If your fruit trees survived that cold spell in late April and set a crop, it might be time to thin those heavily laden branches.
The University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Service recommends that peaches and apples be thinned so fruits are 7 to 9 inches apart to allow proper space to mature and to prevent the branches from becoming so weighted that the tree is damaged.
Check apple and pear trees especially for a condition known as fire blight and prune any affected wood.
To keep the disease from spreading, burn or place the wood in the garbage. Early signs include flowers that wither and die on new fruiting spurs. Later, the foliage will look as if it has been burned. The bacterial disease can kill a tree in one season. If you suspect fire blight, cut off a twig in the affected area and take or mail it to the nearest Extension Office (listed in the White Pages under University of Illinois) for analysis.
In the vegetable patch, watch for bolting in the early salad crops and keep pinched back to spur more leaf development. Peas should be coming to the table about now and the vines should be combed daily to encourage further flower development for additional crops. And it`s still not too late to plant almost all other crops.
CALLING ALL VEGETABLE GARDENERS: The Cooperative Extension Service is sponsoring a contest to determine who can grow the biggest and best-tasting tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, watermelons and cantaloupe. Entries must be received by June 20 for judging Sept. 20. Entries will be accepted in person at Cantigny Gardens and Museums on June 21, at the Extension`s open house from 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mail requests to be entered should be sent to the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Service, 421 N. County Farm Rd., Wheaton, Ill. 60187. Rules will be sent out. Mail deadline also is June 20.