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February 26, 1981 - Winter Takes a VacationFebruary 26, 1981 The Opu f f o lh Ti met Page 13 MULTIFLORA ROSE BERRIES - -This vigorous shrub was distributed by the Conservation Department for a wildlife cover and food source. It has spread throughout the area from the seeds of the berries dropped by birds and small mammals. Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Winter Takes a Vacation February paused a moment last week -- long enough for us to get outside and do some of the things that we thought about during the mundane days of winter. Anyone who has walked across his lawn or strolled down an unpaved road knows that winter's frost has been driven out of the ground by the welcome rains of last week. This condition brought about by the newly -freed land brought Barbara and me out to do some early work in the garden. Multiflora rose is an introduced rose that was given out by the state to rehabilitate areas so that they would be more suitable for wildlife. It is a rose that once given the slightest chance to survive takes off and is ever present in the area. As a matter of fact, once established it will quickly become six -foot tall from a mere twig. But then that's just the beginning. The multi - flora's name implies a multitude of flowers, which in turn provide a multiber- ry cluster. These berries provide a good wild bird food and are consumed by the millions each year by our feathered friends. The end result is that millions of seeds are spread throughout the land, resulting in millions of rose bushes being established each year. Just look sometime at any abandoned field and you will soon discover them everywhere.To make a long story short, it was the displaced multiflora rose that Barbara and I ventured outside to deal with. If you have ever tried to pull up or even dig up some of these established clumps after a few years of vigorous growing, you'll soon find that there is a real task ahead. But if approached just after the frost leaves the ground, the job becomes one of comparable ease. Displaced Intruders So it was when we went out during our weather break last week. A shovel under the plant and a hefty pull, displaced our intruders in no time and we had restored our fence edge to its original character. In some places we leave these multifloras to grow. They provide great cover and food for wildlife, but along our fence row they were shading the garden and, of course, their long roots found their way under- ground to siphon off the nutrients so necessary for our vegetables to grow. Like so many things in garden work, this will only be temporary. I'm sure there are already seeds below the fence quietly awaiting the wonders and warmth of spring. A bit of detective work reveals why our fence line becomes such a vulnerable place for these persistent roses to grow. Think if you will of a pasture with a fence W�''L�JCG along one edge of a garden. It attracts birds which perch on the fence where the natural functions of the body takes place and their seed -laden droppings fall to the ground below. That's why the fence row has so many more intruders than the open pasture where the birds merely fly over. While out there we did some orchard pruning, knowing that the sap in the branches was still dormant. I'll always remember the year I had to cut a branch out of my dogwood late in the season. How I regretted it; it bled for weeks after. As we walked among the trees that we now knew as Jon -A -Red, Red Delicious, EarliBlaze, McIntosh, Golden Delicious, Winesap and others, our minds flashed back to the harvest of the past season. Some produced for the first time, others old and reliable produced well, and we remembered how the mockingbird seemed to enjoy picking a new apple each day for his meal... never did he finish one without starting another. We trimmed here and cut there. A difficult task for us, particularly when each tree's history we knew. Perhaps if we'd had hundreds of trees, we'd have been able to do it a lot easier, but to the small grower each tree is precious. Barbara's sharp eyes caught a cluster of scaly egg cases out on the end of a limb. Here was one of this year's insect pro- blems, laying dormant through the winter and awaiting nature's time to open the tender buds and bring life to the orchard pests. My dormant spray, I hope, will do them in. Today is Monday and it is raw and cold outside. Quite a contrast to the mild days of last week. A day when you stay inside and thumb through seed catalogs in anticipation of gardening. The rewards are many and I believe the involvement plays an important part in our mental and physical being. There's something about digging in the soil and seeing things grow. Perhaps this is just another reason that country folk seem to outlive city dwellers. PAULSTOUTENBURGH The New Latest Tunes and Q� Some Oldies on Our ea r JUKE BOX 4- Main Road, Southold OPEN: 11:00 AM to 4 AM HAPPY HOUR Monday - Saturday LADIES NIGH Every Day Sunday 12 PM to 4 AM' Price 5 PM - 7 PM Tues. Night ' /z 765 -9843 Drinks Y2 Price Drinks Snacks Over 21 Please (Ladies Only) (6tntral Vaunt inn OPEN YEAR ROUND FOR DINNER 5 Days A Week Thurs.,Fri.,& Sat.:Regular Menu Sun. & Wed.: Dinner Specials plus Regular Menu 5 pm till 9 pm - Sun. 3 - 9 pm Join Us For A Nice Leisurely Dinner In A Relaxing Atmosphere Bayview Rd,Southold FOR RESERVATIONS CALL: 765 -3344 Friday, Feb. 27th STUFFED $$50 FLOUNDER WITH CRABMEAT includes: Soup. Salad, Vegetable & Coffee. Thursday, March 5th VEAL PARMESAN includes: Soup, $895 Antipasto & Coffee. DEAN BLAIKIE 7aIZI_tnin Sunday 6 Wednesday Specials Still Available LUNCH Mori Sat. 11 30 3:00 PM iun. 12.00 3:00 PM )INNER dlon. Thurs. 5:00 9:00 PM :ri. & Sat. 5:00 10:00 PM ;un. 12:00 9:00 PM DINE IN OUR "NEW" ATMOSPHERE Overlooking Southold Bay and Our Marina. rmer rne-I LOCATED ON ROUTE 25 (Main Road) BETWEEN SOUTHOLD & GREENPORT Luncheon Special Everyday Complete Dinner Special Every Ni ht OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK Saturday night Richie Phillips at the Piano Authentic Regional Cuisine 9 Prepared In Our Kitchen ,) NORTH FORK ,r RESTAURANT y r MAIN ROAD, SOUTHOLD OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK LUNCHEON Reservations 765 -2111 A ' DINNER Closed Monday SUNDAY BRUNCH Major Credit Cards Accepted SUNDAY DINNER John C. Ross Chef -Owner The New Latest Tunes and Q� Some Oldies on Our ea r JUKE BOX 4- Main Road, Southold OPEN: 11:00 AM to 4 AM HAPPY HOUR Monday - Saturday LADIES NIGH Every Day Sunday 12 PM to 4 AM' Price 5 PM - 7 PM Tues. Night ' /z 765 -9843 Drinks Y2 Price Drinks Snacks Over 21 Please (Ladies Only) (6tntral Vaunt inn OPEN YEAR ROUND FOR DINNER 5 Days A Week Thurs.,Fri.,& Sat.:Regular Menu Sun. & Wed.: Dinner Specials plus Regular Menu 5 pm till 9 pm - Sun. 3 - 9 pm Join Us For A Nice Leisurely Dinner In A Relaxing Atmosphere Bayview Rd,Southold FOR RESERVATIONS CALL: 765 -3344 Friday, Feb. 27th STUFFED $$50 FLOUNDER WITH CRABMEAT includes: Soup. Salad, Vegetable & Coffee. Thursday, March 5th VEAL PARMESAN includes: Soup, $895 Antipasto & Coffee. DEAN BLAIKIE 7aIZI_tnin Sunday 6 Wednesday Specials Still Available LUNCH Mori Sat. 11 30 3:00 PM iun. 12.00 3:00 PM )INNER dlon. Thurs. 5:00 9:00 PM :ri. & Sat. 5:00 10:00 PM ;un. 12:00 9:00 PM DINE IN OUR "NEW" ATMOSPHERE Overlooking Southold Bay and Our Marina. rmer rne-I LOCATED ON ROUTE 25 (Main Road) BETWEEN SOUTHOLD & GREENPORT Luncheon Special Everyday Complete Dinner Special Every Ni ht OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK Saturday night Richie Phillips at the Piano