LEMONADE - ALWAYS IN GOOD TASTE

Hot, dry summer afternoons, enjoyed on an old-fashioned porch swing with an icy, cold glass, dripping with quenching, cool refreshment - Poolside enjoying hot sun reflected on water surface that changes it into thousands of dancing jewels - water cool but drink in your hand so delightful - you touch glass gently to your sweating brow - you sip slowly to savor sensation of ice cold smoothness going down your throat to bring relief to your body while you continue to lazily float on water - Coming home from work, an unusually rough day, having fought traffic on freeway or stuffiness of that commuter train filled to capacity with human bodies, and your thirst growing with each stop train makes - That liquid refreshment that can quench any thirst and refresh entire person is none other than old-fashioned lemonade. It is a childhood memory, a quick-fix on a hot day, or a leisurely way to spend a summer afternoon or evening with breeze from a fan blowing or a gentle wisp of fresh air that comes intermittently as sweltering day comes to an end. Lemonade - it doesn’t get any better - Homemade - Combine 2 cups lemon juice, 4 tsp. grated lemon rind, 1-1/2 cups white sugar. Keep in a covered glass container in refrigerator. To serve: Use 1/4 cup of above syrup for each glass. Fill glass with ice cubes and water. Add a lemon slice on side of glass for that added ‘tart” taste. ********************** Lemonade Plus - 1 12-oz. can frozen lemonade, 1 12-oz. can frozen orange juice, 1 48-oz. can pineapple juice, unsweetened, 6 cups water, 7-up or gingerale Mix all ingredients except 7-up/gingerale together in a large container. A 5-qt. ice cream pail works great. Freeze overnight. Take out of freezer 20 mins. before serving. Fill glass 1/2 full of mixture. Add 7-up/Gingerale, stir and serve. Place a lemon slice or mint leave for garnish. **********************

TOMATOES IN YOUR GARDEN

Not having at least one tomato plant in your garden is like a day without sunshine. The choices are unbelievable but taste - it can’t be beat. Warm, fresh off vine, washed in cool water and sliced - whether on a hamburger, a sandwich, or in a salad, a tomato adds that “something special” to any meal. A vine-ripened tomato is not only good-tasting, but to see these red globes on a plant that you started from seed or from a tiny purchased plant, is satisfying all by itself.

There is an on-going debate between gardeners as whether to stake or not to, whether to prune or not to, or to let nature decide. Regardless of where you stand on these issues, you will product tomatoes. Staking has advantage of using less space, it is easier to pick your harvest, and fruit will be much cleaner and have a lot less bruises. Your choice - either way they are well-worth time and effort.

If you buy your plants, don’t choose one with fruit already on it. You might think that this will bring you to harvest that much faster. The truth is that an older plant will be “shocked” a lot more than a younger plantling when they are transplanted in your garden. In choosing your plant, let your excitement get better of you. There are literally thousands of varieties, shapes, and colors. Try new ones, or keep to old stand-bys. Experiment and you might be delightfully surprised. A tomato is basically a very simple plant to grow. It does not need a lot of attention and seems to get along by itself when left alone for periods.