More seeds planted indoors

I planted more seeds in my indoor-starting unit yesterday. This included 2 varieties of eggplant, some additional chili peppers, and a couple of tomatoes. I need to take a photo and list them, this post is so that I have a 'bookmark' on the date

Under the white cherry tree

This is the annual "try to get the dogs to cooperate for a photo under the white cherry tree" photo. I love this tree, old and gnarled, producing a profusion of double white flowers for a week. The orchard mason bees buzz around the flowers during the afternoon.

Yesterday - I pulled weeds, several buckets-full. I changed my mind about the potato choice, removed the fingerlings and replaced with gourmet whites. May plant the fingerlings elsewhere. Noted a few peas have sprouted - only a few. May replant.

Pulled more rhubarb leaves. Last week made strawberry rhubarb jam - easy and quick, the strawberries were frozen last summer. It was very good. Yesterday I made rhubarb jam - haven't tried it yet. I don't want to admit, I may like the version with strawberries, better.

Asian 3-way pear blooming, played the honeybee using a paintbrush to transfer pollen.

Later noted orchard mason bees have started to awaken, several flying around back and forth to their houses. Added a store-bought version with paper tubes, no time to make my own.

Flowering Quince

It's in the most neglected spot in the yard, a tall fence on the North side, my neigbor's house on the West, and our house on the East. I'm guessing 45 years old. Blooms every year. Get's a little pruning, that's all. Every Spring, one of the most beautiful shrubs around.

The order from Raintree Nursery came on Tuesday. Fortunately, the past 2 days have been cool, and I stored them North of the house where it is cooler. Today is Thursday, I unpacked and planted them. As it happens, today is warm and sunny, a beautiful day.

These are the trees. I'm a big fan of Raintree, and most of trees they have sent me have been robust and beautiful, and they have all grown rapidly. This time I do feel some disappointment. The middle tree, a minidwarf Honeycrisp apple, has about 3 roots, about 6 inches long each. Not much more than a partly rooted cutting. If I saw it in the store, I would have either passed on it, or paid half price or less. The tree on the left, a minidwarf Karmijn de Sonneville, is better rooted, I would call it a good specimen. The tree on the right is an Illinois Everbearing Mulberry, and is a handsome specimen with lots of thick, strong looking roots. Even the scrawny Honeycrisp Apple should grow, I hope, and I'll give it a try.

I look at buying fruit trees as: obtaining the genetic potential, in a 'package' that is healthy enough for me to grow. I hope they are large enough to produce in a few years, assuming that they respond well to my growth conditions. Most are grafted, again combining the genetic potential of the rootstock, with that of the scion. I also hope they are disease-free and healthy, without injuries. These trees are uninjured, and they were well packed.


Raintree nurseries describes Honeycrisp as: "outstanding crisp texture...sweet and tart flavors...pick it in September, but it develops its full aromatic flavor if left on the tree until mid October...somewhat scab resistant and has not shown problems with fireblight." (Photo from Raintree)


Karmijn de Sonneville is described by Raintree as: intensely flavored red russetted apple from Holland...highest in both sugars and acids...triploid cross of Cox's Orange Pippin and Jonathan...so highly flavored and aromatic that it overwhelms some tastes when just off the tree. (Photo from Raintree)

Raintree describes Illinois Everbearing Mulberry as "sometimes starts producing the first year...bears an abundance of sweet, highly flavored fruit, 1-1/2 inches long x 1/2 inch wide...berries ripen continuously throughout July, August, and September, hence its name....self-fertile (photo from Raintree). CFRG discusses mulberries, stating "M. alba X M. rubra...1958. Black, nearly seedless fruit large...very long, averaging 12 per ounce. Flavor good to very good, very sweet, considered best by by many. Matures over a long season. Tree vigorous and somewhat dwarfed, extremely hardy and productive."
This is the same variety, picture from Starks Brothers Nursery.

Plant expert Arthur Jacobson states: "few fruit trees in fact are so easily neglected without crop loss...mulberries fall when ripe, and with a splat notify the world that if they be not eaten fresh, forget it. Marketing mulberries is therefore difficult... Many people... cannot bide the thought of stains --mulberry juice is dark and persistent to an infamous degree...plant your 'Illinois Everbearing' tree well away from paving, patios or walks. Then, beginning the very first year, you can enjoy its fruit all summer"

For some reason, water that is set out for cats, chickens, or being used to soak trees is much tastier than water that is poured from the same faucet for dogs. No problem. I soaked the trees several hours before planting.

Choosing the spot for the mulberry. This is the spot where cucumbers grew last year on their tower. This year cucumbers will be in the front yard. I like to stand back and walk around and view from different angles before planting.

Planted, watered in, and pruned back to about 2.5 feet. This tree will be grown by the Backyard Orchard Culture method, with intense summer pruning. Most of my trees were cut back at the same height, and it's working well.

I have not seen mulberries grown by this method, but I don't see any reason not to try. It will be easy to cover with netting to keep the birds off - and birds are a reason that some people quit growing this fruit.

I will try to grow the pruned portion as well, as a cutting. If it grows, it may make a nice gift. CFRG states: "No special pruning techniques are needed after the branches have been trained to a sturdy framework...can be kept to a tidy form by developing a set of main branches, and then pruning laterals to 6 leaves in July in order to develop spurs near the main branches..not advisable to prune the trees heavily since the plant is inclined to bleed at the cuts. Cuts of more than two inches in diameter generally do not heal and should be avoided at all cost. The bleeding will be less severe if the tree is pruned while it is dormant." Mulberries are related to figs, and I suspect that similar issues apply.

Karmijn, planted and watered in. The hole was dug and prepared a while back, so this was an easy task.

Same for Honeycrisp.

Growing potatoes in a container

This year I decided to try growing potatoes in a container. Potatoes seem like a cheap, readily available commodity, so it may seem like a waste to grow some in a container. I was prompted by several thoughts.

First, I read that they grow very well in containers, providing a high yield in a small space. 2nd, I can grow varieties that are not easily found in the store.

3rd, based on my prior experience, fresh, home grown new potatoes taste very good - another item that seems better than store bought.

These are a white potato, the seed potatoes are labeled simply "Gourmet White". I grew a few 2 years ago, they were very good, but growing in the ground we missed most of them until they resprouted again. I also bought some organic "Russian fingerling" and will try those.

The method is:

1. Start with a container with about 1 ft of potting mix on the bottom. Lay in the sets. I haven't learned whether it's better to cut the sets into individual eyes, or plant the entire set. Both have been advised. Cornell advises cutting larger ones, and planting smaller ones whole. I decided to plant the entire set, reasoning that ther emay be less risk of rot. With multiple eyes, they may be more crowded, but in a container that may not matter. In addition, Cornell advises: "If you want fast emergence, keep the bag of cut potatoes at room temperature until sprouts appear. Some varieties are slow to break dormancy and benefit from a 2- to 4-week “pre-warming” before planting. Others sprout in just a few days. Plant about 2 to 4 weeks before your last frost date. The soil temperature should be at least 40 F. Do not plant where you've grown potatoes, tomatoes, peppers or eggplant in the past 2 years." It's so warm outside, I'm taking the chance and planting out side.


2. You can presprout the potatoes or grow in the soil. I'm not sure which is better. The gourmet white were already sprouting in the store, so it's decided. The Russian Fingerling are not sprouted, but if truly organic would not be treated with chemicals to prevent sprouting. I planted them directly. I also have a few in a windowsill to see if they sprout.

3. The potato sets are laid in the potting soil and covered with a few inches of potting soil. When the plants reach about 6 inches tall, a few more inches of potting soil are added, covering the lower leaves of the plants. This process is repeated until the soil is near the the top of the container, and can be further mounded.

4. According to containergardening.com, you can dig around in the soil with your hands,and pull off potatoes that seem big enough to eat, and each plant should produce about 2 to 4 pounds of potatoes. That's not bad for a container.

Some gardeners use containers that grow as the potatoes grow, or juse plastic garbage pails. I opted for a container that grew a Brugmansia last year, but had left outside so froze and died.

I may plant some sets in the garden as well. I have some left over.

Vegetablegardening.com suggests growing them in a cardboard box or bushel basket. This container was about the size of a bushel basket, maybe a bit larger. Some growers even grow them in a bag of potting soil.

A grower with a nice accent growing potatoes in compost bags: