Cross Creek

As part of my Master Gardener training, our class visited Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' home at Cross Creek. The first picture shows the group standing in the vegetable garden, which is located pretty close to the house. Jacque, an Alachua county Master Gardener, volunteers her time to maintain the garden. When we visited, the garden was planted with cool-season crops like turnips, collards, carrots, mustard, lettuce and kale.

We also wandered the grounds and looked at the many citrus trees on the property. This image shows freeze damage. Wendy Wilber, Extension agent for Alachua County, explained that the sap in the tree stops flowing when temperature drop to freezing on cold nights. In the morning, the sun will begin to heat up one side of the branch and thus thaw the sap. The back side of the branch remains frozen, and the resulting pressure causes the bark to split open on the shady side of the branch.

We also saw citrus rust mites on many of the oranges. Wendy said these only cause cosmetic problems and don't affect the flavor of the fruit, so it's usually not necessary for homeowners to treat the problem.

For more photos from the Cross Creek trip, visit the Gardening in a Minute Flickr site.