My Blog List

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

What's Red When It's Green?

Do you know this old riddle? The answer is blackberries, only right now they are very, very green! This year we appear to have a bumper crop unfortunately. Lots of people love them~me not so much. They are a real nuisance in the garden and very hard to control.

As Marguerite said on her blog, you almost need body armor to get rid of the canes. Some of those "little" buggers are nearly an inch thick! And wicked! Kids used to cut through our yard from the schoolbus stop; they don't anymore.

Bees love them. We are quite sure blackberries make up the infrastructure of our state. Little did we know when we had our backyard cleared of the cottonwood trees that blackberries were lurking beneath the soil, waiting for some sunshine. And now the battle continues. They don't die back in our winters either; they just rest until it gets warm, gathering strength for the next season's assault. It's a losing battle. Every fall the people from the neighborhood come and pick a few thankfully, but not me. I'm chicken....all those sharp thorns. No thank you. I'll stick to apple pie!

On a positive note, I do like the blackberry color and found some yarn to make another dishcloth, this time for a birthday gift. The party theme is ladybugs and thanks to Dee, I found a great pattern.

Now while I've been grousing about blackberries, the folks in my former hometown have a real reason to complain. Last Thursday they had around 7 inches of rain in a very short time, flooding the whole village. We only heard that the airport was closed for 24 hours. Yesterday's email from a friend included a link to a video that showed what happened, and Dick found another link to some photos. Perhaps you read about the floods in southern Wisconsin? Take a look; you'll be as amazed and humbled by the power of nature as I was. (I'm not sure though whether these guys used their best judgment in taking this video; however, I'm glad they did.)

14 comments:

Wildflowerhouse said...

Oh my goodness the video! Never thought I'd see that in Wisconsin. All the years I lived in St. Paul I only remember one bad flood on the Mississippi river.
Blackberries! I refuse to even go there.... ouch!
Midnight has very green eyes and the personality to go with. She was abandoned by a nasty neighbor and we rescued her. She thanked us by delivering 9 kittens in DH's office. She is a sweetheart.
Lunch soon! I have a lot going on right now but could break away for lunch....

Anonymous said...

Your ladybug cloth turned out very cute!

Oh my --- that was quite a flood. Hope everyone made it through alright.

Linda said...

I love blackberries although I don't like the bushes very much, but we go and pick them wild up the hill near here. Your latest dishcloth is so sweet.

Water can do so much damage...amzing how here we need it so badly and other places they just get too much and it can be a disaster!

Ele said...

Pimp my kitchen! ;-)
This dishcloth looks great Judy,
fresh colour and a nice finish.
For more fun in doing homework...

Have a nice weekend
Gabriele

Linda Vincent said...

Oh my...the power of nature; just awesome. Hope you are ok Judy (looks like you're in sunshine :-)
Blackberries are a superfood you know...and rather expensive in British supermarkets! Apple and blackberry pie? Sounds good......

Kathy... said...

WOW! That video is amazing, but I also question the judgment of the camera man. Youth! LOL

When we bought our property and built our house, many years ago, we had a wonderful stand of red raspberries. They attracted bees so much, and our son was highly allergic, so my husband removed the bushes. It was no easy task, and now that out son is grown and in a different state, I sure miss those fresh raspberries!!!!

Marguerite said...

Yikes! I'm impressed! You win the "who has the worse blackbery stalks?" contest hands down.

I can't imagine the "grabbing" power of a stalk an inch thick.

Cranberry Morning said...

Beautiful dishcloth! I think I would frame it rather than ever put it on a dirty dish.

My parents had a huge blackberry patch which tried to rip my arms off many times, even though I went with full body armor. The berries were wonderful and huge! Although it was taking your life into your hands to go into all that bramble, the reward was worth it...to me, that is. :-)

Charlene ♥ NC said...

What a sweet piece of knitting! Love the color. When I was a young wife, we lived in a rental house and across the fence were blackberries. I would reach over the fence to gather a couple of cups to make blackberry cobbler once or twice a season. I also imagine they would make fantastic dye!

Library Gal Quilts said...

Oh Judy, now I see why you laughed at my blackberry purchase :) Since nothing can grow that lush in chico in the summer, except perhaps zucchini, I guess the grass is always greener...love your little dish cloth. So cheerful!

Fünfzigerjahremädel said...

I'm on my "sunday walk" through the blogs!
The pictures of the flood makes me thankful for living on a hill!!!
Your dishcloth is very cute!
Have a nice sunday!
Ulla

Lynn said...

Wow, that must have been some rainfall! Rapids in the streets!!
Fortunately we have never been through anything like that.

I love your dishcloth. It's such a pretty colour. As for the blackberries, I love them but I know what you mean about the canes. Its the same thing with the gooseberry bushes around here. The thorns are so bad you can't possibly pick the berries. Now I know why they charge so much money for a blackberry or gooseberry pie!

Micki said...

Th video was amazing! I love your dishcloth and the colour yarn you chose.
Micki

Kathy Raker said...

Wow that was some video. I was wondering how they managed to walk when in a few parts it shown them along the edge which wasn't as choppy as the water going down the street. I just kept thinking those poor people.

Cute dishcloth and love blackberries though have no way of picking any. Maybe I'll come and pick them for you. :)