Conservative Republican or Bleeding Heart Democrat

     I have only once before voted other than Conservative Republican in my entire 69 years of living!!!   BUT with those votes(I voted both recent elections for Obama), I feel that the "War Between the States" has started all over again!  One remembers reading how brothers fought against brothers, father against sons and so forth.....Living in Texas it is a "burden to bear" NOT voting Republican!!  I haven't talked to or heard from my former "Best Friend" in over a year!  He is not the only one, who, I'm sure, think I've lost my mind!!  What is interesting is that both times I bolted from my party and its candidates.....it was a vote AGAINST the Republican candidate and not a vote FOR the Democrat.  I can't say that my recent votes for either Bush or Obama in the last sixteen years led to "Happy Outcomes"!!  Pretty much just the opposite.....I guess even though one makes fairly good choices in life, not all the outcomes following are perfect.  In Bush, one finds a President who has no problem making decisions, but who sometimes has no follow through long term plan of action; and in Obama, one finds great rhetoric, but a lack of timely decision-making ability....both men's decisions leading to a disastrous result, in my opinion.
     The Point I am slowly getting to though, is NOT which party is RIGHT or WRONG, or whether the decision making or lack thereof is going to kill us somewhere down the line; but the LOSS of FRIENDSHIP and FAMILY is way more important than any political gains or losses that tend to repeat themselves over and over again throughout time eternal!  AND I haven't even started on CONGRESS YET!!!

John T. political conservative most of the time....chuckle.....

Pruning Rose in the Spring

PRUNING ROSES
This is the time of the year to prepare your beds for the spring and prune your Roses! Some of you may say: “Oh let them grow naturally”, but remember that Roses bloom only on NEW GROWTH! One can promote really good new growth and prolong the life of a rose bush by pruning, so don’t be afraid to really “wack ‘em back”!! Just use your common sense when cutting to promote new growth and where it grows. A couple of points to keep in mind is to think ahead and m...ake sure that new growth does not crisscross each other and rub on each other. Also one might want to cut out the center of the rose bush a bit more than the outside limbs, as then sunlight can get to all sides of each limb. Get rid of old wood and any bad leaves still left, which might have spores of powdery mildew or black spot from the winter rains. Do not put this cutting trash and any weeds pulled out of the beds or pots in you compost pile, as they simply promote the spread of disease and junk that you don’t want in your garden.
1. Get all your cleaned tools and gloves together and your fertilizer, insecticide, and weed preventer ready to use.
2. See examples of Roses prior to pruning: Ambassador, Joseph’s Coat, and the mini Pieces of Eight.
3. Individually in vision the shape and size you wish for each Rose to be at the end of your job.
4. 4. Remove all old wood and cut live canes back to approximately 6-12 inches from the main center stalk, or to the size you normally keep the bush if already established. Make a cut at a 45 degree angle 1/4/to ½ inch above a node where the new shoot will emerge. Cutting at an angle allows rain water to slide off and not stay on the cane tip to cause possible rot or fungus. This time of the year you will probably notice bulges or even new shoots starting to show from several nodes. Pick nodes with new shoots coming to the outside of the plant NOT to the inside.
5. Examples of Black Spot fungus on these leaves. Not unusual for roses even Black Spot resistant roses to be found during the winter because of the cooler temps and extra rain.
6. Remember in planting new Rose bushes Full sunlight is a must along with good drainage. Roses will survive in shade, but will not bloom profusely or grow so well. Good luck with the new season…here’s wishing you lots of Rose Blooms and little disease!!!! John T  www.talbottnurseryandpoultry.com