I am having a cup of fresh raspberries on my oatmeal this morning - boy do they taste good! Nothing like vine-picked, fresh fruit that you raised yourself!

Good for you Gene! I love raspberries but unfortunately I'm a ways yet from tasting any in my zone.

They are the easiest fruit to grow in my opinion. Winter cold doesn't faze them and they produce lots of yummy fruit!

any pix?

I've also been eating red raspberries the past week or two. They are a most pleasant thing to graze while in the yard - none ever make it into the house. I intend to plant more, ....if they don't do it for me.  :)

[QUOTE=Gina]I've also been eating red raspberries the past week or two. They are a most pleasant thing to graze while in the yard - none ever make it into the house. I intend to plant more, ....if they don't do it for me.  :)[/QUOTE]I'll be over with a bowl to pick some! Lucky you!

Here  you go:
 
   

This raspberry patch started 3 years ago as two plants for Lowes. I make the bed really good, full of manure and mulch, and they exploded in growth sending suckers EVERWHERE. I have extended this bed, plus started another one, plus given away 3-4 doz plants from the suckers.

And here are my blackberries, just about ready to produce:
 
And here is a gooseberry that is growing in full morning sun, but complete afternoon shade:
 
And here is one of my Muscadine vines. I had a small crop last year, but this year I should get a couple gallons of fruit from each vine:
 
All told I have over 12 kinds of berries and fruits in my yard.

Nice, Prof. Gene! And from plants bought at Lowes!  :-)

And you teach what, where?  Joe

Joe, I teach a variety of subjects, in a variety of settings. I teach Cultural Geography online for a local junior college. I teach classes on Church history and the history of Christian mission. I also travel abroad and teach seminars for NGO workers about how to work in/with other cultures.

Horticulture is only my hobby, but over the years as a researcher and social scientist I have "learned how to learn" about any topic. I often tell people that knowing how to learn is more important than going to college, however, most people need the discipline of course work and grades to keep them focused enough to really learn.

For example, the internet contains vast information about gardening, but you have to learn to differentiate between reliable information and hearsay. Many universities have ag. extension services that put out great information, based on hard science and field trials, about raising fruits in the home garden. I learned a lot about Raspberry and Blackberry culture from publications produced by the University of Arkansas extension service, and similar publications by a few others like NC state and U of Texas Austin.

Very good! I teach geography at the Univ. of Maryland, despite the fact that I live in Athens, Georgia, the home of the UGa Bull Dawgs - making me a "mega-commuter." I do Study Abroad programs in the Caribbean. I love my work and should be paying the University to let me do it instead of the reverse. I am happy to read that you teach on Church history and mission, too.

Fig trees and horticulture have been a passion for me most of my life. After all, I am Italian!

As to learning, your advice to your students makes you a wise person, Gene!

Joe

Dang! Nice berry patch! Been eating raspberries for the past month here in CA, although they are finally starting to taste good now. The early ones are kind of bland....

Joe, can you grow raspberries in  your zone? There is a variety called "Baba berry" that is supposed to do really well in climates too hot for regular rasperries. Willis Orchards has them.