Tomatoes | Carter's Water Garden

Sunday Reflection’s…

I’ve been up since early morning, doing a few things in my garden. Finally getting my tomatoes 🍅 squared away 👏🏻 It was a test… I almost always get my ‘maters’ out by April 15th… But this years weather had other plans 😊 Late frosts, wind and storms, unseasonably cool nights well into late April, early May drove my decision to wait. PS: I’m glad I did.

In fact, I know several old gardeners who always wait until Mothers Day to plant their tomatoes 🍅 and peppers 🌶 🫑 and almost always have show stopping gardens with HUGE yields. “It’s all about soil temperature and warming nights”… I’ve learned that this age old wisdom holds true almost every time. Everything revolves around proper timing…

Have you planted any tomatoes yet 🍅 Today is the day for me! I have good plants over a foot tall ready! This is my favorite variety, Cherokee Purple. It’s an old ‘heirloom’ variety that was passed down from American Indians over 100 years ago. Soooo Good! 😋 But don’t put all your eggs in 1 basket 🧺 Diversify by planting some hybrid varieties as well like Jet Star and Better Boy.

“Whoever makes a garden. Has never worked alone;
the rain has always found it, The sun has always known;
The wind has blown across it. And helped to scatter seeds;
Whoever makes a garden. Has all the help he needs.

Whoever makes a garden. Should surely not complain,
With someone like the sunshine.And someone like the rain
And someone like the breezes.To aid him in his toil
And someone like the Father. Who gave the garden soil.

Whoever makes a garden, has, oh, so many friends;
The glory of the morning, the dew when daylight ends.
For rain and wind and sunshine, and dew and fertile sod;
And he who makes a garden, works hand and hand with God.”

~ Douglas Malloch

Have a great Sunday!

PS: 1 week from today is Mothers Day! ❤️

~ Mark C.

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Throwdown Thursday!

July 28, 2022, 6:02 am
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, Sunrises | Tags: Biscuits, Biscuits and Gravy, Breakfast, Breakfast Tomatoes, Coffee, Coffee Mug, Eat, Eggs, Family, Family Breakfast, Family time, Family Traditions, Food, Good food, Good Fortune, Good Morning, grits, Homegrown Tomatoes, I Love My Family, Love, Morning Coffee, Most Important Meal of the Day!, Strawberries, Tomatoes

They say breakfast 🍳 is the most important meal of the day… Do YOU eat that meal? When I was in school one of my teachers (Mr. Steele) would say ”Eat like a King for breakfast. Eat like a prince at lunch. And at dinner, eat like a pauper.”

Well its on! I mean, breakfast is on the table!

Suey!!!

– Followed by a Long, Hot serving of July! Eat up!

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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T is for Tomato 🍅 | Carters Nursery Pond & Patio | Jackson, TN

Do you grow your own Tomatoes? If you do, you know the joys, rewards, and discomforts (work) of growing them. If you don’t grow your own tomatoes, well, it’s not to late to make something of your life…

Breakfast tomatoes, lunch tomatoes and guess whats for dinner 😊🍅

I have grown so many different varieties over the years… Jet Star and Better Boy’s are always a safe bet with their hybrid vigor and disease resistance! Great for canning and preserving for Winter too! But, when it comes to a good slicing tomato or a delicious Tomato Sandwich, give me a Cherokee Purple!

Breakfast! Fried eggs, biscuit and gravy and sliced Cherokee Purple Tomatoes! yum!

Cherokee Purple Tomatoes are unique in appearance and Incredible in Taste!

Guy Clark said it best! Theres 2 things that money CAN’T buy – True Love! and Homegrown Tomatoes!

PS: When your ready to get started on your ’Better Life’ by growing your own tomatoes, I’ll be here to help 😉

Have a great evening!

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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Gardening is more than a Hobby! Its a way of life… A Lifestyle! | Carters Nursery Pond & Patio | Jackson, TN

I’ve only got a quick minute, but I wanted to encourage everyone to get out there and plant something in your Garden! Tomatoes 🍅 Peppers 🫑 🌶 Melons 🍉 etc… Its a great hobby that will lead to a better life! Better health! Happiness 😊

A group of Garden Club Ladies are coming to tour the nursery today 😊 Im excited!

I have a Garden Club coming today, so I gotta keep this short…

Plant something!
Nurture it!
Watch it grow!
Then you will realize that your actually growing too 😊 AND, theres a Huge reward coming – Harvest 🌽 🍅🌶🫑🍉💐🐝❤️

Have a great Thursday!

PS: Thanks to the Town & Country Garden Club for coming today!

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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Sunday Reflections…

I had to put my jacket on this morning when I walked outside with my 1st cup of coffee 🥶 It was a little chilly… BUT, it’s supposed to get up to 78 degrees this afternoon 🌞 Great news! A little more great news, we have ‘probably’ gotten passed our last frost! Can you say Spring Planting Time!

One of my New Years Resolutions was to grow more Tomato’s 🍅 Game on!💥

I’m heading back inside to make another pot of coffee and fix some breakfast… Then its on!

Creamy grits with a fried egg 🍳 One of my ’go-to’s’…

My advice is to get out and enjoy this beautiful day! 🌞

“The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day.
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You’re one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
a cloud come over the sunlit arch,
And wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you’re two months back in the middle of March.”
~ Robert Frost

Have a great Sunday!

Mark C.

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Spring has Sprung! NOT SO FAST… Jack Frost Hasn’t Left For The Season Yet! | Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio | Jackson, TN

I’m the worst about planting to early before the “Last Frost Date”… Depending on who’s frost chart you use, our last frost date is somewhere between March 31st. and April 15th.

Frost Advisory TONIGHT AND TOMORROW MORNING!

I normally wait until April 15th before planting my tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, melons, etc… But as a Nurseryman, I have to be ready with plants in stock! So we have moved plants back inside – tender growth shrubs, flowers, hanging baskets, flats of sedum, roses, and so much more! AND, I still have to get the rest of our houseplants back inside… UGH!!!

I hate to do it, but it beats all my plants getting frost-burnt or even worse – Dead… Gotta move em back in…

This isn’t a ”Late Frost” by any means… It has just been so warm that this is a Surprise! So I thought I would share the news, just in case you havent heard 🥶

📢 Spring is Here! Cover your Plants! 😊

“The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.”

~ Henry Van Dyke

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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Sunday Reflections…

Were you early to church this morning? Or, were you more like me and actually set your clocks ahead like we were supposed to, only to have to drag your butt out of bed 🛏 Springing forward ain’t easy!

I will gladly readjust my time for SPRING!

As I watch the snow melt this morning, Spring is in the air! And in a week, it will be official 😊 I am so ready for longer evenings, flowers, boating season and homegrown tomato’s 🍅.

“In spring when maple buds are red,
We turn the clock an hour ahead;
Which means, each April that arrives,
We lose an hour out of our lives.

Who cares? When autumn birds in flocks
Fly southward, back we turn the clocks,
And so regain a lovely thing
That missing hour we lost in spring.”

~ Phyllis McGinley

Mark C.

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Throwback Thursday | Memories That You Can Count On! | The Smell Of Homegrown Tomato’s 🍅

August 5, 2021, 6:41 am
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Videos, Waterfalls | Tags: #throwbackthursday, A picture is worth a thousand words, Gardening, Growing, Guy Clark, Homegrown Tomatoes, I ❤️Tomatoes, Indeterminate Tomatoes, Love, Love Song, Mayonnaise, Seasonal Tomatoes, Sliced Tomato’s, The Perfect Sandwich, Throwback Thursday, Tomato Sandwich, Tomato varieties, Tomatoes, True Love, White Bread

Some memories are so powerful they not only touch the senses, they drive you back again and again… Yes, I’m talking some serious stuff this morning! I’m talking Tomato’s 🍅

What a gorgeous throwback picture! This one was taken around 7 years ago. Every year I try to recreate this scene…

Do you grow your own Tomato’s? If you don’t, this might not resonate with you at all… But, if you do, you know exactly what I’m talking about! There’s nothing like peak “Mater season”! When the counter is covered in them and you have jars full of Tommy toes, and every meal has a tomato component… 1 word – Heaven!

The simplicity of a tomato sandwich is very understated. White bread, mayonnaise, salt 🧂 pepper and fresh sliced homegrown tomatoes 🍅…Whew’… Give me a moment… talk amongst yourselves…

The bad part is the end of Tomato season… When you start to see the end. You know your gonna have to face a long Winter with NO fresh tomatoes… That’s when these pictures and these old memories come back to haunt you… But, right now, that’s a ways off! Right now is tomato time! 💥 My advice, get out there and make some memories!

Get all you can now! If you have too many, can em’! Because, like the man says “Winter is Coming”! 🐺

PS: IF you didn’t grow your own, there’s always next year… The next best thing is a trip to the farmers market. But do it soon! Look for older, heirloom varieties if available. My favorite slicing tomato is a Cherokee Purple. One bite and you’ll know why 😊

Here’s a little Love Song for ya’ on this #Throwbackthursday morning.

Have a great day! 😉🍅

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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July 16, 2021, 7:24 am
Filed under: Boutique, Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Hummingbirds, Koi, Koi Ponds, Lake and Pond, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Pond Tips, Pondless Waterfalls, Videos, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: #fishyfriday, 101.5 FM, 731-277-5155, 731-423-8101, 731-424-2206, bucket list 101, Call in, Call Us, Calling it in, Carter Country, Carter Country Boutique & Gifts, Carters Nursery, Carters Nursery Pond & Patio, Carters Nursery Pond and Patio, Fishy Friday, Flowers, Friday blog, Friday From The Road, Friday Radio Report, Friday Report, Friday’s, Garden Ponds, Garden Supplies, Gardening, gardening 101, Gardening answers, gardening questions, Gardening Supplies, Good Friends, How Do I Clean My Water Garden | Koi Pond | Carters Nursery & Pond & Patio | Jackson, It’s Finally Friday, Live Long & Prosper, Mark Carter, Perennials, plants, Questions, Radio, Seabass, Talk Radio, Thank God It’s Fishy Friday, Thank God It’s Friday, Tomatoes, Vegetable gardening, Water Gardening Answers, Water Gardening Questions, Water Gardens, Waterfalls, WNWS FM

Good Morning! Its finally Friday! I am walking into the studios of WNWS 101.5 FM, in downtown Jackson, TN, and will be going LIVE from 9-11am with The one, The ONLY… Seabass! AKA : The White Coconut! AKA : The Silky Chinchilla! But, he’s just plain ole’ Bass too me! 😊 Join us on the 360! We will be talking – Outdoor Living, Koi Ponds, Waterfalls, Gardening, Hummingbirds, Catfish, Karaoke 🎤 and Just about whatever else that – YOU, want to talk about! Call in and join us! You will be “Jackson Famous”! You can call us with your questions at 731-423-8101

Friday’s are flying off the shelf right now! It’s Summertime in Tennessee… It’s going, going, where’d it go… Do not miss out!
It’s going to be a beautiful weekend! LOTS of stuff to do in the garden!
– Planting!
– Trimming, weeding, picking, pruning!
– Mulching, Mowing – MORE!

Carters Nursery is ready for YOU! We got what you want! We got what you need! 💥 we are open today till 4 and tomorrow 8-2pm! Y’all come…

And don’t forget today is Fishy Friday! Come see us at the Koi Shack!

We have healthy, beautiful Koi, Shubunkins, Comets, Trapdoor Snails and more at the Koi Shack! Y’all come see us at Carters w, Pond & Patio ! 2846 Old Medina Rd. in Jackson, TN

You can buy fish at Carters Nursery 5 days a week during normal business hours. But, on Friday, we do a little something special. We call it ‘Fishy Friday’ and all the fish you buy are 20% off!

You can call us with your questions at 731-423-8101 AND you text us your questions and comments to 731-277-5155

– I’m on the 360 with Sea Bass every Friday from 9-11am Call in with ALL your Garden & Outdoor Living questions 731-423-8101.

Have a Great Friday! The Weekend Cometh!

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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Tomato 🍅 Tuesday Update | Thanksgiving Maters’!

November 24, 2020, 10:45 am
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Waterfalls | Tags: Family Dinner, Family time, Family Traditions, Happy Thanksgiving, Home For The Holidays, Homegrown Tomatoes, I ❤️ my Family, I ❤️Tomatoes, Indeterminate Tomatoes, Seasonal Tomatoes, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving is Coming, Tomato Sandwich, Tomato varieties, Tomatoes

The week of Thanksgiving is finally here! The menu is planned and the guest list is finalized. There’s only 1 change to the menu… An addition. A very rare addition for a Thanksgiving in fact…