Fall is the Time to Collect Leaves for Mulch. 11.4.18

Each fall I spread a fresh layer of tree leaves around most of the fruit trees. For the trees in cages, and the young trees, the leaf mulch suppresses weed growth, retains moisture, and enriches soil. As the fruit trees grow and mature, I remove the deer cages and don't spread leaves, since those trees have deeper roots and less need for such intense nurturing. The photo is a pawpaw tree with a nice layer of maple leaves. The main thing to watch for is that leaves may provide habitat for voles, which can and do kill young trees by eating the bark and cambium layer. I provide a sleeve of hardware cloth around the young trunk. That too has its hazards - the sleeve needs to be removed before the tree trunk grows too tight against the mesh.

Emerging Mushrooms. 11/4/18

I view mushrooms as a sign of healthy soil microflora and mycorrhizal populations. With the chill and wet. mushrooms are emerging all over. I don't know the types, and won't be eating any. They are fun to observe.

Some Flowers Still Blooming in Early November. 11.4.18

Bachelor's Buttons

Hybrid Buddlea

 Having some flowers around brightens up the yard work and gardening.  I always include some in my planting.  These continue to bloom, despite increasing chill and wetness.  I planted the bachelor's buttons in mid Summer, the zinnias in late Spring, and the Echinacea was a purchased perennial.  The buddlea has been there for a number of years.

Hybrid Echinacea

Mixed Zinnias

Trachycarpus. Hardy Chusan Palm. 11.2.18

Trachycarpus at about 5 years.  11.2.18

Trachycarpus at about 6 years.  11.2.18

These palms are hardy enough to thrive in my part of the Pacific NW.  They had a set back two winters ago, when there were sustained temperatures down to 9F.  Part of the crown was killed, but enough survived that they came back.  Growth during the first year after that freeze was slow and new leaves were distorted and small.  This year, they are vigorous and handsome.  The tip of the vertical leaf tips is now about 5 feet.

I chose not to fertilize them this year, because I don't want weak tender growth going into the winter.  During this hot dry summer, I did not water them at all.

The 3rd photo is the same species, at 14 years old, in my old yard in Vancouver, WA.  Still going strong.

These go by various names, such as Chusan Palm, Mediterranean Windmill Palm, Chinese Windmill Palm.

Trachycarpus at 14 years old in Vancouver WA.  6.7.14.

Zinnias and Dahlia. 11.2.18

 Dahlias haven't done well for me.  I think there are a couple of reasons.  First, I've bought big box store tubers.  I think they are mishandled and the growing points are not firmly attached to the tubers, so they just die.  Second, deer like eating the plants.  Third, slugs eat them.

Today while cleaning up, I saw this flower in a spot that doesn't get much attention.  I didn't know it was alive.  This dahlia was planted two years ago.  Where there's life, there's hope.

Meanwhile, zinnias continue to bloom.  This plant was among those that I thinned from the original row, and stuck in the vegetable garden because I hate to waste them.  Still looking nice, in November.

Persimmons Are Ripening. Fall Color. 11.2.18

Nikita's Gift Persimmons.  11.2.18

Nikita's Gift Persimmons.  11.2.18

October and November is persimmon season.  We already harvested and ate, all of the Yates American Persimmons, in October, but the rest are just beginning to ripen.

The Nikita's Gift hybrid persimmon tree has lost its leaves, and the orange/red globes are quite beautiful  hanging on the branches.  Most are still hard.  We will start ripening some, soon, indoors.

The Saijo Asian persimmon tree does not have as many this year.  However, the ones that it does have, should be very sweet.  I suspect the smaller crop will be typical for this tree in my yard.


Prairie Star got off to a difficult start in its first two years.  However now it's becoming a handsome young tree.  It's big enough to have flowers either next year or the year after, if climate and the gods of orchards are with us.

Persimmon trees have such beautiful fall color.

Nikita's Gift Hybrid Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

 I was so enthusiastic about these fruits, I decided to order two additional persimmon trees for future years.  The varieties are Coffee Cake (Nishimura Wase) and Chocolate (Maru)  Both benefit from pollination by the other.  Persimmon benefits from pollination is complicated, but in the case of these varieties, each makes both female and male flowers.

Saijo Asian Persimmon tree.  11.2.18

Yates American Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

Prairie Star American Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

Late Maintenance of New Bearded Iris Beds. 11.1.19

Here is an update on the bearded iris garden. For the most part, bearded irises are left unattended, no maintenance, to fend for themselves.  I've seen many clumps like that around town, and they seem to grow and bloom just fine. In fact, in years gone by, I had many clumps that had about that treatment.

However, they were difficult to grow at first in the Battle Ground  garden.  So last year, I dug up my remaining clumps, and planted them haphazardly along the edge of the woods.  They were in poor soil, full sun, and had essentially no maintenance.  This year, those irises did very well, grew sturdy and strong.  A few bloomed this Spring, but most did not.

So this summer, I developed a renewed interest.  I converted two vegetable garden beds to bearded iris.  This bed has grown sweet corn (last year), and garlic and onions (this year).  It's not the best spot, and deer hang out here.  Deer do not eat bearded iris plant's but they do walk among them, sometimes smashing them or their soil.

I went around the woods edge, digging up many of the clumps that I had deposited there in past years, and replanted them into this new bed.  I also bought a number of iris rhizomes, mainly by mail order.

Here is how the beds look now.  I don't intend to over-nourish them, but I did add crushed eggshells to the soil.  That's the granular-looking white specks.   I have been hoeing weeds, using a shallow stirrup hoe.  So far, of the new plants, one developed crown rot.  I promptly removed that plant, threw it out, and replaced the soil with fresh soil from an annual flower bed.

Over the past week, I cut off all of the leaves from the "rescued" irises.  Those leaves were droopy and had brown streaks or brown spots.  For the newly purchased rhizomes, I have not cut off the leaves yet.  Those leaves look sturdy and green.  I want to give them all the chance I can to photosynthesize.  When they start to discolor, those leaves will also go.

After hoeing, there are seeds in the center of some clumps or adjacent to rhizomes.  Those will need hand pulling.

Not surprising, the last purchased rhizomes don't look like much.  There is minimal top growth.  They may still survive the winter and grow nice plants next year, but for those, flowers next spring seem unlikely.

So far, so good. 

Newly  Purchased Iris Rhizomes, Planted in July and Early August.  11.1.18

"Rescued" Clumps of Bearded Irises, Planted In August And September.  11.1.18

Newly Purchased Bearded Iris Rhizomes, Planted in September.  11.1.18

Another Carnivorous Pitcher Plant. Sarracenia purpurea. Progress Report. 11.1.18

Sarracenia purpurea.  11.1.18

This plant turned out very nice.  I kept it in a dish of water on the deck all summer long, and continue to do so.  It might have dried out once or twice, but never bone dry.  It was in full sun.  On a couple of occasions, I poured miracle gro, 1/4 strength, into the pitchers, but that was all of the feeding it got.  The water used, was rain water from the roof.

Multiple new pitchers grew.  I left the old ones in place, even though they are becoming a bit unsightly, because they still seem functional.  By functional, I mean holding water, catching insects, and photosynthesizing. 

I'm interested to see if this plant will bloom next Spring.  I'm very happy with this plant, and this method of growing it.

Is this Ginkgo Tree Doomed, or Will it Flourish? 11.1.18

Ginkgo Tree Before Clean Up.  11.1.18

Ginkgo Tree After Clean Up.  11.1.18

 This was a very nice ginkgo tree that i grew from seed, one of the three that came from my Dad 20 years ago. It was the last to be moved from container to ground, and the ground was hard poor quality clay.  When we bought the Battleground place, I moved this tree.  I didn't know if it would survive, but it thrived for several years.  Then, for unclear reasons, the entire top died.

I delayed cutting it down entirely, and was surprised by new growth emerging from buds low on the trunk - ground level, to about 18 inches. 

I left it alone last year.  This Spring, I cut back some of the dead branches, and stuck them into the fencing that I encircled the tree with to reduce deer damage.  The most vigorous of the new growth reached about waist level last year - maybe 18 inches of growth, then this year shot up to over 8 feet tall.

Today I removed the protective fence, cut the new growth back to the one, most vigorous, new lead, leaving some tiny shoots at ground level as back-up plan.  The I cut the original trunk to a little above where the new leader emerged from the trunk, sloping the cut away from the branch point for water drainage.

Then I cut off the lowest branches from the new leader, leaving the lowest scaffold branches at about 6 feet high.

I don't know what caused the original die back.  If the white spots on the trunk are indicative of a fungal infection, that does not bode well for this tree.   On the other hand, we are not at two years after the die back, and the new growth was very vigorous and sturdy, so maybe whatever caused the problem is done.  All we can do now is wait and see.

I provided some deer protection for the tender leader.  I know, they say deer don't eat ginkgo branches.  My deer have not read those books and websites, and they do sometimes eat tender ginkgo growth, or might rub antlers on the tempting straight stalk, stripping off the bark, as they do on cypress trees.

Close Up of Original Trunk and New Leader.  11.1.18

Final Appearance of Ginkgo Tree.  11.1.18

Late Fall Apple Tree Care. Pruning and Protection from Voles. 11.1.18

I've started providing some care for the apple tree area.  This is for the dwarf and columnar trees.  One of the transplanted trees was without vole protection.  Voles are the biggest reason these trees don't survive a winter.   These are hardware cloth, helt in a cylinder using zip ties.  I push them slightly into the ground, but no longer try to push them deep.  When I have them under ground level, roots grow between the mesh and it's difficult to clean up.

I pruned the trees to remove branches the almsot touch the ground, and maintain the columnar shape of columnar cultivars.

They have a nice maple leaf mulch now.  About 6 inches thick, which will pack down to a few inches.  That provides excellent moisture retention during the summer, weed prevention all year, and nourished the soil.