Progress Report: The New 2 Acres

With 100 degree F days, and no rain for a few weeks, it's not a great time for planting and digging. Still, there were a few things to do. I've hauled 3 truckloads of compost. I dug some into the borders and used some as a mulch on the borders and the fruit trees. Two columnar apples are planted. They were on sale, in containers. Red Sentinel and Golden Sentinel. I have Northstar at home and like it. If they don't survive, that's OK, but I've mixed compost into the soil for water retention, mulched with compost, and have given water each day. So far no wilting. Also planted 2 small fig starts and 2 larger containerized fig trees, again with addition of compost, mulching, and watering. No wilting so far, but one had some leaf sunburn. It's sunnier than the yard at home. Ning contracted a fence builder. The fence will provide a structure for layout and planning. In addition, while it can't keep all of the varmints out, it at least makes them go to more effort. Noting significant deer damage on the few anemic fruit trees currently there - 2 near-dead small apple trees, one may be apricot, and one European plum. I've sprayed deer repellent, placed special contributions from the dogs as supposedly fearsome "predator spoor", and of course there's that new fence. I've also given then a bit of water. The ?apricot? seems to be putting out some new growth, and so far, no new denuding of branches by Bambi. I've also rejuvenated a front border, removing weeds, digging in compost, and plated iris rhizomes from there, and from home, and a few new ones. Iris are reported as deer-resistant, and will be a good water conserving choice when established. Ditto for the lavender, rosemary, oregano, and thyme that I planted. Rosemary smells so good. Once established these will need little or no water. Rounding it out, I've also planted some Monarda/Bee balm, which is deer resistant and attracts bees and hummingbirds, and Yarrow, ditto. Off to a start. If the heat wave goes on for more than a month, it will be hard to keep going with the new starts, but most of the chosen plants are quite tough. The figs and apples were in containers, so needed watering whether I planted them or not. The perennials and herbs were also very cheap, 60% off, being on closeout because of the late season and who in their right mind is gardening now?

Orchid Blogging

During the summer there is so much going on, I tend to neglect the orchids. They give me so much pleasure during the winter, but sometimes they surprise me in Summer too. This one is probaby "Apollon" but was not labeled.  No special care - just tried to avoid completely drying out.  While cropping the pics I noted a visitor.

These are both Dendrobium nobile hybrids.

A closer view without kitty cat.

Cats are strange.

Tigridia

Next year I'll have to be on the lookout for more tigridia. These are fun. No effort at all, stuck them in with other plants. The leaves here are not the tigridia - their leaves look like gladiolas. Unplanned color math - cool.

each flower lasts about one day. I've read that saving the corms for the next year can be a challenge. Might be better to treat them as annuals. Won't hurt to try and save them for next year, when fall arrives.

I had stuck the corms in the deck planters with no plan in mind. Just curious about what would happen. Now every once in a while see another one is blooming. Like daylilies, the flowers only last one day, but there are several consecutive flowers per stalk.

Shiro Plums. Great harvest!

This Spring I wondered if there would be any plums. That was due to frost, and I read that Shiro needs a pollinator other than the Hollywood plum that is nearby. I was wrong. This is plenty for me to eat all I can, and share lots at work. Shiro ripens all plums in about 2 or 3 weeks, so no reason to have more than this.

These are the juiciest, sweetest plums I have ever eaten. Not huge size, but that's OK. They are a clingstone plum, so a little messy to eat. But so good.

Fig Time!

The figs are ripening like gangbusters. Even thought the first tree to provide a ripe fig was Lattarula, most of those are still green and firm. These are Desert King (also called King) and Petite Negri. The King figs are juicier and sweeter, but the PN figs have a "richer" flavor. The others are well behind. The advantage of keeping the small, so I can have more varieties, is a much longer period of ripening, as well as some do well some years, and others do well other years. And each has its own flavor. Cell phone is there to show size.

King. This tree is only 4 or 5 years old. Some of the new branches grew 12 feet, as thick as my thumb. Amazing year.