Fig Bars, Using Home-Grown Figs. 15 Apr 24.

 Here is my new permutation of fig bars, using figs that I picked last summer, dried, then stored in freezer.

There are several changes from the original, Betty Crocker recipe.  I like these better, and this recipe uses figs from my own trees.

There are three layers (sort of like a quilt, only edible)  - crust, filling, topping.

First the filling.

9 ounces dried figs (One cup)

1 cup water

1/4 cup white sugar.

Heat the water and figs together in a pan, about 5 minutes.  Enough to hydrate and soften the figs.  Let cool.  

Then transfer figs and liquid to food processor.

Pulse until roughly chopped. The figs absorb all of the liquid.   Add the 1/4 cup sugar and mix together.

Now preheat oven to 350 F.

The crust.  

The original recipe called for adding sugar and vanilla.  It also stated, use butter, not margarine.  I think the added sugar was too much, and the vanilla is too cloying and detracts from the flavor of the figs.    This is kind of almost a pie crust, but not rolled out and different proportions.  So, I left out the sugar and vanilla, and added 1/4 tsp salt.

1 stick margarine, chilled.  (1/2 cup)

1 cup white flour.

1/4 tsp salt.

I used the pastry blender to chop it together until pebbly, like a pie crust.

Press into greased 8" x 8" pan (I used a pyrex glass storage dish, similar size).

Bake 350 F for 15 minutes until center feels dry.  (I had to add about 4 more minutes).

Topping

While that's baking, make the topping.

1/4 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup white flour

3 tablespoons cold margarine.

I used the pastry blender to combine the flour and margarine, then the sugar, then mixed in the nuts and oats.

Now when the crust is ready, take out of oven.

 Slightly tan color but not brown.  Center is dry, not gummy.

I transferred the fig mixture to the microwave (glass bowl) and  warmed it up.  I don't know if that was necessary.  It is a bit easier to spread that way.

Then pour on the topping and spread evenly (forgot to take photo).

Recipe states bake 20 min until slightly browned and juices are bubbling.   For me, it was about 24 min.

Let completely cool before cutting.

I bet the filling could be changed to any fruit, if some starch is added as a thickener and water reduced or eliminated.  I would use a pie filling recipe to start out, with proportions changed to match the fig filling's proportions.  Likely need a few tries to get it right.  NY Times had an apple bar recipe that involved cooking down the apples until thickened.  I'm sure there are lots of others.

Two More English Roses, Plus Two Climbers. 14 Apr

 Here is the Vanessa Bell English rose that I planted last year.

Hete's the Silas Marner English rose that I planted a month ago, situated similarly.

Here's the Tropical Lightning climbing rose that I planted last year.  Amazingly vigorous.

And the unknown red climber that I grew from a cutting, three years ago.

That will need some training.

David Austin Roses, @ Not Quite A Month. 13 Apr24.

 Here are the three David Austin Roses on the deck.  The Bring Me Sunshine rose has pretty much recovered from its tender, in-warehouse growth being singed by the March sunshine.  It hasn't caught up with the others, yet.  But it's growing nicely.

Darcey Bussel.

Boscobel.

Bring Me Sunshine.

I'll have to post separately on Silas Marner.  It's doing well too, but slightly behind the two most vigorous.  I think that's the location in my garden instead of on the deck.

Garlic Chive Harvest. 13 Apr 24.

 Today was the first garlic chive harvest.  These are growing in a half-barrel size, open bottom container.  They are a bit affected with weeds, but not too bad.

Not bad, a crop in mid April! 

Having harvested these, it will be easier to de-weed the container pretty thoroughly and mulch to prevent more weeds.

With care, this Chinese Chive colony should give another crop or two this year.

Planting a Hardy Kiwi Vine. 12 Apr 24.

 I bought this vine at a big box store with an orange sign, last year.  You never know what you are going to get until you open the box, and it was sealed.  Here's what it looked like when I opened it in May.

Plants are always a gamble, but I mean, really?

I decided not to return it, although I should have.   I planted it in potting soil, kept it in shade to prevent burning of tender leaves, fertilized with house plant soil.  Basically treated it as a somewhat abused seedling,  In a way, it sort of was.  I imagine these are tissue cultured starts.

In July, it looked like this.

I repotted.  By about September, it looked like this,

I overwintered the vine in my vegetable garden.  It's starting to grow. 

The roots were good! and not root bound.

 I planted it in the duck yard against the fence.  It's at the top of a hill, facing west.

I think it should do fine there.  

It's great to transition a plant through TLC and finally get it into its new home.

I Found A Clematis. Time for TLC. 12 Apr 24.

 This was sort of an opps but sort of a discovery.  I asked for some help, planting the hardy kiwi vine, against the fence.  I told my helper to choose a spot, which turned out to be where there had been a dead clematis vine.

q

The roots were still there.  Here they are.  Guess what?  The roots have a living white center and green  cambium layer under the bark!  They are fleshy and flexible, not brittle like dead roots!

OK, time for some TLC.  I potted it up, using fresh potting soil.  Watered thoroughly.  Now see what happens.

An aside, that area is the duck yard.  And rose garden.  It's great for growing lots of things, but filled with  native (not Himalayan) blackberry.  Which makes doing anything, even walking, much more difficult.  I think all I can do is pull it out by hand, and try to dig out any roots, then be vigilant.

Pruning An Asian Plum Multigrafted Tree. 12 Apr 24.

 This tree was originally Methley.  When I moved it from Vancouver to Battle Ground, I grafted on a Shiro  Plum from the Vancouver yard too.  Over the years, I added a Beauty Plum and a purple leaf plum for pollenation.

My Asian plums have a very low spreading, umbrella shape with long willowy branches.  Most seem to droop quite low, giving deer a nice salad bar, plus making it difficult to mow.

I've never done a lot to shape and train this tree.  Today I pruned back the lowest branches, shortened the long willowy branches, removed too-low, deer-tempting shoots and spurs, removed some crossing branches and cleared some of the center.

I left some newer branches longer, to tie down and train in the future.

No "Before" shot this time.  I forgot.

Which Apple Varieties Are Blooming Now? Early Bloom Season. 12 Apr 24.

 Apples require cross pollination.  Or the vast majority of them do.  Apple varieties need to bloom together, to cross pollinate.

Varieties in bloom now can pollinate each other.  The exception is that triploid varieties can receive pollen from the more usual diploids,  but triploid pollen is not viable.  So it usually takes two diploids, so they can pollinate each other as well as the triploid. 

The overwhelming majority of apples are diploid.  I mention it here because Gravenstein is triploid.

Blooming heavily now -

Gravenstein.

Redlove Calypso.

Redlove Era.

SummerRed

Zestar.  This is sort of a "Wow" right now.

Columnar Supposedly Tasty Red, but it isn't (Maybe Blushing Delight?)

Also North Pole.

Montmorency Cherry In Bloom. 12 Apr 24.

 This is a great cherry variety for pies.  Really delicious.  This tree has been in this location for 12 years.  I moved it here from the Vancouver house, where I had grown it a few more years.

So far, I haven't needed to prune it much.  The size is fairly compact.  At this height, it also doesn't get any deer protection.  I do hang holographic flash tape to reduce losses from birds.

My parents had a Montmorency cherry tree in their yard, in the 1960s.

Montmorency is a heirloom variety, originating in the Montmorency suburb of France.  Apparently it was developed there in the 1700s or before.

This information is from the Traverse Bay, Michigan cherry website.  

"Montmorency cherries are not just a treat for the taste buds but also offer several health advantages:

• Rich in Antioxidants: They're packed with anthocyanins, which combat oxidative stress.
• Anti-Inflammatory Properties: Consuming these cherries can help reduce inflammation, benefiting those with conditions like joint pain.
• Sleep Aid: They're a natural source of melatonin, which can aid in improving sleep quality.
• Muscle Recovery: Some studies suggest they can help reduce muscle soreness and improve recovery post-exercise.
• Heart Health: They can play a role in improving heart health by helping maintain a healthy cardiovascular system."

Chili Pepper Seedling Update. 12 Apr 24.

 I think the chili peppers look about the best they ever have, for this time of year.

I repotted the Anaheims and Fresnos into larger containers.

The plastic pots go through many re-uses.  At the end of seedling season, they get a thorough washing and are stored nested, so they don't add to any clutter.

Here are all of the chili pepper seedlings.

Unless the weather is bad, they spend all of their day outside in full sun.  They are fully hardened and ready to plant outdoors, once the nights seem reliably above 50 F.  Meanwhile, when dusk arrives, I roll them back indoors.  The get a couple of hours under LEDs in morning and evening as well.

Tomato Seedling Update. 12 Apr 24.

 I'm pretty happy with the tomato seedlings so far.  They are growing their true leaves, nice and dark green.  The original sort of leggy seedlings are looking just as good too.  When I repot them, the leggy part will bender ground to grow more roots anyway.  I think they will thicken up anyway.

Seedling Update. Eucalyptus, Corymbia, and Portulaca. 12 Apr 24.

 First the Eucalyptus cinerea  (silver dollar tree) and Corymbia (lemon bush "Eucalyptus").

The Eucalyptus cinerea is the more vigorous of the two.

I cut the tips from two of the E. cinerea, to make them grow bushier.  The second tip cutting was last week.   I may let one or two of the others grow as actual trees, to plant in the yard next year.

I also cut the tips of the two most vigorous Lemon Bush Eucalyptus.  They are branching and growing nicely.  (I should note, there is some limited leaf irregularity).  It's interesting, the ones in the six pack did so poorly, while the ones in their own containers are more vigorous.   If memory serves, the ones in the six pack were multiples in their original, smaller seed sprouting pack.  I teased the roots apart to repot into the larger cells.  Maybe they really can't handle that treatment.  They seem to be growing fresh new leaves now, so I continue to give them TLC.  In comparison, the silver dollar tree Eucalyptus haven't had any problems at all.

I alternate between the common and scientific names, in hopes that will help me remember them.

The Portulaca (Rose Moss) look less delicate now.   They are also spending their days outside.

Seedling Update. Dahlias and Four O'Clocks. 12 Apr 24.

 The Dahlias and Four O'Clocks look nice.  I will wait until nights seem reliably above 50 F, before planting permanently outside. 

Dwarf Dahlias

Four O'Clocks.

Preparing / Rehabilitating Overwintered Mandevillas For Spring. 12 Apr 24.

 I've never grown Mandevillas before, so this is a learning process.  I overwintered the larger one (3 or 4 years old) in a corner of the sunroom.  It was too big to have elsewhere, but was difficult to access, so basically was near-dormant to nesr-dead).  The other (1 year old) was smaller and hanging from the ceiling, but still didn't get much attention.

The one-year old mandevilla (red) .

After clean-up and pruning.

Before pruning.

Last summer I had this hanging.  I haven't decided about this year.  It is three plants in one container.  Once it's well hydrated, and I am up to it, I'll repot with some fresh soil, in a larger container.

Here is the older (pink) Mandevilla.  It's really scraggly and sad looking.

Before pruning.

After pruning.

It looks pretty sad, but like they said in Jurassic Park, "Where there's life, there's hope.".  Or I think they said that.

I'm aiming for a bushy look or tower shape.  If there is good growth from the lower stems, I may prune off some of the tallest.   Once the soil is well hydrated, I'll start a lower nitrogen fertilizer so I don't stimulate too much rank growth, but some new growth, and encourage forming strong stems and blooming.

Celosia and Basil Seeds Germinating. 11 Apr 24.

 Those Celosia and basil seeds have germinated.  They were on the seed warming mat.

Large Leaf Basil

Celosia "Cock's Comb Dwarf Mix"

Celosia "Rainbow Sherbet"

All of these seeds were old, ranging 2 to 4 years.   They germinated quickly anyway.