Montmorency Cherry and Nadia Cherry Plum Blossom. 4.23.19

Montmorency Pie Cherry.  4.23.19

Most of the sweet cherries are done blooming - Ranier, Sweetheart, and Vandalay.

Nadia Cherry X Plum hybrid MIGHT have some fruits.  I'm not sure.  It looks like most suffered some frost damage, vs. did not pollinize.  I need to be patient.

Of the other Asian type plums, it's hard to say.  I think there was some frost damage, but the embryonic plums may still emerge.

Nadia with possible tiny fruits.  4.23.19

Nadia with frost damage.  9.23.19

Close Up of Nadia With Possible Fruit.  4.23.19

Carnivorous Plant Updates. 4.23.19

Nepenthes sanginea.  4.23.19

These are some of the carnivorous plants now. The first are the tropicals, which are in my sunroom. I only have Nepenthes, which is a large genus with many types. This Nepenthes sanguinea just opened one of its new pitches. Very rewarding. It has a nice coloration, red tones on green, inside and out.

Nepenthes sanginea.  4.23.19

Emerging Pitchers and Flower Bud on Sarracenia "Extreme Green".  4.23.19

The hardy, American carnivorous plants are just starting to come out of dormancy, with some new leaves (pitchers) starting to grow on some, although most are still in deep dormancy.  Two have flower buds, growing before or with the pitches.  One is Sarracenia X "Extreme Green", and the other is Sarracenia Tarnok. 

Emerging Flower Stalk on Sarraenia "Tarnok".  4..23.19

Emerging Traps on Venus Flytrap.  4.23.19

The Venus Flytrap is also emerging from dormancy, with some new traps.  I wonder if I should repot it (and some of the Sarracenias) soon.

Apple Blossoms and Pollination Times. 4.23.19

Apple Blossoms.  Dolgo Crabapple and GoldRush.  4.23.19

 Apples have a wide range of blossom times.  Earlies can't pollinate or be pollinated by lates, because their flowers are not open at the same time.  So it's interesting to see which ones bloom, when.  There may be some regional differences for each variety, so tables of blossom times may not reflect that cultivar's performance in a given area.

Now is the time that the early bloomers are in full blossom here in my BattleGround, WA backyard orchard.

Gravenstein*
Dolgo Crabapple
GoldRush
Rubinette
Airlie Red Flesh


I don't remember all of the varieties that I have but here are some in bud:

Apple Blossoms.  Gravenstein.  4.23.19

Granite Beauty*
Porter*
Jonagold
Jonared
Johnathan
Keepsake*
Priscilla
King David*
Opalescent*
Winecrisp®*
Scarlet Sentinel
NorthPole
Liberty
Akane*
Baldwin*
Honeycrisp.
Milo Gibson*
Chehalis

*Indicates this is the first year of blossom for those grafts.

Apple Blossoms.  Airlie Red Flesh.  4.23.19

 While I'm listing, here are grafts that have not bloomed yet.  Most are too new.

More Honeycrisp grafts.
Sweet 16
Hawkeye

Here are the grafts that I did this year, so of course no bloom for a year or two or three or four.

Prima
William's Pride
Pristine (I recall this is early, these are salvaged from previous branch of Pristine that broke off)
More Honeycrisp
Bob's Red Crab
HeyJack Crab

And here are my new trees that might bloom in a year or two or three or four:

Apple Blossoms.  Queen Cox.  4.23.19

Urban Apple® Tasty Red®
Urban Apple® Golden Treat®
Redlove Era®

That's a lot of cultivars.  Some of the trees have as many as 8 so it's not as many trees as one might think.  Still, I get to try many types of apple from my own yard.  They taste better than store bought, have a wide range of ripening times (July to November), and I get to taste varieties that are not found in stores or are historic, some fating back for centuries.

Potatoes Update. Final Planting, and Filling In Trenches. 4.23.19

Potato Bed.  4.23.19

Yesterday I planted the last of the chitted potatoes.  One package of Kennebec, one of Idaho Russet, and a few remaining overwintered Russets, probably, from the garage.

It is interesting, these did not grow long stems.  They were in the sunroom.  About 1/4 inch growth.  I wonder if they are alive.

Of the potatoes that I planted on 3.1.19, all are alive and very lush.  As are the ones that I planted later.
That is despite some frosts and the soil being chilly.  There are also potatoes growing in some of the garden beds that  missed when  digging potatoes last year and some that have overwintered for 2 or 3 consecutive winters.

For those rows where the potato plants are taller than their trenches, I filled in soil so there are several inches of stem below soil level now.  I mixed in some organic MoreCrop vegetable fertilizer.  This is the first year I have done that.  I had also mixed in some at planting time, which might be why they are so lush.

There are more than planned.  I go overboard, plus there were those that I saved from overwintering in the garage.  Those had long sprouts, 1 or 2 feet long, that I broke off, then allowed new sprouts to form before planting.  Those are doing just as well as the new ones.

Grafting Update. 4.17.19

First Growth, Northpole Apple on Bud-9 Rootstock.  4.17.19

First Growth, Northpole Apple on Bud-9 Rootstock.  4.17.19

This is the update for tree grafts that I did this late winter.  Almost all have pushed out buds.  As is usual for me, all of my grafts this year were whip and tongue grafts.  I like how straight-forward the method is, once I knew how.  I think any method with good cambium contact, and with good strength, will work.  By using whip and tongue method, if there is a good match in size of scion and rootstock or understock, the cambium heals all around and new bark forms, so there is no bare wound remaining.  The method would not work so well if there is a big mis-match of size between scion and stock, in which case cleft grafting or bark grafting would be better.  But for me, it's almost always whip and tongue.

This year, all of the plum grafts are looking good.  It's only 2 varieties, 3 grafts - two for Black Ice and one for Beauty.  I'm glad to get to try Black Ice, but have some doubts.  Black Ice is an American x Asian plum hybrid, and most of the ones I've grown, so far, bloom but don't set fruit.  I read they need American Plum as a pollinator.  I don't know why Asian plum, which I have a lot of, won't work.  But so far, only Toka has produced.  And that one is almost gone from a canker infestation.  These are grafted onto a tree of Ember, another Asian x American plum hybrid that has never fruited.  The tree also hosts a seedling variety that bloomed this year but doesn't appear to have set fruit.  This tree was created as a graft I did about 6 years ago, grafting Ember onto a cutting of Hollywood plum. 

It's interesting to see one of the Bud-9 (Budagovsky 9, a cross of M.8 x ‘Red Standard’ AKA Krasnij Standard) rootstock pushing some leaf buds on the columnar apple tree grafts that I made.  Apparently Red Standard is also called Red-leafed Paradise or Bud 9, pruduced by Michurinsk College of Ag, Michurin, Russia, in 1946.  I'm guessing there is some Antonovka in there somewhere.

Regardless, it's interesting to see the growth.

Kiwis are more difficult.  The stems are hollow, with a delicate pith center and thin layer of wood with delicate cambium.  I struggled to get these to match, and wrapped firmly.    The other challenge is knowing which way is up.  I don't think they will grow if grafted upside down.  I did some one way, and some the other.  Looks like a couple of those took.

Fuzzy Kiwi Male Whip and Tongue Graft.  4.17.19

Beauty Plum Whip and Tongue Graft.  4.17.19

 I think this growth is more than the small amount of sugar stored in the little kiwi stick can support.  Therefore, I think this graft took.

It will be interesting to see if any of that growth on the quince multigraft, is a precurser to flowers.  Of course, I won't let the grafts produce any fruits.  But one of the branches was left ungrafted, so I can allow that to make a fruit if it blooms.

I'm very happy with this method of wrapping the grafts.  As described earlier, I used strips made from freezer plastic bags, and over-wrapped the scion ends with parafilm.  They are all looking good.

Black Ice Plum Whip and Tongue Graft.  4.17.19

Quince Whip and Tongue Graft.  4.17.19

Quince Multiple Trunk Tree, Multiple Whip and Tongue Grafts.  4.17.19

Early Growth on New Apple Trees. 4.17.19

Early Growth on New "Urban Apple, Golden Treat".  4.17.19

 The new apple trees that I planted this winter are pushing out nice healthy looking leaf buds.   Interesting to see that the leaf buds on RedLove Era have a red coloration.

Early Growth on New "Redlove Era" Apple Tree.  4.17.19

Early Growth on New "Urban Apple, Tasty Red".  4.17.19

Fig Tree Brebas (early fig buds). 4.17.19

Brunswick Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

 Here are the brebas on most of my fig tree collection.  For some varieties, they will likely all fall off, forming new main crop figs to ripen later.

Of those that have brebas which almost always fall off - probably 95% to 100% fall off  - are Brunswick and Hardy Chicago.  On the other hand, King is an entirely breba variety, so almost all should ripen.  Lattarula does both. 
I usually get a few brebas on Carini and Petite negri but it depends on the year.  Celeste is too young, I have not had ripe figs at all from that 3 foot tall tree yet.

I'm not sure about LSU Tiger or Sicilian.  I need to pay more attention this year.

Petite Negri Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Celeste Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Hardy Chicago Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Latarrula Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Baby Fig Tree, Lampiera Preta.  4.17.19

Carnini Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

LSU Tiger Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Petite Negri Fig Tree that I moved about December 2017.  4.17.19

Sicilian White Fig Brebas.  4.17.19

Bearded Irises. Update. 4.17.19

Early Bearded Iris Flower Buds.  4.17.19

Bearded Irises Almost Budding.  4.17.19

 Some of the bearded irises that I have been obsessing over are showing signs of flower buds.  A few clumps, in the woodlot border, have actual flower buds.   I counted 5 stems on one plant.  That might be a historic variety.  I also saw a couple of flower stems beginning to form on Alcazar, and some of the others.  One is a very large leaf variety, so I'm guessing it's more modern.  However, Helen Collingwood is also very large and vigorous.

I'm excited they will bloom and I can identify most of them once I see the flower.

Meanwhile, I dug out a few bearded iris plants from the fence row, where the gnarly rhizomes were thrown two years ago and some took root and grew.  There was also one in an area that has been converted back into lawn, and somehow survived, and one in deep shade under a spruce tree.  All are not in the "recovery bed" where they may need a year to come into bloom.   Tough plants, when they are neglected.

Bearded Iris Rescue Garden.  4.17.19

Asian and European Pears in Full Bloom. 4.17.19

Original, NOID Asian Pear in Bloom.  4.17.19

Orcas Pear in Full Bloom.  4.17.19

 Most of the Asian and European pear cultivars in my orchard are in full bloom.   In some cases, I don't know what they are.  The Asian Pear that came with the place is full of flowers.  So is Hamese, Mishirasu, Maxie, Orcas, Rescue.  I think Nijiseiki and Shinseiki are just beginning to bloom.  I also have some grafts of European pear, I think Bartlett and Anjou, that are not open yet.

Rescue Pear in Full Bloom. 4.17.19

Apple Bloom Time, Beginning. 4.17.19

Dolgo Crabapple Blossoms.  4.17.19

Gravenstein Apple Blossoms.  4.17.19

This year I am more carefully watching fruit tree blossom times.

Many of the apples have buds showing the first signs of petals.  The only apple cultivars that have a significant number of fully open flowers, now, are Gravenstein and Dolgo Crabapple.

The Dolgo branch is small, and with so much rain, I don't know if bees are pollinating yet.  So we will see if that is enough to give us some Gravenstein apples this year.

As for Dolgo, I don't know if it is self pollinating.  Gravenstein is triploid so unable to pollinate other cutivars.

Nepenthes. 4.17.19

Nepenthes sanguinea pitcher, not quite open.  4.17.19

 The Nepenthes carnivorous plants in the sunroom are beginning to mature their pitchers.  Fun to watch.  I bought these earler this year - late winter - from growcarnivorousplants.com in Oregon.

Nepenthes x St Mercury.  Pitcher beginning to open.  4.17.19

Nepenthes thorellii x aristolochoides pitcher not quite open.  4.17.19

Pawpaw Buds. 4.17.19

Pawpaw NC1 Flower Bud.  4.17.19

 Gotta watch the pawpaw trees so I can pollinate them when the flowers are ready.  Not there yet but some flowers are beginning to open. 

Pawpaw Sunflower Flower Bud.  4/17/19

Cherry Trees Blooming. 4.17.19

Sweet Cherries Vandalay and Sweetheart.  4.17.19

Pie Cherry Montmorency.  4.17.19

This is peak bloom time for sweet cherry varieties Vandalay, Sweetheart, and Ranier, as well as for Montmorency.  I don't think Montmorency pollinates the sweet cherries, and is self pollinating.  The sweet cherries look like they will have a good crop this year.

I planted Vandalay and Sweetheart from shipped bare root trees from Raintree in 2012.  Ranier was a bare root tree from BiMart in about 2014.   Montmorency was from Home Depot, I think in 2010, and I replanted it to the Battleground orchard in 2012.  It was a ball and burlap tree.

Sweet Cherry Ranier.  First Bloom.  4.1719

Bearded Iris Update. 4.15.19

 These are irises in the woodlot border - bunches that lost their labels.  When they bloom, I'll be able to check old photos and identify them.  Several of these clumps are beginning to push flower buds, most for the first time in three years.  They went through my not being able to care for them, to randomly transplanting to the edge of the woodlot, to getting a little more attention in the past year.  A lot of these are historic cultivars although some are modern.

Growth is rapid now.  The fir bark mulched plants remain cleaner, much less leaf spot disease compared to those in bare soil.

Looking back through photos, the leaf spot has been present in most of the older photos, but the plants bloomed nicely anyway.  I think I can also see it on the plants in my old photos of visits to Schreiners' Iris Gardens.  So I think as long as it is limited, it won't hurt.  But if the bark mulch really does decrease leaf spot, I will consider using more of that.

One thing that's interesting, is most of the irises I see around town have no problems with leaf spot disease.  I don't know why.  Most of those are also in borders with ground fir bark.  Again, I wonder if that is protective?

I also wonder if the disease arrives on freshly purchased and planted rhizomes. Those seem like the most affected in my garden.  The older, long-established clumps do not seem affected, or much less so.

The plan:  buy a truckload of chopped fir bark this summer, and apply around each of the iris clumps.  I  use about an inch thick.  I try not to cover the rhizomes per se, but I don't obsess over keeping them exposed.

It's hard to see in these photos, but these plants have several flower buds.  Very promising.