Grafting Progress Report. Plums, kiwis, figs, ginkgo, persimmons. 5.21.16

Male fuzzy kiwi on fuzzy kiwi female.  Graft at ~ 2 months.  5.20.16

Chocolate persimmon on Saijo.  Graft about 6 weeks.  5.20.16

 First graft follow up today for the less typical  - for me - grafts.  All were whip-and-tongue.

The kiwi grafts were quite delicate.  The scion wood is hollow with a pithy center.  It oozes a slimy sap that reminds me of the fruit juice itself.  I have two kiwis, one is the big fuzzy type, and one is the grape-size hardy type.  From my reading, both will probably need a male pollinizer, something some of the nurseries don't tell you.  The scion were from the Home Orchard Society propagation / scion fair.

The fuzzy kiwi graft is looking good.  The growth appears to be past the stage of obtaining nutrients and must have a vascular connection now to the understock.  I usually unwrap scion at about 6 inches or 1 foot of growth, so leaving the graft wrapped.

The hardy kiwi is further behind.  I had trouble determining which end is up and wondered if I got it upside down.  If so, I expect it to rejecct the graft.  Just a little growth so far.

I stored persimmon and kiwi scion in the refrigerator until the understock plants were well leafed out.  I understand that works better for these, less easy, plants for grafting.  Less easy compared to apples and pears, anyway.  I cut the Chocolate Persimmon stick into two scions.  After grafting - all of these are whip-and-tongue - I wrapped the scions completely in grafting tape and overwrapped in parafilm, then covered with aluminum foil to protect from the sun.  After about 2 weeks, I removed the foil on a clouded rainy day.  One graft looks dead and one looks like it's starting to grow.  I cut the lower growth from the stem today, to reduce nutrient competition.

Hardy kiwi male on Ken's Red hardy kiwi.  Graft about 2 months.  5.20.16

My Dad's male ginkgo on seedling.  5.20.16

 The ginkgo scions looked good for a little while, then seemed to die back.  This one has started a little growth again.  I cut back the major growth on the understock, but leaft a few leaves at each point.  I don't know if it will grow and take over.  Intent is to keep enough understock growth to keep it alive, and if the scion is viable maybe it will take over later this year or next year.

The figs were from my old Petite negri fig tree in Vancouver.  I did 3 whip-and-tongue grafts onto the extra Dominic fig tree, which has several stems coming from soil level.  These were scion that I had refrigerated for a few months, well wrapped.  Like kiwi, the scion has a soft pith and is very fragile.  Petite negri establishes slowly from cuttings - for me - and the first tree I started from this variety died 2 winters ago.  No harm trying a more vigorous rootstock.   Of the 3 grafts, one appears to be leaving dormancy.  For cuttings, this is still much to small bud growth to say if roots have started, so same for graft take.  However, these have been at ambient temperature for a couple of months, and I think if they are not deriving nutrients from the understock, they will not swell at all.  We'll see.

The Red Washington (European) Plum - I guess, a NOID - scions looked near dead, but both have taken and grown.  These were also from the Home Orchard Society scion fair.  I added them for the pollination effect,  but in case they are good plums, I should prune back more of the Stanley Plum branches to allow them to grow larger.

I don't have a good macro lens and some of these are small, so some are a bit blurry.

Not pictured, one of the ornamental cherries that I grafted onto wild - likely sweet - cherry rootstock did not take, but the other did.  The other two ginkgos look like they did not take.

Red "Washington Plum" on Stanley.  About 2 months.  5.20.16

Petite negri fig graft at about 2 months.  5.20.16

Blackberry clearing and remediation project. 5.10.16

Before clearing blackberries.  5.10.16

Here is the status of my Himalayan blackberry removal project.   Moving into summer, I doubt I will do much work on removing more, too hot and sunny.   I started last winter, not intending to go far with this.  

However, after seeing the results, my intent is to clear all of the brambles from this part of our property.  Originally, blackberry thickets covered about 1/4 acre of this 1 acre parcel.  I have cleared, maybe 2/3 of the brambles now.

Before and after removing blackberries.  5.10.16

After removing an area of blackberries.  5.10.16

 I wear leather gloves, and use bypass pruning shears to shop approximately 2 feet at a time.  Often I grab multiple stems at a time and cut through them.  I make piles of the cut brambles, like little haystacks in the cleared area.

Gradually, the land is cleared.  Cut blackberry stems are like dry sponge.   The seem to degrade fairly fast, easier than tree stems.  I made some very large piles in an out of the way location, so they will compost themselves.  The compost will be added to garden beds.  Composting may take a year.

Six months after removing blackberries.  5.10.16

For the area that I cleared last winter, I scattered grass seed.  The grass established during late winter and spring.  Mowing the grass is also killing off the blackberry stems that re-grow, and will eventually kill it off entirely.  No chemicals.  Some sprouts are so vigorous, they are as soft as asparagus spears, and I just wear gloves and snap those off.  It will take about 2 solid days of work, to clear the area in the photo, labeled "Before Removal".

The photos are separate parts of the cleared and uncleared areas.  I did not think to take actual before photos.  The cleared area was actually worse than what I have not done yet - brambles were 25 feet into the trees, and the depth of the thicket was greater.

The hawthorne trees in this area are unstable, weak and falling.  They  look nice when cleaned up a bit, but I don't think they will last very long.  We've planted cyprus to protect the soil, which a bit beyond this area slopes into a ravine and creek, and for privacy.  Cyprus grow rapidly and thick, so the intent is to shade out any remaining blackberries - this photo faces south, with the forested area north of the cyprus trees.  They are a hybrid cypress which does not make seeds so is not invasive.

There may be some cool mornings this summer when I can clear more.  I'll hold up seeding more grass until then, when rains will help it establish.  Meanwhile, ripe blackberries will be much easier to harvest adjacent to sections that I have already cleared.

Planting, first week of May. 5.7.16

No photos today.  Too busy around the garden.

Most of the kitchen garden beds are planted.  So are the chicken feed beds.

Painted Mountain Corn.  Front row is cilantro.   5.9.16

The chickens get:  One row of sunflowers, surrounded by Painted Mountain Indian Corn.  There are also 3 rows of Dakota White flint corn.  It doesn't matter if the Dakota Ivory mixes with the Indian mountain, they are both flint corn.

It's early for corn, but they all germinated within 2 or 1 weeks, mostly 1 week.  Very few kernels did not germinate.

I surrounded the sunflowers with corn, to see if that keeps out rabbits and deer.  Those herbivores did not bother corn last year.

I've planted the 3rd batch of sweet corn.
#1 is Trinity.
#2 is Bilicious.  Se+ therefore OK to plant near Trinity which is also Se+.  I think.
#3 isTrinity again.

I'm aiming for about one patch every 2 weeks until early or mid July.  Watching soil temp, it's been above 60 since early April and mostly above 70.  On sunny days, soil temp is up to 80,

A patch of corn in my garden is about 3 or 4 rows of 5 or 6 plants per row.  According to most advice, it's better to plant corn in patches instead of single rows, because pollination is less effective in long straight rows.

I may take some photos tomorrow and add to today's post.  It seems kind of drab without photos.

Tomatoes are growing rapidly.

Peppers don't look so great.

Eggplants are in between.

Okra looks sad.  I don't know if I will get it to grow and produce.

Potatoes look amazing, huge green lush plants.  I hilled them up with soil, to about 1 foot.

Favas in bloom.  5.9 16

Favas are full of flowers.  No beans set yet.

Squashes, pumpkins, and melons all planted.  Most are not yet to true leaves.

Miscellaneous. 5.2.16

Saved Marigold Seeds.  5.3.16

Zucchini seedling.  5.3.16

 I planted rows marigold seeds around some of the vegetable beds.  If I had to buy the plants, or even the seeds, this many would have been expensive and a frivolous expense.  Since I saved seeds from last year, I have more than I can plant.  It will be nice for the honeybees if they grow.

Most of the squashes and pumpkin plants are in the ground.  So are the okra plants that I started.

The tiny blackberry plants that I started a few months ago are taking off now.  Leaves are nice and dark. 

Thornless Primocane Blackberry "Prime Ark Freedom"  5.3.16

Bearded Irises. Third Wave. 5.2.16

Now is the main season for my bearded irises.  More are blooming, in larger numbers, now than in any previous year.  Quite a beautiful flower.  I look at these pictures all year long.  I generally like the old historic irises much better than new modern varieties, but there are exceptions to that rule.  Sans souci, developed in 1854, was one of the main varieties that inspired me to look into older types.  This year, I may dispose of ones that I don't care for.  Some of the others are too vigorous and need more space, and some are just too susceptible to disease and never fail to disappoint.  Some may have just needed to adapt to my garden and climate.  Some, such as Loreley and Monsignor, took off and performed beautifully from the start.

Accent.  1952

 Caprice.  1898.  Fragrant.

Iris flavescens.  1813

Fall Fiesta.  1992.

Flutter-by  1924

Mrs. Horace Darwin.  1888.

Monsignor.   1907.

Monsignor.  1907.

No name.  Immortality X Fall Fiesta.  I crossed, 2012.

Front is Quaker Lady.  1909.

Sans Souci.  1854.

Rosy Wings.  1935

Loreley. 1909.