# How you are filling your new found free time.



## Grizzerbear (Mar 22, 2020)

While I was shoveling coals under this stump i got to wondering what the folks around hearth that have been laid off, lost their job, or under the many two week work restrictions going on that are keeping folks at home to slow the spread of the corona virus. Missouri hasn't been hit as hard as states like Washington, California, or New york...and thus our local government hasn't implemented the stay at home orders other than closing schools.....yet anyways.  I'm a home body and can always find something to keep my mind at ease but I do have kids who have been cooped up so yesterday and today we have been burning this stump from a blow over last spring. What are all you folks doing out their to keep the sanity and it doesn't have to be firewood related.


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## woodnomore (Mar 22, 2020)

I am doing  quality control research on Bud Light Platinum.


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## begreen (Mar 22, 2020)

Spending far too much morning time on the internet. Afternoons are yardwork and gardening. Lots to do. The rest of the time is spent staying connected with family, friends, and organizations and newly forming support systems for those in need.


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## tadmaz (Mar 22, 2020)

Just had baby #4 and it unfortunately was a c-section.  Wrangling the other children is a full time job!  Maybe can sneak some time out bucking up logs or playing around with a wood lathe I got from a neighbor.  My planned 2 week vacation is happening, but it's unpaid now    I go back to work in 2 weeks, and possibly in 4 weeks may have 2 weeks off again, and so on and so forth.  I get to file for unemployment at least during the furloughing.


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## Sawset (Mar 22, 2020)

Finishing up a bedroom set for the grand kids. Cribs to start, then change out the rails and they convert to full size later on. Three cribs, so far, in less than a year.


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## woodnomore (Mar 22, 2020)

next weekend I will probably be marching behind the deck mower, hopefully the last of the snow will be melted.


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## peakbagger (Mar 22, 2020)

Its a great time of year in my area to get my wood supply built up. The snow is gone on my south facing slopes but the ground is still frozen and the trees have not leafed out. I have rigged a lot of logs out to my access road and am bucking them up as I go. My normal plan is bring the rounds home to split but the local roads are closed to big trucks during mud season. I am considering hauling my splitter over to  where the roads are and getting a jump on splitting.


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## festerw (Mar 22, 2020)

Getting ready to pull the snow blower off of the Wheel Horse and remount the mower.  Nearly 50 here today so after that's done I'll start raking out flower beds.

Otherwise finished day 82 of my running streak, up to 164 miles for the year.


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## NickW (Mar 22, 2020)

I don't pull the snowblower off until May... I spent the May 8th snowstorm in '88 or '89 working off built up detentions...

As for running, the closest I get to running is on the approach at the local bowling center (which is closed) due to ACL replacement last year. Honestly, I never took to running. Power walks are OK though depending on how the knee is feeling...


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## festerw (Mar 22, 2020)

We've only had I think 2 storms where I needed the blower this year.

Plans changed anyway and we ended up doing the flower beds and taking the dogs for a walk.


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## WoodBurnerInWI (Mar 22, 2020)

So far WI hasn't had a shelter in place order yet but my wife and I are homebodies anyways. 

We've been getting a lot of yard prep done to prepare for planting some lilac bushes around the yard as well as getting a large section of the backyard ready for putting in some raised garden beds. A wide variety of veggies and flowers we started from seed are sprouting inside till it gets a bit warmer out. 

I myself would be hitting the wood cutting hard if I had anything to cut or split. My neighbor across the street and his family has been going to town splitting wood yesterday and today. The tree service guys I utilize for logs probably aren't going to be coming around for awhile since the virus outbreak started. Hopefully their business makes it, they're good guys.


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## Gearhead660 (Mar 23, 2020)

Is it sad to say that my daily activities are the same as they were before the closings and quarantines?


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## begreen (Mar 24, 2020)

Gearhead660 said:


> Is it sad to say that my daily activities are the same as they were before the closings and quarantines?


Not really. We're super busy with yard and garden work at this time of the year. Same every year in spring.


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## AlbergSteve (Mar 24, 2020)

Garden work and more garden work. All my firewood has been taken care of for the next 3 years. Forty six chicks about to hatch in the incubator. Another 70 eggs going in after that.   Finish off the third coop. Finish exterior window trim now that stucco is complete. Finish the decorative fencing at the front of the house. 
Might not have a job to go back to for a while - changed the lock on my office because a couple of bosses wouldn't keep their social distance- they weren't very happy about it. Fortunately, the two bosses above them that approve and sign my cheque support me 100%. My time would be better spent at home for the next couple of months.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

As this worsens it is looking more and more like missouri will be in a lockdown here soon. Many of the major cities are already taking the initiative.....KC, St. Lou, and this morning Branson. Springfield is about to. My employer said yesterday that  if the governor shuts the state down then they will split our crew in half and one half working one week and the other the next on and off until this subsides. It's looking like I will have some extra time to get that 6 cord of wood relocated to another spot in the yard and carry on building fence.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

AlbergSteve said:


> Forty six chicks about to hatch in the incubator.


 I had 6 hatch late last fall.....danged if 4 of em weren't roosters.


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## mrd1995 (Mar 24, 2020)

I dropped two heavy leaning and dead B. Cherries on Saturday high pucker factor, one was laying on the other and that one was leaning over the yard. I got them cut and split almost a half cord (12' X 4' X 1.33') stack. Split like toothpicks, have to hit them with a MM but I believe they will be ready for this winter 2020/21. I am in manufacturing, and we are being called on for emergency die molds for ventilator components as well as some other "essential" machined/fabricated products. So I am one of the fortunate ones to still have a check coming, but the weekends are freed up! I like this thread!


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## Gearhead660 (Mar 24, 2020)

begreen said:


> Not really. We're super busy with yard and garden work at this time of the year. Same every year in spring.


Still too wet here to work on the garden.  Getting things ready for spring/summer, and normal spring yard work.


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## thewoodlands (Mar 24, 2020)

Grizzerbear said:


> View attachment 258454
> 
> While I was shoveling coals under this stump i got to wondering what the folks around hearth that have been laid off, lost their job, or under the many two week work restrictions going on that are keeping folks at home to slow the spread of the corona virus. Missouri hasn't been hit as hard as states like Washington, California, or New york...and thus our local government hasn't implemented the stay at home orders other than closing schools.....yet anyways.  I'm a home body and can always find something to keep my mind at ease but I do have kids who have been cooped up so yesterday and today we have been burning this stump from a blow over last spring. What are all you folks doing out their to keep the sanity and it doesn't have to be firewood related.


We take our temps twice a day (good so far) the wife has been baking and cooking up a storm (I've gained 5 pounds) we've taken a few rides but most of our time is spent inside. I'll start cutting up some downed trees soon so that should help me lose part of the 5 pounds.

I've been checking in with my brother and sisters in the Syracuse area, so far they're good along with their kids.


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## Seasoned Oak (Mar 24, 2020)

Pulled the basement remodeling job out of mothballs. Plus since i work alone or with family on most of my other jobs no need to scale back .


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## Seasoned Oak (Mar 24, 2020)

thewoodlands said:


> We take our temps twice a day (good so far)
> .


Iv been trying that with the i frared stove gun ,kinda tricky


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## SpaceBus (Mar 24, 2020)

We've got a stack of logs growing here. Took a break today for the weather. Hopefully we can get a few fences up and some bird coops made.


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## MoDoug (Mar 24, 2020)

We don't really have new found free time, we're retired and isolated. It's pretty much business as usual. The biggest difference so far is the stress of knowing what's going on, from both the health perspective and economy. Missing baseball and hockey. Yesterday I started cleaning up the mess from splitting wood and pruning trees. I'm anxious for consistently nice weather and I can get out more and be physically busy.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

thewoodlands said:


> the wife has been baking and cooking up a storm (I've gained 5 pounds)


Funny, my wife just text me saying she had bread in the oven. She's been fattening me up for the kill all winter it seems. Yea...I still need to shed my winter coat as well. If it quits raining I will be in good shape to get outside and get some stuff done and lose some weight also.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

MoDoug said:


> I'm anxious for consistently nice weather and I can get out more and be physically busy.



I hear ya there. The local station said after this morning's rain its the fifth wettest march on record. We are pretty isolated ourselves but I worry about my father more than anything else. He just had a knee replacement two weeks ago so we are trying to keep him isolated from everyone. Dont want him having to deal with the virus on top of trying to heal from surgery as well.


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## PaulOinMA (Mar 24, 2020)

Little project around the house: swapping out a lot more of the incandescent bulbs for LEDs.  Prices have come down so much that there's no reason to wait until the bulbs burn out.  Everywhere I look, there are more and more bulbs to change.


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## SpaceBus (Mar 24, 2020)

Grizzerbear said:


> Funny, my wife just text me saying she had bread in the oven. She's been fattening me up for the kill all winter it seems. Yea...I still need to shed my winter coat as well. If it quits raining I will be in good shape to get outside and get some stuff done and lose some weight also.


I started baking a few months ago, but I have also made a few loaves of bread this past week. Sourdough from a starter that I began right before the social distancing "request". Once we restock on flour I'm going to make plenty of cookies.


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## MoDoug (Mar 24, 2020)

Grizzerbear said:


> I hear ya there. The local station said after this morning's rain its the fifth wettest march on record. We are pretty isolated ourselves but I worry about my father more than anything else. He just had a knee replacement two weeks ago so we are trying to keep him isolated from everyone. Dont want him having to deal with the virus on top of trying to heal from surgery as well.



Looks like severe thunderstorms coming later this week, it's that time of year. Our 13 year old granddaughter wanted to come and stay with us for a week, but with my wife's medical history her doctor said it would be best for her not to. It was very tough to tell her that. Hopefully your dad has a quick and uneventful recovery.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

SpaceBus said:


> I started baking a few months ago, but I have also made a few loaves of bread this past week. Sourdough from a starter that I began right before the social distancing "request". Once we restock on flour I'm going to make plenty of cookies.



My wife took it up this past fall. She has stuck with white and wheat so far...which has turned out great and has been handy with bread being hard to find here  recently. I hadn't even thought about sourdough but I do love that stuff. We have a bunch of zucchini in the freezer from last years garden for bread. She has been baking small loaves and then freezing them.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 24, 2020)

MoDoug said:


> Looks like severe thunderstorms coming later this week, it's that time of year. Our 13 year old granddaughter wanted to come and stay with us for a week, but with my wife's medical history her doctor said it would be best for her not to. It was very tough to tell her that. Hopefully your dad has a quick and uneventful recovery.



Thanks bud...best wishes to you and yours.


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## SpaceBus (Mar 24, 2020)

Grizzerbear said:


> My wife took it up this past fall. She has stuck with white and wheat so far...which has turned out great and has been handy with bread being hard to find here  recently. I hadn't even thought about sourdough but I do love that stuff. We have a bunch of zucchini in the freezer from last years garden for bread. She has been baking small loaves and then freezing them.


I am using mostly whole wheat flour. We also got a pasta press, so that has been exciting as well.


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## Don2222 (Mar 24, 2020)

I Just found the best way to clean a pellet stove exhaust blower impeller blade  using white aluminum oxide and a Trinity Trinco industrial blasting cabinet.  It really gets that stubborn ash of the sides of the petals with just a little more blasting
This is a Harman double paddle blade cleaning.


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## MTY (Mar 25, 2020)

My sheetrock mud and tape job is all the entertainment I need.  I keep looking at the water line trenches that settled over the winter.  I need to blade and dress that up a little, but it will have to wait until after texture.  It is probably too early in the spring for dirt work anyway.  Rain is on its way.


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## SpaceBus (Mar 25, 2020)

MTY said:


> My sheetrock mud and tape job is all the entertainment I need.  I keep looking at the water line trenches that settled over the winter.  I need to blade and dress that up a little, but it will have to wait until after texture.  It is probably too early in the spring for dirt work anyway.  Rain is on its way.


This warm weather has put a damper on my landscaping plans.


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## PaulOinMA (Mar 25, 2020)

SpaceBus said:


> … I started baking a few months ago …



Yup!  I always cooked a lot but never baked.  Stopped consulting for a company here in MA at the end of 2006.  Was thinking of another hobby to fill some time in early 2007, so I started baking.


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## Grizzerbear (Mar 25, 2020)

SpaceBus said:


> I am using mostly whole wheat flour. We also got a pasta press, so that has been exciting as well.


 That is a something we need here at the house....with two kids and another on the way we go through copious amounts of noodles lol. I actually am trying to work the kinks outta smoking deer meat. I would like to be able to fully process my wild game myself. I make my own hamburger now and jerky....but with some extra time off here in a week or two I may try to smoke a back strap.


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## kennyp2339 (Mar 25, 2020)

The cat and I walked the property line yesterday picking up sticks and tossing them into the fire pit, made for a nice fire yesterday evening, got some fresh air and movement.


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## mrd1995 (Mar 25, 2020)

Dropped two more trees last night, I think both were green ash( super wet soft soil) one rotted off just below soil level hung in another tree was a bear to get unhung. The other was almost completely lost inside a cocoon of Poison Ivy and leaning back into other EAB damaged trees. Successful evening both on the ground and I am at work the next day! I did have to get creative to drop the Ivy tangled tree, had to lift it about 1.5" to get it to go the way I wanted. Starting to work from home tomorrow... will be interesting.


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## Baddyart (Apr 17, 2020)

I haven`t got new free time, unfortunately


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## venator260 (Apr 19, 2020)

I have a 6 month old that I can no longer send off to the baby sitter (even though his grandmothers would love to spend the day with him). And, as a teacher, I'm still needing to create lessons and support students. My wife is considered essential, so she's still going to work. 

So I actually have less spare time that I did when i was going to work every day.


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## festerw (Apr 20, 2020)

Headed to the local blood bank this morning for my scheduled donation. Every 16 weeks I'm here gathering up some karma.


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## mrd1995 (Apr 20, 2020)

festerw said:


> Headed to the local blood bank this morning for my scheduled donation. Every 16 weeks I'm here gathering up some karma.
> 
> View attachment 259512


Great school! And yes I mean the Behrend campus.


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## NickW (Apr 20, 2020)

Starting today I'm rehabbing a rental house that the renter moved out of last week. We knew there were things that needed attention, but of course have found more... One bonus was I found hardwood floors under carpet upstairs and down! Needs rehab, but much more durable than carpet...


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## festerw (Apr 20, 2020)

mrd1995 said:


> Great school! And yes I mean the Behrend campus.



Yes it is. I'm fortunate to work there in the Athletics Department.


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## Hansson (Apr 30, 2020)

Here in Sweden everything is quite normal. Many companies have order workers to work home. I work as an welding engineer and do a lot of travel around Sweden.  Right now I am doing welding site test at Forsmark. It’s an big nuclear plant.


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## MTY (May 1, 2020)

Today I finished up the sheetrock mudding.  I plan on priming on Saturday, but know that as I start masking things off I will notice spots where I could have done better.  That means Saturday will be spent masking and touching up.  Sunday will be actual priming day.  It took over 2500' of tape, 20 boxes of mud, and 24 metal corners.  It actually looks pretty good.  I am pleased

The poco came out last week and heated up the 400 amp meter base, so I went ahead and heated up the single outlet circuits. This gives me inside power, allowing me to quit running extension cords through the windows.


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## NickW (May 1, 2020)

That's a lot of mudding MTY!

My rehab has just drywall/plaster repairs. I'd much rather work on new stuff than try to blend drywall into textured plaster... Hardwood floors are a no go unfortunately, found evidence of a previous house fire, etc, etc. Murphy's Law always applies because we're related to some Murphy's!  

This one is huge for my wife's family. We are going to rent it to her youngest sister & family who are finally moving back to WI! They're stuck in the catch 22 "can't hire you if you don't live here/can't rent to you if you don't have a job" cycle in their search here...


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## johneh (May 1, 2020)

I am sitting here on the deck keeping the Perth Brewery
 in business watching the grass grow.


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## Seasoned Oak (May 1, 2020)

MTY said:


> Today I finished up the sheetrock mudding.


"How you are filling your new found free time."

What free time?  Since i work on empty properties im still working.  Im sheltering in place at work alone or with my kids.  Did more mudding than usual as my drywall guy is temporarily  off . Getting good at it again.


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## EatenByLimestone (May 2, 2020)

What the heck is free time?   We're busier than ever at work and home isnt all that slow either.


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## festerw (May 2, 2020)

Well my "time off" is coming to an end Monday.

Going back to work full time but in a different department and I feel terrible about bumping another employee to do it but my wife has been waiting 6 weeks for an unemployment check with no pay date in sight.

It's all hopefully temporary and I should be back to my normal job by the end of May.


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## Seasoned Oak (May 2, 2020)

festerw said:


> my wife has been waiting 6 weeks for an unemployment check with no pay date in sight.


Could be awhile. Unemployment websites are swamped and bogged down nationwide.  I suspect they will eventually get to everyone but it will take time. I think the govt would have been better off instead of padding check amounts that no one has yet to benefit from to offer extensions and help with roll out.  Our state wesite is still collecting data and not yet processing claims for new categories of unemployed.


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## festerw (May 2, 2020)

Seasoned Oak said:


> Could be awhile. Unemployment websites are swamped and bogged down nationwide.  I suspect they will eventually get to everyone but it will take time. I think the govt would have been better off instead of padding check amounts that no one has yet to benefit from to offer extensions and help with roll out.  Our state wesite is still collecting data and not yet processing claims for new categories of unemployed.



Yea it's a crap show for sure. It took about 2 hours to get through to them the other day. She was fired 3/24 for "attitude" and they didn't send out the paperwork for her employer until she contacted them 4/28.

Turns out attitude is apparently asking her employer what safety steps they were going to institute is termination worthy with no warnings.


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## Seasoned Oak (May 2, 2020)

festerw said:


> Turns out attitude is apparently asking her employer what safety steps they were going to institute is termination worthy with no warnings.


Id fight it, if they try to stop her from collecting. No way they would show up at  a hearing or even schedule one now. Should be a shoe in.


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## begreen (May 3, 2020)

My free time is not new found, more like hard-earned, but I am making the best of it with gardening, walks and painting. This lil' fox is just about done.


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## EatenByLimestone (May 5, 2020)

I dont think I could paint something that well even if I was painting by numbers!   I can make barn doors look bad!


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## MTY (May 8, 2020)

I am winding down on the drywall mudding, and it looks nice.  The decking material is showing up tomorrow.  It will be 100 feet by seven feet wrapped around below the 7 foot eves.  It will come out square, plumb and pleasing to the eye.  So, I do have some talent.  However, if I tried to paint something like that fox it would look like a bomb went off in a paint store.


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## begreen (May 8, 2020)

Thanks. My mud work is pathetic. It looks like pigs under a blanket.


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## MTY (May 9, 2020)

One day whilst walking behind a rather rotund woman, my buddy remarked, "That looks like two pigs fighting in a gunny sack."  
I am tempted not to texture.  There are no sins to hide.  Tomorrow we are fencing the garden.  32X48 Everything is in pots, and we bring it in each night as frost does not stop until mid June.


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## begreen (May 9, 2020)

I appreciate a nice smooth-wall job. You get to celebrate Mudder's Day soon. 

All our plants are going in the ground now, including the eggplant and peppers. Our corn is already about an inch tall.


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## johneh (May 9, 2020)

begreen said:


> All our plants are going in the ground now, including the eggplant and peppers. Our corn is already about an inch tall.


Hate you we got snow yesterday and last night 
No garden till the end of the month maybe 
right now the temp is -5


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## NickW (May 9, 2020)

My green and jalepeno pepper plants are doing well in the starter trays, but won't get planted until next weekend. We have below freezing temps overnight yet for a couple of days. Learned over winter that my jalepeno's may keep coming out too mild because I water them too much... Everything else I direct seed (melons & zucchini). Trying a "mango melon" this year. Last years cantelopes were super sweet but small, honeydew didn't come up.

I don't do a huge garden, but I've learned some really good zucchini recipes. Had 126 zucchini harvested last year from 1 package of seeds and only about 1/2-2/3 actually came up! Had to get another freezer for my 3 deer because the other one was still full of produce...


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