Let's See if Deer eat Petunias. 4.21.18

I planted a "tree ring barrel" with petunias.  Deer are the main gardening challenge in my area.  I'm trying to find plants that they wont eat.  This year the deer pressure is higher than ever, with 2 families regularly crossing my yard. 

The "barrel" is a stack of concrete or cinder block type crescents that connect together into a ring, used to protect trees.  They stack nicely, and in that way make a barrel-type planter.  I like them because they last far longer than oak barrels, and can be disassembled easily and relocated in pieces, much easier than moving a big barrel.

We'll see what happens.  This may just be another deer salad bar.

Carnivorous Plant Progress Report. 4.21.18

Pitcher Plants (Sarracenia) Starting to Grow.  4.21.18

Various Carnivorous Plants Starting to Grow.  4.21.18

Here's a progress report on the carnivorous plants that I bought in February.  Even though they require a different mindset, compared to most other plants, they seem to be taking off.  Each plant is growing at its own rate.

The main points that I have learned so far, are that these carnivorous plants want wet feet at all times.  So I'm keeping them in trays of about one inch of water.  The water can't be high mineral, so I'm using rainwater.  The need to be outdoors if possible, so they are.  They do not like being fertilized, so I'm not.  My source, and much more complete instructions for the beginner, are found here.  The author is my friend Jacob Farin.

An aside, I wrote a blog post on my learning-about-carnivorous-plants blog, regarding the neurotoxins that some American Pitcher Plants (Sarracenia) produce in tiny amounts.  The toxin is coniine, which is also found in poison hemlock
and which was what Socrates famously drank when sentenced to death in ancient Greece.  It's thought that Saracenia produce the substance to either attract or stun insects in its pitchers, so they die and decompose to provide the plant's nutrition.

Repotting and New Yamamoto Dendrobiums. 4.13.18

Repotting #1.  New Growth.

 I had lost enthusiasm for the Dendrobium hybrids, in 2016, and left a few in the compost pile.  Then I saw they survived the summer, and my enthusiasm renewed.  So I put them back into containers.  This one, in particular, was eaten by slugs that year, and in 2017.  This winter, I placed the bare-cane plant in the sunroom, put some organic slug pellets on the bark chips, and mostly left it alone.  It regrew, mainly keikei (new, removable branches with their own aerial roots), so I decided to pot it into a more appropriate (smaller) size container, with new orchid bark medium.  The roots looked healthy, but didn't fill the pot, so I chose a smaller size container.  A keiki fell off, so I potted that as well.  I don'tt have the label, but by the process of elimination, I think it might be the variety Love Memory "Fizz". I've had it at least 8 years.

As part of this new enthusiasm, I also ordered 4 new Yamamoto dendrobiums, direct from the hybridizer / creater, Yamamoto Dendrobiums in Hawaii.  I chose that route, despite shipping expense, because I thought the plants would be better than from a secondary supplier.  I think I was right.

Repotting #2.  Out of Container.

 I ordered the following varieties:

Mellow Heart "Yellow Mind"

Fancy Lady "Royal Princess"

 Red Emperor "Prince"

Oriental Smile "Fantasy"

The nursery also sent a start of a bonus plant, "
Wave King "Akebono"

Repotting #3.  In New Container, and Potted Keikei.

 I also repotted all of these new plants into slightly larger containers, in the same new bark medium.

Of my older Dendribiums, I don't know the name of the one that was left to founder until I rescued it from myself.  I'm pretty sure the flourishing white one is called Spring Dream "Apollon" and the pale pink one is called "Fancy Angel "Lycee".  

Dendrobiums and Tomato Seedlings.  4.13.18

These do so well with the care that I can give in my climate.  During the spring, summer, and fall, they will be outside in full sun.  I intend to do better this year, and water more frequently, but they survived previous years with rare watering in the summer.  I also intend to give some plant food this year.  It's not organic, but my choice this time is the diluted "Schultz" houseplant food, for convenience and the ability to give with each watering in dilute form.   When it appears that frost will come soon, I move them to the sunroom, give occasional water, and they bloom like crazy.

Sometimes they will also bloom at odd times, which is all the more welcome.

On the Yamamoto site, these orchids are pictured ready for commercial sale.  They are greenhouse grown in Hawaii, and bunched together for dramatic presentation.  In my SW Washington setting, they are not so lush, nor so prolific, and that's fine.  I can't believe how prolific they are, and how beautifully they bloom for me, with such minimal effort.

This being April, the rack also has tomato seedlings.  They are a little bigger than I want this time of year, but will be fine.

Sunroom, South & Southwest Views.  4.13.18

Sunroom, West View.  4.13.18

Tomato Plants. 4.6.18

The tomato plants are growing quickly under lights.  They are a little spindly.  I'm potting them up into larger containers, with potting soil instead of seed starting medium, and moving them into the sunroom, where they get real sunlight.  There is still about a month to go before I plant them in the garden.

Planting Some Columbine Starts. 4.6.18

I saw these columbine starts at the store, so thought I would try them.  I have not tried to grow them from bare root plants before.

The bare root plants looked fairly sturdy.  I planted them per the package directions, in the woodland border.   Deer sometimes eat plants there, and I have had columbines partly eaten by deer, so we'll see what happens.  They were not too expensive, so no loss if they don't work out.