Dwarf Tomato Update. 5.28.2021

 Here are some of the dwarf tomato plants.  So far -

(1) The leaves are much thicker than regular tomato plant leaves.

(2) I think the ones I planted in containers are healthier looking than the ones I planted in the ground.

(3)  There are quite a few flowers on terminal buds.

(4) BrandyFred looks like a mutant plastic version of a to a tomato plant.  It's so sturdy, green, thick leaves.  Really an interesting and different tomato plant.

(5) CC McGee, which is in the ground, doesn't look too healthy. 

BrandyFred

Alpatieva 905A

left front Dwarf CC McGee, right front Dwarf Johnson Cherry

Left Dwarf Improved Champion, Right Extreme Bush

More Extreme Bush, with Mr. Rufus

Grafting Update. 5.27.2021

 I'm happy with the grafts so far.  All are growing.  A couple of the black cherries seem a bit slow, but the third of those is growing faster too.

These are third tiers for espaliers.  The most vigorous is Gala grafted onto Honeycrisp, then Rubinette grafted onto Zestar.  The red leaf apple is Otterson, grafted onto Calypso.  Otterson bloomed at every bud. I cut off the flowers.  Now it has a growth shoot, so it looks like it will grow OK too.

Mock Orange Blooming. 5.27.2021

 This mock orange is about 6 years old.  When smaller, deer browsed the tasty young shoots. It's much bigger now and they seem to leave it alone.

Very pretty flowers.  Almost like white roses.

Snap Pruning Blackberry Primocanes. 5.27.2021

 Blackberries have a two-step growth cycle.  During the first year, the primocanes grow.  Those survive the next winter, and in the next spring they become blooming floricanes, which bear the berries.  The exceptions are a few modern types that compress the cycle into one season, such as primocane bearing Prime Ark Freedom.

Some varieties are too vigorous.  My favorite is Triple Crown, which must grow 10 or 12 feet tall if I let it.  Then they fall over.  If they are topped when much shorter, they will grow lateral canes and remain much shorter.  The berry production is supposed to be much better too, on these laterals.

The pruning is very simple.  Books call it "pinching", but if the tip is bent, it snaps off.  No knife or pruning shears are needed.  There are various recommendations about the height - 2 to  4 feet.  I'm aiming for waist high, about 3 feet, but did these a little shorter to catch them while I was there and remembering.

Snapped!

 

Kenmore Sewing Machine Maintenance. Quilt Binding From Cotton Shirt. 5.27.2021

I may give in and buy inexpensive cotton sheet to back the blue brick pattern quilt.  Meanwhile, I made the binding, which will complete the quilt edges, once I get to that.  

This was a previously owned XL cotton long sleeve shirt.  Kind of a medium weight fabric  There is no apparent outside/inside, or I can't see the difference.  The dark spot is just a water drip from the steam iron.  

It was a simple process.  Wash / dry the shirt on warm / hot setting to preshrink and thoroughly clean. Thrift store shirts can have a musty scent, so I add color safe bleach to the was water, which seems to fully  cleanse the fabric.  I remove the pocket first, so the weave can shrink and needle holes vanish.  Starch, iron.  Cut seams.  Cut into the longest 2 1/2 inch wide strips possible.  Sew shorts strips together into one long strip, with 45 degree angle seams.  The angle reduces bulk when sewing on the binding.  Iron, and it's done and ready.  I needed about 26 feet of binding.  This shirt gave that, using the longest strips, with a bit left over.  Not much.  

Ning bought this sewing machine for me at an estate sale. It's in good condition. I downloaded the manual, which was online. Following the manual instructions, it was easy and straightforward to clean and oil the machine. One screw on the bottom is stuck, so I accessed that inside area by removing a panel on the end.  I applied some penetrating oil to that screw, maybe it will loosen with time.  It's nice, the casing has a door that opens to expose the sewing head for easy maintenance and light bulb replacement. I found LED light bulb replacement that I'll install when it arrives, for brighter light without the heat, although the existing incandescent isn't bad.

This sewing machine is pre-digital bells & whistles, can be home tubed-up, has a nice solid feel, and sounds like a good solid sewing machine. I hope it lasts a while - it's a lot of fun to use.

Some Thoughts About My Blog Philosophy. 5.25.2021.

 This year, with the COVID pandemic appearing to be waning in the USA, I have been updating this blog more often than before.  This blog is really a garden diary combined with home research journal combined with notes for future years.  Also, a few things here and there about other projects.  It's a challenge to find reliable information on line.  Much of on line reporting is driven by profit and marketing.  That's understandable, but it makes it a challenge to know what to believe and what is just hype.  There is a lot of hype out there.

My garden experiences should be helpful in similar climates, local or far away.  Even so, every garden has its own character, its own soil, climate, history, experiences.  I hope that the information posted here is helpful.

I don't have promotional links.  I don't advertise companies or products.  I'm not marketing anything.  My goal is to share experiences and knowledge.  I do have a philosophy, which is oriented more toward do-it-yourself, reduce/reuse/repurpose, creativity, learning, and enjoying the process.  

I do sometimes link to the place where I bought items, or obtained information, to give credit where credit is due.  I do not receive anything financial or kick back for those links.  They are solely informational.

I sometimes look for illustrations that are helpful.  Whenever possible, those are very old - long past copyright expiration, or are public domain.  I don't knowingly post any copyrighted material.  If informed that something is copyrighted, I will remove it.

That's all I can think of at the moment.  I hope you enjoy and learn some useful or interesting things from my little blog.

Oriental Poppy Grown From Dormant Summer Root Cutting. 5.25.2021

 Last summer, I dug out root cuttings from a red oriental poppy that I grew in Vancouver.  I waited for the leaves to go dormant, crinkly brown, which they do in mid summer.  Then I dug out as much as I could, basically a foot long root.  The main root goes much deeper, and that plant grows back from the deeper root.  The dry, brown roots look like dead sticks.  I planted them around my Battleground vegetable garden.  Every cutting grew and bloomed.  Over a few years, they make a nice clump.

This is a nice way to get free starts of this beautiful oriental poppy, if you know someone who has a few plants.  It's much nicer than buying a potted plant from that orange home improvement store.

Weigela Update. 5.25.2021

 This is the best year so far for this approx 5 year old Weigela.  I bought it during a trip to Schreiner's Iris Farm.  Their's were huge.  I imagine those are descended from an old cultivar  from the midwest, although I can't know that for certain.  

In my yard, deer are a major challenge.  They did nibble tender growth from thus young Weigela, but leave it alone now.  I think it's not tasty for them.

This year, it's covered with masses of flowers.  Quite nice.  

Tasmanian Alpine Yellow Gum (Eucalyptus subcrenulata) Update. 5.25.2021.

 I think I planted this Eucalyptus subcrenulata in late 2018.  It replaced an American Linden that died of unknown cause.  This was a small potted tree, about a foot tall.  Now I can't reach the top, about 9 feet tall.  E. subcrenulata is considered among the more cold hardy Eucalyptus, originating in Tasmania.  The young leaves have a eucalyptus fragrance when crushed, but the older leaves have a sort of a mysterious curry type fragrance.   Deer have not touched it.  The leaves are tough.   I don't water this tree at all.  I do have a deer fence to protect from buck antler scratching, which can destroy a young tree.

The bark of older trees is described as having streaks of yellow.  It looks like the young tree has colorful red bark.

Pumpkin Update. 5.25.2021

 These are Galeux d'Eysines pumpkins that I started from old seeds, earlier.  They are planted in the black plastic covered area, with openings cut and soil dug and mixed with home made compost and some "Dr Earth" vegetable fertilizer.  I thinned one hill to two plants, and the other to three plants, to see if that makes a difference.  Slugs have been out, so I added organic slug pellets.

So far, so good.  I'm raising these both for the pumpkins this year, and seeds for future years.  Also the rest of the seeds are tasty and healthy snacks.  This is my favorite pumpkin for cooking and looking.

Of the others planted at the same time, all are similar size now:  Red Kuri, Fordhook Zucchini, and Illinois Squash.  I think the Gete Okosomin squash plants are also about the same size now but I don't gave a photo yet.  By the way, internet stories about Gete Okosomin Squash being resurrected from 600 year old seeds appear fake.  The more reliable appearing stories seem to be those that report these as having been raised through many generations by Native American families and communities.  Both stories are great, but I prefer to know the truth. If possible.

Potato Update: Clancy Potatoes from True Potato Seeds. 5.25.2021

 These are the two rows of Clancy potatoes that I started from seeds during the mid winter.  I planted the young plants in trenches, similar to how I plant potato tubers.  Some are big enough to fill in the trenches now, and some are not.  A few plants somehow disappeared.  I don't know how that happened.

The two plants furthest to the right, second row back, are Envoi potatoes that were extra, planted in April. They have already outgrown the Clancy.  So far, the Burbank Russet potatoes are still much smaller than most of the Clancy, so these seem sort of intermediate to a bit slower or smaller than most, but not all, of the potatoes grown from seed potatoes.  Russets are a late variety, Envoi is the earliest variety.

The Clancy instructions called for hilling up, rather than trench method, but this is what works best for me for other types.

Time will tell.  Mostly, I'm pretty happy with this experiment.I'll be happier when I can fill in the rest of the trenches.  Easier hoeing and other management.

Sweet Corn Update and Planting More. And Some Dill Seeds. 5.23.2021

Most of the sweet corn that I planted earlier has germinated.  There are always a few spots that don't come up.  I don't know if it's the seeds, or if birds or other animals have stolen the seeds.   Since I plant them with some to spare. I move plants to empty spots while still very small.

I also planted some main season sweet corn seeds, Ambrosia.  Since I read that sweet corn seeds don't usually keep more than a year or two, I planted new seeds.  These are hybrids and also it takes a lot of sweet corn plants for genetic stability if saving seeds, so I don't plan to save seeds from these.

I also planted seeds for some dill weed.

I keep fencing tunnels as protectors until the corn plants are about a foot tall, or more.  Deer or rabbits eat them when they are small and tender, but not when larger. 

The Trinity seems to have grown better than the Suglow. Next year I should just go with Trinity for the early type.  I think it's more productive and better tasting.  This year I can compare side by side.

Here is the new block of Ambrosia, an SE type.  I also have a packet of the variety "Delectable" which will go into the remaining blocks in about 2 weeks.  The roll of fencing is there to annoy and frustrate birds that sometimes dig out corn seeds.  I can make more fencing tunnels in a few days;

I'm trying not to spend too much time outside due to neighboring properties burning so much wet brush (and other stuff), the air is smoky and breathing cn be difficult.  Country air here in Battleground is not necessarily cleaner than city.  In fact, it's often far worse than Vancouver :-(   I hope they stop burning stuff for a while so I can get back into the garden.  For what it's worth, countryside here is much noisier than the city too - leaf blowers, big mowers, chain saws, and other power equipment.  But it's worth it for now, for the garden size and option to have chickens.

I had some old dill seeds (Burpee) and new (Victory) so I mixed them together in the row.  Dill isn't hybrid, so no problem saving seeds.

Shirt Fabric Quilt Top Assembled. 5.22.2021

 I finished assembling the shirt fabric quilt top.  This is seven shirts, plus the border binding will be one more, a dark blue.  In keeping with the repurposed fabric idea, I want to find a sheet or similar fabric in good shape, before doing the quilting, so that may be a while.  Alternatively, I might find something on sale.

There are things I like and things I don't like about the result.  I'm still new at it, and self-taught at that, so need to be forgiving with myself.

This is an old, traditional quilt pattern.  I found an example online from 1910, Illinois  State Museum.  

Most of the Pickle Cucumbers are Planted. 5.22.2015

Most of the various types of pickle cucumbers are planted.  The exception is Alibi which I haven't decided where to plant.  As with the tomatoes, this year is a test of different varieties, and Im hoping home saved seeds give me a good result.  Alibi is hybrid so is only a backup for the others.  Also Im not sure about the vine length.

Most are in barrels with mix of garden soil, compost, and a little potting soil.

These are "Bush Pickle", short vine pickling cucumber.

Edit: These didn't survive. I don't know why - maybe too cool? I planted bean seeds in this barrel instead.

Dwarf Tomato Update and Disease Protection. 5.21.2021

 I was reading that some gardeners are reluctant to grow dwarf tomatoes because the bottom leaves are low, and other leaves are not widely separated, rendering them more susceptible to fungal spores that splash up from the soil during rain.  That may only be theoretical, I don't know.  So I started adding a brown paper cover for soil under the dwarf tomato plants .  Im only doing that if they have real soil, not ones that are growing in artificial potting soil media.

I hope the paper makes a difference.

I have not figured out how to label photos uploaded via ipad.  The first tomato plant, in the round container is BrandyFred, and the next two, in the rectangular black container are L to R, Improved Dwarf Champion and Extreme Bush.  The last two, in the teal plant box, are Alpatieva 905A.

I've also noticed that most of the dwarf tomatoes have flower buds at their growth apex.  I wonder if that is significant?

A New Cadet Cap Made With Recovered Fabric. 5.21.2021

This was kind of fun. I like using fabric that had a previous life as something else. This was duck cloth that I harvested from the back of an old couch that was in very bad condition. However, the fabric on the sofa back was not exposed to wear and tear, and was in excellent shape.

 I used a box cutter to remove the fabric from the old sofa. There were a couple of yards. Before using it, I prepped the fanric. I soaked it in hot water and detergent, squeeze but don't crumple or wring it out, drain, Repeat several times over two days, until the water came out completely clear. I wanted to cleanse the fabric of potential chemicals as well as soil.  I also wanted to pre-shrink it as much as it would shrink.  That was a lot.  Then I washed in the washer with a load of clothes with some all fabric color safe bleach. After drying at high temperature, I ironed the fabric.  The treatment brightened the fabric significantly.

 For the sides, I fused on a heavier, woven inferfacing. I made the liner with a muslin weight cotton. I made a quilted inner top, as I have done with other caps. I did not make a hat band or sweat band.  I like the less cluttered appearance.  This cap is a little loose, so I might add those. Otherwise it'a fun cadet cap, and much cooler than the denim or flannel ones that I made bedore.

Sarracenia in bloom. 5.21.2021

 The others are starting to bloom too.  These get rainwater from the wellhouse roof.  Seems to work well.

Rufus Photo Shoot for "Playdog" Magazine.

 Playdog exists only in my mind of course.  But Rufus is entirely real.

Ponca is Alive! 5.16.2021

 One of the pokey looking Ponca blackberries has put out some new growth.  I wondered if it would survive.  This is the most vigorous of the three.  We'll see how they all do as the summer comes along.

I imagine it will lose the red colors and become a more typical green as it grows,  Pretty colors now.

An Itoh Peony and a Couple of Irises. 5.16.2021

 I dont know the name of the Itoh peony.  Most of mine are yellow-ish.  This one is a year after planting - not bad for a peony.  The irises are Wabash and American Classic.

A Few More Bearded Iris Photos. 5.15.21

 Here are a few photos from this morning.  Some plants were photographed earlier, using Iphone.  This time it's with Nikon SLR.

I really think the hand me down varieties are nice.  Most seem healthier than the bought newer ones.  My guess is that the newest ones are over-hybridized for lush flowers, but not for disease resistance or durability or hardiness.  The hand me downs are ones that flourished over the years in local yards to the point where they had overcrowded their spaces, and were thinned out resulting in rhizomes to give away.  Ones that did not do well and were not liked, did not survive to the point of being given away.   So local gardens did the sorting out of the better ones.

However, there are some newer ones that are very nice, such as "Victoria Falls".