Thornless Blackberry Progress Report. 5.7.19

Blackberry Floricanes.  R is Triple Crown.  L is Arapaho.

New Primocane Growth for Prime Ark Freedom Blackberry.  5.7.19

The floricanes for blackberry Triple Crown ate growing rapidly and have flower buds.  Arapaho is less vigorous and behind Triple Crown in growth.

The floricanes of Prime Ark Freedom died this winter, somI have go depend on the new primocanes for berries.  That should not be a problem, since these are a primocane bearing variety.  However, Im not sire if spotted leaf drosophila will be an issue for the later berries.

Potato Progress Report. 5.7.19

Potato Plants.  5.7.19

Potato Plants.  5.7.19

The early- planted potatoes have grown by leaps and bounds.  We are having unusually hot, dry weather, so I watered them.  The soil is filled into the trenches and smoothed over.  One nice thing about the trench method, as opposed to planting the, more shallow and hilling up the soil, is I think they retain moisture better so need less watering.  This did not lead to rot for any of the plants.

The last of the planted spuds are smaller.  I assume that will stagger the crop, so they are not all ready at once.

Featured Bearded Iris: Eleanor Roosevelt. 5.7.19

Bearded Iris Eleanor Roosevelt.  5.7.19

Eleanor Roosevelt was released in 1936.  From the link above - Historic Iris Society, quoted from Cooley's Garden Catalog:

From the Cooley’s Gardens catalog for 1937: “Deep fluorite purple self, with very rich falls. The opening flower is almost black, and the heavy blue beard tends to increase the depth of color. This is the leading fall-blooming iris in commerce today, because it increases very fast, is most reliable in flowering habit, and is one of the most beautiful irises in the garden regardless of its added value as a rebloomer.”

I've had this iris for a number of years.  This clump got buried when I decommissioned the raised bed, but survived and grew up,throughgh 6 inches of soil.  I transplanted it, and here js one of the rhizomes blooming after only one year. Less, really.  About 9 months.

I will be sure to relabel this clump and move it to a more prime location, now that it is identified.

I enjoy that description, " Deep fluorite purple".

Eleanor Roosevelt is a smaller variety, which can rebloom and has done so for me.

Planting Tomatoes. 5.6.19

Tomato Plants.  5.6.19

Tomato Plants.  5.6.19

Today the temp reached 80, with prediction for higher as we go through the week.  Nights down to mid 50s.  Soil temp in the 70s.  I thought about waiting, but there is risk of overheating and drying out in the sunroom, so I planted most of the slicing tomatoes today.

These are all started from seeds, i doors, under lights in early April.

The varieties are Better Boy, Brandy Boy, Sunny Boy, Red October, something early.  There are a few more to plant.

This rotation, last year was corn, te year before was squash.  Before that, lawn and weeds.

Iris of the Day: Alcazar. 5.6.19

Bearded Iris "Alcazar".  First Bloom.  5.6.19

Two years ago I moved the clump of "Alcazar" to the edge of the woodlot and left it alone. Last year I noted it was doing quite well.  This was one of the few clumps that kept its label, so I knew what jt was before blooming.

Alcazar was released by the French developer, Vilmorin, in 1910.

From the above link, quoting a Cornell description in 1927, "CORNELL MEMOIR 100 Study of Pogoniris Varieties Austin W.W. Sand July 1926.
Alcazar (Vilmorin, 1910)Color effect light hortense violet, velvety pansy-violet bicolor viened on bronze haft; size large; form long; open, oblong ; flowering habit free ; tall bearded class ; height 32 inches ; branching wide at center or above; A flower of extra substance ; firm texture ; slightly crêped surface ; good fragrance;....
S. Light mauve or hortense violet, shaded deeper in the recesses of creped parts ; carriage cupped, arching ; blade obvate to fiddle-form, notched, undulate, ruffled and frilled, revolute, slightly crêped.... F. Deep velvety pansy-violet, the bronzed wide outer half becoming olive- yellow along the beard, veins ending abruptly with beard ; carriage drooping ; wedge shaped to oblong, slightly convex ; excellent velvety texture ; Minor parts ; beard coarse, dense, projecting, conspicuously broad, orange-coloured..., light violet bronze on the margin ; crest bronzed... Growth vigourous ; increase rapid ; habit open to regular ; foliage stiff, leaves broad, deep glaucous green ; 4 blooms open at once... floriferous ; stalk erect, angular, with 9 or more buds.... awarded a certificate of merit by the National Horticultural Society of France in 1909, and a first-class certificate by the Royal Horticultural Society, London in 1916."

Bearded Iris "Alcazar".  First Bloom.  5.6.19

I edited a little for brevity, but wanted to note that this variety is historically significant, and can't help but quote that "hortense violet" description.  This really is a nice, heirloom iris with a history dating back before WW1.  In fact, during the year that Vilmorin released this iris, my grandfather was in the Philippines participating in the latter stages of the Philippine-American war.

This clump got some of the leaf spot.  I think it's stopped now and will be cleared up and prevented in the future.