Spring is in full swing! We are past our last frost date and the whole world is greening up, I LOVE it! So do my Koi! 😊 They have been tearing up the Cool Season Koi Food and the veggies I have been feeding them. In fact, many of my customers and fellow Koi enthusiasts have been feeding Cool Season Food & have asked me the all important question…
– When can I start feeding regular and Color Enhancing Koi Food?
– My Answer- Remember the rule of 60!
I have covered The Rule of 50 in previous Blogs, when coming out of Winter into Spring, you must let the water temp stabilize for at least a week at 50+ degrees Fahrenheit before you start to feed your koi. AND, when you do start back to feeding, you should use a quality, Cool Season Koi Food! And don’t over feed! Gradually reintroduce food to them in small amounts.
Now, at least for me (check your thermometer) it’s time to make the transition to a regular Koi Food. In fact, I will start to feed both high protein and color enhancing feed, alternating weekly between the two.
So to wrap it up, check your water temp & when your above 60 degrees for several days in a row and climbing, you can transition to warm season Koi Food. That’s the “Rule of 60”… 😉
Viva La’ Spring!
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
I post seasonal Koi information, temperatures and best practices for your Koi’s health every year about this time. Sure enough, we have made another trip around the Sun and it’s Spring time again! 😊 People are already asking “can we start feeding our Koi now”… I always tell em’ to Check your Pond thermometer & “Remember the rule of 50”!
“I’ve been hawking my Pond Thermometer these last couple of weeks! The temperature of the water has been slowly rising as the days get longer and we approach Spring. As usual, I will start the feeding season with Cool Temp Koi Food when the water temperature has stabilized at 50 + degrees. The “rule of 50” I like to call it…
This is my favorite season of the year! Everything is waking up! Including my KOI! They have been VERY active! Literally begging for food 🐟 It’s so hard to wait… But, it’s part of the process & it’s so important for our finned friends health and well being.
So, to wrap it up…
The Rule of 50 = Let the water temp stabilize for a week at 50+ degrees Fahrenheit before you start to feed your koi in the Spring. AND, when you do start back to feeding, use a quality, Cool Season Koi Food! And don’t over feed! Happier days are here again.
Happy Pondering
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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Pinterest pg. – https://www.pinterest.com/cartersnursery/
Welcome to 2021! After last year’s debacle I didn’t want to waste too much time planning this years event schedule… so here is a basic layout of 2021 events with Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio.
March 20th. (Saturday) 9am – 2pm – Carter’s Nursery Spring Festival & Customer Appreciation Day! Something for the whole family! Workshops & classes, a Petting Zoo for the kids + Snacks & refreshments for all! Come out and help us kick off SPRING! (Saturday 9am. till 2pm.) This is a FREE event.
April 4th. – EASTER Sunday!
May 9th (Sunday) – Mother’s Day! DON’T miss this one!
Evening By The Pond (1st one is Thursday, May 20th. at 6:30pm).
Come out and enjoy a laid back evening exploring a beautiful garden & relaxing by the pond. We always enjoy some good food, visit/meet friends & we always have an educational program on Water Gardens, Aquatic Plants, Fish OR some cool subject for all that come. We hold these little get together’s during the warm season so that you can enjoy the Water Gardens in the evening and experience the Outdoor Lighting. If you would like to come & enjoy the evening with us please let us know and you will be put on the e-mail invitation list. Call Jo at 731-424-2206.
May 28th. through May 31st. – The nursery will be CLOSED in observance of Memorial Day. Have a safe, Happy Memorial Day weekend!
June 20th. – Father’s Day! Let’s remember Dad!
Pond Tours in 2021
We are sponsoring two (2) Pond Tours this year; a Summer Pond Tour (June 26th.) & a Fall ‘Moonlight’ Pond Tour (September 18th.).
June 26th – Our 23rd. Annual Summer Pond Tour – Our ‘Summer’ Pond Tour (Always the Saturday after Father’s Day) is A FUN and Beautiful Day! This is a Self-Guided Tour and LOTS of Fun! Tickets are $20 ea. (children under 12 are FREE!). Carter’s Nursery is “Pond Central” for the Pond Tour and we invite you to come by throughout the day to sit a spell, have a drink & a snack and look at the BEAUTIFUL Gardens and Water Features.
July 4th (Saturday) – Independence Day! We will be closed the 2nd., 3rd. & 4th. in observance of the holiday.
July 17th (Saturday) 9am – 2pm – ‘Get Your Feet Wet with Water Gardening!’ We are hosting a Water Gardening workshop at Carters Nursery to introduce you to the Water Gardening Lifestyle! Please call to register. This is a Free event.
September 18th . The 17th Annual ‘Moonlight Pond Tour’ – This is our Annual Night Time Pond Tour! The tour always falls on a Saturday Night closest to the Full Harvest Moon!! Don’t miss this Unique Garden Tour Experience! Tickets are $20 ea. (children under 12 are FREE!). Carters Nursery is “Pond Central” for the Pond Tour and we invite you to come by throughout the evening to sit a spell, have a drink & a light snack. Enjoy the Fire Pit and look at the BEAUTIFUL Gardens and Water Feature Lighting.
October 2nd. (Saturday) 9am – 2pm – Fall Festival/Customer Appreciation Day. Come take part in our Workshops & Pumpkin Carving Classes! Snacks and drinks + a Petting Zoo for the kids! BIG SALES for the Fall Season for all that come!
Daylight Savings Time is over – Sunday, November 7th. 2021
Thanks, all of us at Carter’s Nursery hope to see you here! Call me with any questions at #731-424-2206.
Here’s to a GREAT 2021!
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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Pinterest pg. – https://www.pinterest.com/cartersnursery
Here we are, the last day of 2020! The crossroads of a new year! Hopefully, a better one! New Years Eve is always a strange and special day. You look back AND you look ahead… 👀
I’m ready to leave 2020 in my rear view mirror!
I’m looking forward to a new year! A coming Spring! And hopefully, a return to a more normal world! Have Fun tonight!
Here’s to ringing in 2021!
“Should auld acquaintance be Forgot and never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be Forgot and days of auld lang syne? For auld lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne, We’ll take a cup of kindness yet, for auld lang syne.”
~ Robert Burns
Happy New Year 💥 🎊🍾
Mark Carter
Fall is in full swing! The sun is setting earlier every day & the temps are falling… And soon, Jack Frost 🥶 will be paying us a visit… The Koi have eaten well this year & have put on a good bit of fat to get them through the Cool Season ahead. Now is the time that many of my clients and fellow Koi enthusiasts start asking a very important question…
– When do I stop feeding regular food and start feeding Cool Season Koi Food?
– My Answer- Remember the rule of 60!
Switching to a Cool Temperature Koi Food is very important for the health of your Koi!
Every Pond should have a floating Pond thermometer. Our finned friends are cold blooded & water temperature is very important when it comes to seasonal feeding times. Pick one up at Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio | Jackson, TN
So to wrap it up, check your water temp (via a floating thermometer) & when your water temp drops to 60 degrees, you should transition to Cool Season Koi Food. That’s the “Rule of 60”… 😉
Viva La’ Fall!
Happy Pondering 🤔
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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The whole team at Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio wants to wish everyone a Happy and Healthy Labor Day Weekend! The Nursery will be closed Saturday, Sunday and Monday in observance of the Holiday!
Have a Safe and Happy Labor Day! God Bless America! 🇺🇸💥
Thanks Pete! We all need a long weekend!
By the way, I’m talking about Mr. – 👇🏻
“Peter J. McGuire, a carpenter and labor union leader, was the person who came up with the idea for Labor Day. He thought American workers should be honored with their own day. He proposed his idea to New York’s Central Labor Union early in 1882, and they thought the holiday was a good idea, too.”
Read more from this story here 👇🏻
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/gilded/jb_gilded_labor_1.html
God Bless America! 🇺🇸
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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Most people are at home right now. Some by choice, but many more by order or strong suggestion… So, there’s a LOT of really clean houses 🙂 and LOTS of shrubs have been trimmed and lawns raked and made ready for the season. And everyone has started fixing their own meals… Cooking is back in style!
I LOVE to cook! I do most of the cooking for our family, so its nothing new to me… Whats new is the availability of things to cook… Have you been to the grocery store lately?! It’s an adventure! People bundled up, gloves and masks, not making eye contact… And almost nothing you wanted! Forget the list! Its get what you can when you find it.
What can I whip up for dinner with this? Hmmm!
OR maybe…
Tarantula Pâté anyone?
But seriously, you have to pretty much eat what’s in your fridge or cabinet. Being inventive can help put a meal together!
I came up with maybe my favorite omelet combo ever this morning! I used what I had in the fridge and it was honestly good!
I took pictures, like I do often 😊 Turns out this combo is AWESOME! Nashville Hot Chicken and Jalapeno Pimento Cheese! Boom 💥
The next week or two will give us all some time to have some “Adventures In Cooking”!
Check out some of my dishes on my Pinterest page –
https://pin.it/3l98qGl
I Love to cook!!!
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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Pinterest pg. – https://www.pinterest.com/cartersnursery/
I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! I got up early & I’m already busy cooking and preparing my part in what will be a HUGE Thanksgiving spread for our family and friends. For my part of the meal I’m fixing a glazed ham, a convection baked turkey & “twice baked” mashed potatoes! Everyone else is fixing a thing or two also (green beans, casseroles, rolls, cranberry’s, deviled eggs, dressing with giblet gravy, a big relish tray, sweet potato’s, cakes and pies, etc… It’s going to be a Feast!
Here’s a few pics from last years spread-
I have so much to be thankful for! Great food is definitely one of them.
Thanksgiving is an American holiday! It goes back to the pilgrims of course, but did you know that George Washington was the first president to make a formal proclamation for the Holiday? Indeed he was!
“This National Thanksgiving Proclamation was the first formal proclamation of Thanksgiving in the United States. President George Washington declared Thursday, November 26, 1789 as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer.”
Heres the typed text –
Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me “to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness. Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us. And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best. Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.
~ George Washington
George Washington was a great leader & truly loved his fellow man & his new country! He was also a devout man & a Thankful one.
Enjoy this day of Thanksgiving!
God Bless America! 🦃🇺🇸
Mark Carter
I have been asked a few times on the radio lately about composting, so I went back in the archives and pulled this up. This was 1st published 10 years ago – To the day! 💥
A big blowing storm is coming thru tonight, ie; A leaf stripper! 🍂 Plenty to get ya’ started😉
“Fall is one of my Favorite seasons! Cooler weather, fall planting and gardening and all the great family gatherings and food are wonderful. Fall is also a GREAT time to start a compost pile. All those leaves, plants and grasses to cut back and all of the upcoming holiday food scraps add up too a great supply of usable components in a compost pile!
Starting a Compost pile is quick , easy and won’t cost you anything to get started! Compost is one of nature’s best mulches and soil amendments and you can use it instead of chemical fertilizers. Compost improves soil structure, texture and increases the soil’s water-holding capacity. Compost loosens clay soils and helps sandy soils to retain water. The organic matter in compost provides food for microorganisms, which in turn keeps the soil in a healthy, balanced condition. Nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus are produced naturally by the feeding of microorganisms, so few if any soil amendments will need to be added.
Once the process is complete you can use this free resource as mulch, soil amendments, top dressing for your lawn, to make compost tea for veggies & more. | Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio | Jackson, Tennessee
It’s easy to get started .
-Bag your grass clippings and mulch up all those leaves for the compost pile!
-Save those kitchen scraps and add them to the compost pile. Kitchen scraps are typically high in nitrogen, which helps heat up the compost pile and speed up the composting process. Egg shells, coffee grounds, fruit and vegetable peels and scraps are good candidates for the compost pie. But DON’T add meat, grease or other animal products!
– With a compost pile, bigger is often better. Heat builds up with a bigger pile, but you don’t want to get much bigger than about 3 feet by 3 feet, if it’s too big it can be hard to work around. Multiple piles may be in order .
– Aerate your compost! If you are composting with a pile, or in a static (non-tumbling) compost bin, be sure to mix up the contents so that the pile gets oxygen and can break down effectively. Insert a few pvc pipes to get oxygen to the core and Turn it with a pitch fork from time to time .
– Don’t let the compost completely dry out. A compost pile needs moisture to keep the composting process active , BUT , don’t keep it too wet.
– Too much of any one material will slow down the composting process. If you have all leaves, all grass clippings or an overload of any other single type of material, it can throw off the balance of the pile. It’s best to keep a balanced mix of green (nitrogen) and brown (carbon) materials.
When ready, this compost will be wonderful for the whole garden!
Good Luck and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!”
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
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Pinterest pg. – https://www.pinterest.com/cartersnursery/
I always get up early on Sunday morning before everyone else & make coffee and step outside to see about the weather. This morning was no different. Other than the fact I had to clean up after a late night/early morning visitor… Meet ‘The Bandit’…
This fat little joker tore up the garbage last night.
It’s my own fault I guess… We have a bunch of friends and family coming for Thanksgiving this week, so last night we cleaned out the refrigerator and freezer to make room for the HUGE amount of food that will coming in over the next few days. I sat the bags out on the front porch to haul off today… All raccoons 🦝 are sneaky little opportunists! 😊
Im really looking forward to having a big Thanksgiving! I really hope YOU are too.
Thanksgiving
We walk on starry fields of white
And do not see the daisies;
For blessings common in our sight
We rarely offer praises.
We sigh for some supreme delight
To crown our lives with splendor,
And quite ignore our daily store
Of pleasures sweet and tender.
Our cares are bold and push their way
Upon our thought and feeling.
They hang about us all the day,
Our time from pleasure stealing.
So unobtrusive many a joy
We pass by and forget it,
But worry strives to own our lives
And conquers if we let it.
There’s not a day in all the year
But holds some hidden pleasure,
And looking back, joys oft appear
To brim the past’s wide measure.
But blessings are like friends, I hold,
Who love and labor near us.
We ought to raise our notes of praise
While living hearts can hear us.
Full many a blessing wears the guise
Of worry or of trouble.
Farseeing is the soul and wise
Who knows the mask is double.
But he who has the faith and strength
To thank his God for sorrow
Has found a joy without alloy
To gladden every morrow.
We ought to make the moments notes
Of happy, glad Thanksgiving;
The hours and days a silent phrase
Of music we are living.
And so the theme should swell and grow
As weeks and months pass o’er us,
And rise sublime at this good time,
A grand Thanksgiving chorus.
~ Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Have a great Sunday and a very Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃
~ Mark Carter
