Thursday, March 17, 2016

Kitchen Garden Progress Report. 3.17.16

Container Planting of Radish and Spinach Seedlings.  3.17.16
 I did a lot of gardening today.

Large half-barrel size containers with greens and favas are coming along nicely, roughly one month after planting.  Pictured, radish and spinach.  Favas are also growing nicely both in containers and in-ground, and scallions are more than a foot tall - Eqyptian Walking Onions.

Grape cuttings look good, about one month.  I am starting Interlaken and Price.  These will get extra TLC this year to achieve planting size as soon as I can manage.
Grape Cuttings at One Month.  3.17.16
Favas Germinating at one month.  3.17.16

Apple Scion, Fedco.  3.17.16
 Fedco apple scion came yesterday.  I stored in refridgeratore overnight.  Scion includes Milo Gibson, Sweet-16, Baldwin, Newtown Pippin.  Some were very small.  I multigrafted 3 existing trees, and also created one from a one-year plant of semidwarf stock taken from the stump of a prior apple tree.  That last was a rind graft, because the scion was so much smaller than the rootstock.  I used Mil Gibson because it is rare and unique.

The seedling gemetic dwarf peach is blooming at 4 years.  Others at same age and younger are not blooming.  I'm designating these as "gremlin peaches" because the trees are so tiny, suitable for container.  I don't know what they will be like.  They need a designation because it's too much typing to continue stating "seedlings of genetic dwarf peaches".

I planted herb seeds indoors in seed starting soil, in reused, washed seedling 6-packs.  I started seeds for greens in the outdoor half barrels.  As pictured below.




Rind Graft, Milo Gibson Apple on unknown semidwwarf rootstock.  3.17.16

Seedling Gremlin Peach at 4 years.  3.17.16

Seeds planted indoors.  3.17.16

Seeds planted outdoors in large containers for greens.  3.17.16

5 comments:

  1. Daniel, is Milo Gibson any relation to Mel? (I know, dumb.)
    Man, do you make me feel like a piker. I've done nothing yet, although I'm trying to see if kumquat or loquat seeds germinate. I got them in Florida. Ever hear of loquats? I hadn't. They're good, but like persimmons, seedy. Anyway, keep up the yeoman's work (apostophe needed?).

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  2. Wow getting seeds/mailed order stuffs from the mail is like Christmas, gets me very excited. The seeds that you bough that's planted indoors baffles me. The Shingiku, Johnny's Jumps up, Catnip, Parsley, chamonile, kind of grow wild here that I've to"weed" them. I like them still but they tend to volunteer where you don't want them to grow.

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  3. Randy, you know more than you think you know. I googled on Milo Gibson, and apparently Mel has a son with that name. But as far as I know, that's as far as the connection goes.

    One of the early founders, I think, of the North American Fruit Explorers group - NAFEX, a group of fruit growing hobbyists - was a man named Milo Gibson. This tree was one he was developing. Apparently it was an Oregon seedling. After his death, the tree was named for him. It is said to be very flavorful, with hints of anise.

    I haven't grown loquots. I read that in my area they grow, but don't fruit. Then I read there is a tree in Portland that fruits, but Portland has an urban heat island effect, warmer than my place. I am trying kumquots in a container, not blooming yet but very lush.

    Lance, you are right about those seeds. I have way too many. This year's tomatoes at least will all be from old packets. If I have several packets of the same variety, different ages, now I mix them together. If some are too old to grow, it's OK because I always plant too many.

    I'm planting those indoors to get a head start. Some I haven't grown before. It's probable they don't need indoor starts, but I suppose it doesn't hurt.

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  4. Myth busters: loquat not fruiting. If you have peaches then I think you'll have fruiting loquat. For a longtime, the consensus is in Sf you can't have fruiting loqauts expecially the coldest part which is the west side. But recently a lady is the community garden who lives on the west side have a fruiting tree and also she knows someone else who has a fruiting one also. I'm on the east side with the most heat and my next door neighbor has the best loquat ever their's is much better the store bough ones. In LA we called them Japanese Plums, there were too much worms in them that no one eats them. The trees are wild and where the fruit drops tons of little tree starts but I don't believe the tree habbit's as bushy and tall as the ones here in SF. If the tree is grown next to a southern wall, I think it will work. I tried to graft my neighbor's scions on my tree but its too hard. The bark is too soft and there's hair on the leave buds; I've no idea what to do when grafting it. The fruit is usually $3/lb and the seed is rather big and heavy.

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    Replies
    1. Lance that's really interesting. Thanks for sharing the information.

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