Bobert: "Dock"??? If that is "burdock" it has a long tap root and mean as mean can be...

There are a number of different wild 'dock' plants in the UK, the most common being what we have in the garden, the broad-leaved variety. I'm not sure if Burdock is a relative or not, but these docks do have long taproots, tough to pull out fully, easy to snap. And so they say, they regenerate from any bits of root left in the soil.

http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/organicweeds/weed_information/weed.php?id=1





PDQ: "Any ideas of what to do with not-quite-ripe apples between 2 and 2 1/4 inches?"

Make Apple Jelly (clear preserve):

http://dovesoup.blogspot.co.uk/2009/06/when-life-gives-you-lemons-make-apple.html