AARP Online Community and Discussion Forums - Newest ACE! @LindaB485789

AARPMichaelP · ‎02-25-2021

Before we wrap up this last Thursday of February I wanted to introduce our latest ACE, Linda! @LindaB671 is new to the community in 2021 having joined back on New Years Eve. Since joining it seems like she has touched almost every aspect of our community! With that said, she enjoys spending most her time in the AARP Rewards and Entertainment forums.

You can catch her gardening, reading and/or spending time with family and friends in the Finger Lakes region.

Say Hello!

LindaB671 · ‎03-01-2021

These are photos from last summer of Beefsteak and grape tomatoes, as well as a zucchini; all from our garden! @sandy @AARPMichaelP

Rhymesometimes · ‎03-16-2021

Linda, Welcome to the ACE program Linda! Always impressed with someone who can garden. Great asset to the on-line community. Christine ( mostly brown thumb )

LindaB671 · ‎03-16-2021

@Rhymesometimes Thank you for the warm welcome! Anyone’s thumb can turn green in my book. Let me know if you’d like some hints.

LindaB671 · ‎02-25-2021

@AARPMichaelP

Thank you so much to for the warm welcome! I would also like to thank @AARPTeri for helping me with my profile picture, which is a painting done by my niece. Our family cottage is nestled between those two hills on one of the Finger Lakes here in Upstate New York. Teri has also helped me navigate the AARP Rewards program. Thank you to @jen43 , who runs Let’s Play BINGO!, and all my ‘BINGO Buddies’! Thank you to the folks ‘On the Front Porch’, where I first started posting. To my special friend @SuzyQ thank you for messaging. Kudos count toward your ACE status, so I’m thankful for all in the Community who gave them to me.The postings in Grief & Loss have given me hope and peace; as my mom passed away just last week. Tomorrow we will bury her in one of the foothills in my profile picture, in a small cemetery overlooking the lake.

sandy · ‎02-25-2021

Congrats @LindaB671 . I'm starting to see the days getting longer and the temps rising here on the east coast. Do you have any tips to share as we get closer to being able to get out and garden? How can I start to prepare? I plan on trying to garden a few veggies this year. Do you prefer one type over the other? Are some easier than others?

LindaB671 · ‎02-25-2021

@sandy @Thank you for congratulating me on my ACE status and asking me about gardening, one of my loves! I am glad you are going to give it a try. You can go as big or small as you want. You can start by saving your fruit & vegetable peels and put them in a drywall bucket or dig a hole in the ground for compost. When you turn over the soil you can churn these in. You can plant tomatoes in dry wall buckets, with cages to keep them upright, to put on a deck or porch. You can plant beans along a fence (we use mesh and stakes) and they’ll grow up the fencing. We’ve had great luck with Beefsteak tomatoes, as well as little cherry ones. My grandfather always planted marigolds around them, to keep the bugs away; and we do the same. We plant yellow and green (zucchini) squash in spread out mounds, as they travel; cucumbers too. In rows we do peppers (any color) and lettuce varieties. We’ve done pumpkins and ornamental gourds over the years. I also save a little corner for a ‘kitchen garden’, where I put herbs like basil, dill and peppermint. Ours is rectangle in shape, with a fence around to keep the critters out. We haven’t had good luck with corn. I remember reading somewhere that you need quite a few rows for it to take. I have used the stalks for decoration though. Lastly, I can’t forget the row of sunflowers and/or other flowers for cutting as the last row. Have fun...there is no right or wrong! Keep me posted on your progress. We don’t plant here until Memorial Day Weekend, but it sounds like you’ll be planting sooner in your area. Your safe once the frosty nights cease. Take care!

sandy · ‎02-25-2021

Thank you, @LindaB671. Your post is packed full of great ideas that I will test. I don't have the best green thumb. I'll keep you posted on how things go, and I really appreciate your advice.

I'm sorry to learn of your mother's passing—my deepest condolences to you and your family during this time.