Orchard. Progress Report.

Blackberries

Feijoa / Pineapple guava

 I may need to stretch how I define "orchard".   Since the feral Himalayan blackberries are adjacent, they are included.  At some point they need to be tamed but not yet. They will be a major source of fruit this year.  They are also part of the apiary as a major source of nectar and pollen.   Not many bees on this bramble hedge.  Behind the beehive, there is another bramble hedge where the honeeybees are more active.

Grape Himrod

Grape Buffalo

 Feijoa, also called Pineapple Guava.  Apparently neither name is accurate.  This was from Tsugawa nursery last week.  Nice sized shrub.  No variety name.  That might be a mistake.  Some varieties need a pollenizer, others don't.

Cherry Montmorency

Himrod and Buffalo Grapes survived the late frost and are now growing nicely.  Probably won't be up to the top of the posts this year, but roots should be established.    These were bare root from Fred Meyer or Home Depot. There is also one from Raintree Nursery, same size.

The challenge with grapes will be how to keep rabbits and deer from eating the plants.  Currently they are in cages.

Montmorency and Surefire Cherries.  Both ripening.  Small amounts but it is nice to get some  fruit from our own place, so soon.  The Montmorency was cheating a bit - I bought it this year in bloom at Lowes.  The Montmorency was moved last summer from the Vancouver place, so survived fine and overwintered fine.

Seijo and Nikita's Gift Persimmons.  According to the Raintree catalog, these may not come out of dormancy until late summer or fall, so I feel fortunate to have some growth now.  They look fairly delicate but might be tougher than they look.  Lemon balm is planted in many of the tree circles, including by the persimmons, to reduce risk of animals chewing roots and bark, and attract pollinators.  I may not keep it there if it looks too competitive for the little trees.

Cherry Surefire

Persimmon Seijo

Persimmon Nikita's Gift

Historic Iris & Culinary Herb beds, progress report.

Historic Iris / Culinary Herb bed #2

This weekend I move more irises to the second raised bed.  I learned from last year's experiences.  Moving late Spring / early summer did not result in any negative consequences, and the irises I moved at that time flourished.

The varieties I moved from Vancouver were:  Cherry Garden 1966 (small variety), Pink Bubbles 1980 (small variety), and Gay Parasol 1973 (tall variety).  Any iris more than 30 years post introduction year is considered historic.  That makes me historic too.  I also added Los Coyotes 1992 - not historic.   I planted woolly thyme, which it looks like will stay very close to the ground, which I want.  The marigold sweet alyssum seedlings are about 1 inch tall.

Historic Iris / Culinary Herb bed #1

The first Historic Iris / Culinary herb bed.  Still in Bloom:  Quaker Lady, Iris pallida dalmatica, Shah Jehan, and Iris flavescens.  Iris flavescens is especially florifeorous.

Roman chamomile is too rangy.  After bloom, it will have to go elsewhere.  Greek oregano is also too tall for the small iris plants.  Lime thyme, French thyme, and sweet alyssum are ideal size.

Apple Grafts

Apple Grafts

These are the little trees I grafted in March.  Sutton's Beauty and Spitzenberg.  Growing nicely.  With this much of a top, it's safe to say the grafts definitely took.  I'll keep them growing in containers, this year.  Next year they can go into their permanent spots.

I'm very pleased, I created my own grafted apple trees.

All of the pear grafts this year took too.  Next year I might add some more.

Historic Iris Shah Jehan

Shah Jehan 1932

Described as tall and late.  That is accurate.  Nice fragrance.  Good for back row of heritage iris bed.  Has not flopped over but looks like it could.

Kitchen Garden.

Broccoli

Broccoli in container

 A few minor notes on kitchen garden.

The broccoli is ready.  I didn't know when to harvest.  One of the heads started to open its flowers.  So I waited too long.  Harvested the rest.  Left a few side shoots in case they decide to produce.

German chamomile is blooming like crazy.  The honeybees are not so enthusiastic about this plant.  They are much more interested in Ceanothis.  Blackberries within 10 feet of the beehive are starting to bloom, and honeybees are starting to show interest in the blackberry blossoms.

Okra seedlings are on their cotyledons.  Not bad.  I was surprised they sprouted so soon in  the rainy cool week.

Tomato plants are growing nicely.  No pic uploaded.

Also not pictured, we ate barley soup, with added fresh rosemary, parsley, and oregano, all from the heritage iris / herb bed.  Then today I had eggs with chives, and sliced chives onto left over barley soup.  All very good, great flavor.

We had the first fresh strawberries.  Most were not so good.  Woody.  I don't know why.  I don't think it's the variety.  I've had good strawberries from these plants before.  Maybe it was the deer/rabbit defoliation.  They have mostly recovered from that. A couple of fresh strawberries were perfect.

We had a few more snow peas.  The few plants don't bear enough to cook.  Ate them raw.  Next year try starting them in containers.  To get more plants.

German Chamomile

Okra seedlings

Iris Raised Bed, heritage Irises

Heritage iris and culinary herb raised bed

 Heritage iris and culinary herb raised bed.  Now I wish I thought of this before.  They go together very will

Caprice.  The photograph color is not the same as the flower.  In person is is more of a rosy red, not so blue.  Nice sweet fragrance.  In the literature this is described as a grape fragrance.  That is not far off from reality.
Quaker Lady.  Also a nice sweet fragrance, floral.

Pallida dalmatica.  Also, sweet grape - like fragrance.  Sweeter than grapes.

Sold as Honorabile but Historic Iris Preservation Society states most likely Sans Souci.  No fragrance, which I knew when I ordered this variety.  I liked the appearance, and in person it is better than I anticipated.  Ideal little iris for this bed.  I don't know what I should call it, but leaning towards Sans Souci, since that is probably the right name.

Flavescens.  Also unscented, and also ideal for this bed.

Helen Collingwood.  I think I already posted that so will hold off doing so again.  Also nice floral fragrance.

Iris/herb bed #2 is also coming along nicely.  Both got a dusting of crushed eggshells this weekend for calcium.

Caprice 1898

Quaker lady 1909

Pallida dalmatica 1597

Honorabile 1840 (Sans souci? 1854)

Flavescens

Walk around the yard.

Poppies

Some of the poppy seeds I planted last fall have grown into plants and are starting to bloom.  Most are Shirley poppies.  They are randomly planted around the yard, mostly in tree circles and by fence posts.  Nice sight.

The Rose of Sharon I moved last fall and for much of the winter and spring thought I had killed, is growing nicely now.  I anticipate flowers this summer.  Charlie agrees.

Sambucus nigra "Black Lace" is a pretty large shrub or small tree.  It's an Elderberry.  This shrub counts as ornamental as well as belonging in the orchard.

One ginkgo seed has sprouted.  Of the couple dozen I planted last fall.  Did an animal eat the others? Or slow.  Or dead.

The neighbor's Ceanothus (California lilac) is in full bloom and humming with bees.  Bumblebees, tiny pollinating bees, and honeybees.  I was impressed.  So I went to Tsugawa nursery mainly in hopes of finding a Ceanothus.  Which I did, and planted reasonably near the beehive.

Rose of Sharon

Sambucus nigra Black Lace

Ginkgo biloba seedling

Ceanothus and honeybees

Happiness

Happiness is the only good.
The place to be happy is here.
The time to be happy is now.
The way to be happy is to make others so.

(pic:  honeybee on avocado flowers, via commons.wikimedia.org)

Honeybees

On a chilly am, the honeybees cluster at the hive entrance.

Iris Raised Bed

 Raised bed for heritage irises and herbs.  A couple of irises are currently blooming.  Several more are in bud.  The later ones are from the Spring planted irises from Old House Gardens.

My goal last fall, until now, was for the irises to establish in this location.  They look good.  So now, some minor  maintenance, nurturing, and puttering from time to time, and hope for a more lavish display next year.  I feel fortunate that some of the Spring planted irises did indeed bloom, or will, so I get a taste of things to come.

The little blu-ish iris is Her Majesty.  It's not as blue in person, but bluer than the catalog color.  Effect of soil pH?  Climate?

New raised bed for heritage irises.  Built this past weekend, filled, and moved several irises from places where they had bee stuck due to no good places elsewhere.  The variegated iris is Iris pallida variegata alba.   The other blooming iris is an unnamed Iris I bought from a source in Tennessee last summer.  Slight fragrance.

I also planted herbs from other locations.  Chives, oregano.  Areas the will have irises later, I planted with swiss chard and carrots.  I planted the edges with sweet alyssum seeds.

Helen Collingwood

Night Hawk

Helen Collingwood.  I've been wondering if i would like this one.  I do.  It's handsome and has a mild sweet fragrance.  It has not fallen over in the rain, and the rain has not damaged the flowers, which gives it an advantage over a lot of the fluffy modern varieties.

Night Hawk.  Also a mild sweet fragrance.  Not a heritage variety, but I liked it.  This iris did fall over in the rain.  So I staked it for support.  The color on my computer looks true to the flower.

Bumblebees have been exploring these flowers.  I didn't see any honeybees in them.