRQk5I TRG Not so much the taste in my opinion but the fresh eggs have stronger whites that don't flow all over the pan. The fresh eggs also poach in water a lot tighter too. Less whisps of whites all over the pan. Up in damn yankee land I've seen the quality of produce decline sharply as prices went up in the last 3-5 years. The major supermarket chains used to be very conscious of the quality in their produce section. Now I'm seeing them willingly putting in 2nd choice goods at premium prices. Add in with the high prices and tight economy people are spending less so the produce I believe sits there longer getting more aged. Last night I was pricing a new tiller for my tractor. leaning hard toward a King Kutter 60" or maybe the 48" offset. My eggs are the opposite. Watery, hard to peel. As to that cutter... I have a 60". It is my second most valuable piece of labor-saving devices. The tractor itself is #1. Not sure bout the offset's usage/tricks, but, mine is not offset. I can plant huge amounts of food with the tiller now. More than we can eat/store. It is: Till. Wait 3 weeks. Till again. Plant immediately with hand sprinkled seeds. Re-till 1" deep. Done. TRG Well the offset makes the tiller that is smaller than my tractor width cover one tire so you only leave one tire track, on the next pass you till under the previous single tire track. With a straight 48 with no offset I'd get half a tire track on each side of the tiller. I'm 53" wide at the rear tires. I will probably get the 60" anyhow. I have sufficient PTO HP for it,even with that with a HST I can crawl if I need to with the PTO spinning 540rpm. I see some better deals online than local. Locally they have land pride and kuhn on one end ($2k) and Tractor supply/Tarter for only a hundred bucks or so cheaper than the KK. Seeming like a no brainer for me |
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I would not say it has ruined me, but, I am much less likely to purchase items now that are grown at home. I don;t buy in to the 'taste better' argument as much as the economics of it. Why buy green onions for 1.99 a bunch, when I have 250 growing in the garden for under 10 bucks? Why buy lettuce, or tomatoes, or peppers when I can grow my own for soooo much lower cost per plant? It's also made me much more aware of what is a natural season for a a plant. For instance, at Wal-Mart yesterday, there were cantaloupes on sale for 1.99 each. Not a bad price, really. A pack of seed will cost a buck, and it takes 90 days of care and feeding. I can grow them, but, it will be 90 days from now before I can harvest any. They are also not a root crop, so, they would just being going in the ground as seed right now, at best. 2 bucks for one right now? Sure, fair enough. A fellow grocer asked me, "Are these from around here, locally?" Uh, no, lady .. they ain't. TRG View Quote If that's the case you are doing it wrong. |
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Would you suggest buying seeds or plants from a garden store? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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How difficult are blackberries? EDIT: I remember coming across blackberry bushes as a kid. I never thought about planting some. Red and black raspberries, black caps, and blackberries are all easy. I've had them grow well in sandy soil in both full sun and partial to mostly shade. Just make sure they get enough water, consistently, so the fruit fills out well. Red raspberries sucker, black raspberries grow from the cane tips rooting in the ground. Not sure about true blackberries. Would you suggest buying seeds or plants from a garden store? I have gotten plants from a local greenhouse or nursery - 6" tall or so. I don't think I have ever seen viable seeds. |
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Around here they are almost impossible to kill - stand back and let them go. I planted 4 canes in a 4x4 block 2 years ago. Last year I harvested 3 gallons of blackberries. This year I expect 4 or more gallons. The berries last year were larger than the end joint of my thumb, and really tasty, and it went well enough I planted 3 more identical blocks. View Quote Blackberry cobbler blackberry pie Blackberry jam |
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Would you suggest buying seeds or plants from a garden store? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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How difficult are blackberries? EDIT: I remember coming across blackberry bushes as a kid. I never thought about planting some. Red and black raspberries, black caps, and blackberries are all easy. I've had them grow well in sandy soil in both full sun and partial to mostly shade. Just make sure they get enough water, consistently, so the fruit fills out well. Red raspberries sucker, black raspberries grow from the cane tips rooting in the ground. Not sure about true blackberries. Would you suggest buying seeds or plants from a garden store? I would suggest a gardening store. Barring that, if you have a bush nearby you can take a cutting from they root fairly easy. |
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If that's the case you are doing it wrong. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I would not say it has ruined me, but, I am much less likely to purchase items now that are grown at home. I don;t buy in to the 'taste better' argument as much as the economics of it. Why buy green onions for 1.99 a bunch, when I have 250 growing in the garden for under 10 bucks? Why buy lettuce, or tomatoes, or peppers when I can grow my own for soooo much lower cost per plant? It's also made me much more aware of what is a natural season for a a plant. For instance, at Wal-Mart yesterday, there were cantaloupes on sale for 1.99 each. Not a bad price, really. A pack of seed will cost a buck, and it takes 90 days of care and feeding. I can grow them, but, it will be 90 days from now before I can harvest any. They are also not a root crop, so, they would just being going in the ground as seed right now, at best. 2 bucks for one right now? Sure, fair enough. A fellow grocer asked me, "Are these from around here, locally?" Uh, no, lady .. they ain't. TRG If that's the case you are doing it wrong. I've given away about 15lbs of lettuce in the last two weeks. Everyone that eats it tells me that they have never tasted lettuce this good. Honestly, it's lettuce. How good can lettuce really taste? Same with my 'farm eggs'. People go nuts for them. They are just eggs to me. In HS I was told by the assistant manager of the Churches Chicken (where I was a fry cook/dishwasher), "People eat with their eyes first." That is a very deep observation. I also believe there is another truism, "People taste with their ears first." I have handed 1.50 cigars to folks and admonished them, "This is a $25.00 cigar, unless you can really appreciate the flavor of an expensive cigar, don't smoke it, I have cheaper ones in my truck." Every time I try this social experiment, they light them up and tell me that it is the best cigar they've ever had. Ditto with whiskey, vodka, wine. Brag, tell a story, invent a history that indicates wealth, refinement, rarity, exclusion and people will blindly agree. Around camp, because we have all seen this placebo effect on perception of flavor, we now call it, "Licking the Label" to describe people's devotion to premium brands and premium prices. Set up the flavor with their ears and their taste buds will follow. People are weird, and malleable, creatures. I don't doubt that my tomatoes taste better than a store bought version, and my eggs do have more orange in the yoke, but ... it's more 'perception' than 'reality' on most things when it comes to flavor. By the time a slice of tomato is nestled under a toasted piece of crusty bread, with mayo, bacon, lettuce, BBQ spice, salt, pepper, melted sharp cheddar and a soft fried farm egg... how much 'flavor' that tomato contains is much less important than the expectation of that tomato's flavor. FWIW, I saw the mention of the purple tomatoes in this thread and stopped in to the local 'Herb Farm' that is 1/4 mile from my house. They had some. I plan to give them a try. TRG |
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Same with my 'farm eggs'. People go nuts for them. They are just eggs to me. View Quote I can't tell much difference either but I do know that they are fresh and haven't been sitting in a cooler for 4 weeks or longer. I've bought eggs from the grocery store in the past that sent me flying to the head almost as quickly as I ate them. |
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Around here they are almost impossible to kill - stand back and let them go. I planted 4 canes in a 4x4 block 2 years ago. Last year I harvested 3 gallons of blackberries. This year I expect 4 or more gallons. The berries last year were larger than the end joint of my thumb, and really tasty, and it went well enough I planted 3 more identical blocks. View Quote What do you mean by a 4X4 block? |
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Around here they are almost impossible to kill - stand back and let them go. I planted 4 canes in a 4x4 block 2 years ago. Last year I harvested 3 gallons of blackberries. This year I expect 4 or more gallons. The berries last year were larger than the end joint of my thumb, and really tasty, and it went well enough I planted 3 more identical blocks. What do you mean by a 4X4 block? I have 4ft wide raised garden beds divided into squares, so an area 4ftx4ft, in this case holding a total of 4 blackberry canes. |
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I have 4ft wide raised garden beds divided into squares, so an area 4ftx4ft, in this case holding a total of 4 blackberry canes. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Around here they are almost impossible to kill - stand back and let them go. I planted 4 canes in a 4x4 block 2 years ago. Last year I harvested 3 gallons of blackberries. This year I expect 4 or more gallons. The berries last year were larger than the end joint of my thumb, and really tasty, and it went well enough I planted 3 more identical blocks. What do you mean by a 4X4 block? I have 4ft wide raised garden beds divided into squares, so an area 4ftx4ft, in this case holding a total of 4 blackberry canes. Ah. I see. |
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In HS I was told by the assistant manager of the Churches Chicken View Quote nom nom nom |
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Hellz yeah! I love fried chicken even now! I learned how to make deep fried ... everything. We were deep frying buttered corn on the cob in the 80s. TRG |
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Hellz yeah! I love fried chicken even now! I learned how to make deep fried ... everything. We were deep frying buttered corn on the cob in the 80s. TRG View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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In HS I was told by the assistant manager of the Churches Chicken nom nom nom Hellz yeah! I love fried chicken even now! I learned how to make deep fried ... everything. We were deep frying buttered corn on the cob in the 80s. TRG Alton Brown's deep fried macaroni and cheese! (with added bacon) |
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forget gardening and start foraging. In areas not owned by me, just in the last week, I've collected
-black berries -mulberries -wild onions -loquats -a few figs, though not ripe yet -assorted citurs- though it was a little past it's prime, OK for juice though all except the loquats and figs were a distance from my home that I could ride my bike to collect them |
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