Persimmon Progress. 7.10.17

Developing Yates American Persimmon.  7.10.17

Developing Nikita's Gift Hybrid Asian:American Persimmon.  7.10.17

 Persimmons are developing nicely.  If the Yates continue to grow and produce fruit, they will be my first for this tree and for any American Persimmon.  Yates apparently does not need a male pollenizer, and will therefore be seedless.  This is a 4 year old tree.

Nikita's Gift and Saijo have a couple of dozen fruits each, fine for 5 year old trees.

Developing Saijo Persimmons.  7.10 17

I'm excited to see persimmons forming.   I'm trying to decide if some need thinning, due to several fruits on the same twigs.  They might do better if they are further apart.

I've tried tying some persimmon branches to guide them, but they are so brittle they break off.  One of the Chocolate Persimmon grafts also did that.  I had tied the little branch to another one to guide it, and the wind broke it.  Fortunately, there is a second Chocolate persimmon graft that is OK.

Prairie Star Persimmon Sapling.  7.10.17

Prairie Star American Persimmon has had a series of unfortunate events over it's young life, now in its 3rd leaf.  It was eaten off by rabbits, twice.  It was bombarded with hail, killing most of the branches.  Now it looks OK, with a good leader and a secondary in case something happens to the main one.  Based on Yates, and assuming no more unfortunate events, it could bear in 3 more years.

Kitchen Garden. 7.10.17

Georgia Collard Greens and  Squashes.  7.10.17

Chili Peppers and Scallions.  7.10.17

 The kitchen garden is doing pretty well.  Collard greens got  mixes with squashes, when I had extra starts and didn't know where to put them.  They seem to be getting along together just fine.  Others are among blackberry plants and volunteer potatoes.  Big, beautiful leaves.

Chili pepper plants are small, but starting to take off.  Some are blooming. 

Vates Collard Greens.  7.10.17

Squashes.  7.10.17

Ripening Onions.  7.10.17

 Zucchini and summer squashes are looking good.  They are starting to bloom.

Sweet corn seems further behind this year.  The first two batches had poor germination, and I transplanted seedlings together in groups.  The later ones did better, even with rabbits eating off many of the plants.  There is still a good chance for some nice sweet corn later this year.

Both potatoes and onions are almost ready for harvest.  I dug some potatoes yesterday, and there are some nice ones.  I have also been using some of the onions, on an as-needed basis.

Tomatoes and beans are making good progress.  There are small tomatoes on some of the plants.  The pole beans are starting to climb.  I gave them some bamboo poles to climb on.

Sweet Corn, Various Start Times and Sizes.  7.10.17

Overwintered Geraniums. 7.10.17

 I don't buy geranium starts any more.  I grow them in containers.  In the fall, I move the containers to dry locations where they won't get rain. and let them dry out.  Them I move them to the garage for the winter.   No water, no added light, just dry and frost-free.  These are 3 or 4 years old.  They get better each year.

The one disadvantage is the plants don't get growing as fast as new starts.  But when they do, they are much bigger and more floriferous.

When there is one with nice form and color, it is worth keeping it going.

I have a couple that don't look as good, and will not keep them this winter. 

Container Lilies. 7.10.17

Late this Spring, I dug up these lilies from the old place, but didn't have a spot for them in the new place.  So I put them in a big plant container, gave some attention, and they bloomed the best they've ever done.

I don't know what I will do with them during the winter.  Maybe put the container in a shed.

Blackberry Update. 6.29.17

Fenced Apples and Blackberries.  6.29.17

Ebony King Blackberries.  Year 2.  6.29.17

 I think I have enough blackberry cultivars for trial.  It will take 2 or 3 years to see how they really produce, and that will also give me a chance to see how they survive the weather.  Three of the cultivars were planted last year in the winter and spring, and two are planted this year in spring and early summer.  Triple Crown was a container plant from a nursery, that was planted within the past month.  Despite hot weather, it's growing nicely.

Blackberry Columbia Star.  One year.  6.29.17

The varieties are:
Ebony King - old variety, probably diploid, some thorns.
Prime Ark Freedom - new variety, tetraploid, thornless.
Columbia Star - trailing, thornless.  I'm guessing this is tetraploid but I don't know yet.
Arapaho - tetraploid, thornless.
Triple Crown - I think tetraploid, thornless.

Blackberry Prime Ark Freedom.  6.29.17

So far the biggest challenge is deer and rabbit browsing.  Deer browse the tops, eating a significant part of the new growth.  That was a major set back last year, resulting in some complete loss of Prime Ark Freedom - half of the plants that I bought - plus they pulled Columbia Star out of the ground and destroyed most of the top, and ate half of the growth of the Ebony King.    Deer even ate the somewhat thorny Ebony King.  I notice they eat the tops of the brutally thorny local invasive Himalayan blackberries, but only the succulent tops with soft thorns.  All are in enclosures or cages now.  Rabbits ate off the emerging canes, up to one foot - thornless Prime Ark Freedom and somewhat thorny Ebony King.   That means, enclosures must also protect to the ground, Chicken Wire works for that.

I expect to taste some Ebony King in a few weeks, from the one plant, of three, that is producing this year.  All of the Ebony King are producing primocanes now, more vigorous than last year, and I hope my enclosure prevent loss of growth this time.  There may be a taste of a couple of Columbia Star blackberries, although only a couple from canes that survived the trauma and winter.  Prime Ark Freedom is primocane bearing, so there is a chance to sample those in a few months.

Blackberry "Arapaho" .  Two Months.  6.29.17

Blackberry Triple Crown.  One Month.   6.29.17

Only two of the Prime Ark Freedom survived the winter with strong growth emerging this spring, one stronger than the other - very vigorous.  However, I see tiny plants emerging from the roots of what I think are the plants that appeared to die off completely.

Of the new plants that I started this spring, Arapaho is getting off to a good start, and both plants have nice primocanes emerging.  They are in protected cages.  I may rearrange the beds this summer or fall, for better access and neatness.  The Triple Crown was blooming in the nursery pot, at only a foot tall.  There is a nice primocane emerging from that one as well.   I will leave the berries on the plant, to get a taste, if they develop.

If all goes well, there should be a taste of 4 varieties this year, maybe a few bowls of berries in 2018, and a good sized crop in 2019.  That is a big "if", but life makes no promises.  Gardening is always a bit of a guess, a bit of a gamble, some promises, some science and information, some work and some luck.