I am fairly certain that this is the strain of Allium fistulosum I purchased from this great company about nine or ten years ago that in four years proved to be truly perennial and to divide freely in Tampa.....this name looks very familiar to me. I am mailing seeds to Nate Chetelat and Allen Boatman and others to grow and test so they won't all be in my yard this time. I just ask folks to PLEASE identify them with a sign and in their notes. Attached is a video of my original plant. John

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozjyWZM7VEo&t=110s

I am trying a method of pit composting to get the area behind my mailbox ready for two roses and quite a few bulbs.....BIG hole partially filled with very old tree trunk sections, Publix plain cat litter, dead banana leaves, about twenty pounds of dried chicken poop from the hen house, quite a bit of 'Mills Magic Rose Mix', trace elements, a lot of undiluted 'Alaska Fish Fertilizer', old rotten eggs, and yard debris. I think the roses ('Graham Thomas' and 'Blush Noisette') will love growing here!

I was inspired to seek these out after seeing on Facebook the photo of Jon and Debbie Butts tree in full fruit on their EcoFarm. These love Florida, are rarely seen or sold, and I have not eaten one since the mid 1970s. Very hard fruit....many people cook them, but I loved them raw. I ordered these from the Arbor Day Foundation.

My two times in Costa Rica, and Tim's many visits to his wife Kathy's native Columbia, we were served in soups chunks of corn cob with giant, chewy, starchy, tender, almost white kernels. Tim is not fond of it but I loved it as someone who does not enjoy modern sweet corn. It took quite a bit of Googling but I found two South American varieties. "Peruvian Giant Yellow" corn has big kernels, but this one has me very excited! I got 35 seeds for $5 after shipping and this March I will plant them in my moist fertile east bed filled with roses and pentas. This will be the first time I've grown corn in easily ten years. "Giant Cuzco". John

More Sissoo Spinach

http://survivalgardener.com/sissoo-spinach/

Someone in Costa Rica was reading my old gardening column in The St. Pete Times and asked me if I'd ever heard of this cool veggie. It sounds wonderful!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xw3ER-SNkmA

A great overview of using beans.

http://cooking.nytimes.com/guides/21-how-to-cook-beans?utm_source=Facebook_Paid&utm_medium=social&utm_content=Guides&utm_campaign=kwp&kwp_0=156744&kwp_4=1081463&kwp_1=503075