Ugly Pie. 6.24.22

 I still had some cherry pie filling in the freezer, so made a pie.  The crust was very difficult to work with, brittle and kept falling apart. My guess is the flour, which was the last of a big bag of institutional bleached white  flour bought by internet during the early part of the pandemic.  The crust was too brittle to top the pie so I tried a lattice topping but that fell apart too.

Still, the flavor was good.  Even the crust was good, despite the difficulty in working with it.  

I think there is some rhubarb on the plant, calling my name now.  Maybe that's next.

Alstroemeria. 6.24.22

 I made a trip to the store and saw these.  They were pretty messy but the price was quite good, so I bought a couple.

I think these are described as deer resistant, so it's a test.  Plus, some survive the winters here.  I have larger Alstromeria that I from divisions last year, in my garden, overwintered from last year.  But these look like they will become quite colorful.  I think they will fill in and bloom a lot more, once they establish.

Hardy Chicago Offset Cutting Starting To Grow Seven Months Later. 6.24.22

 In November I cut an offset from the big Hardy Chicago fig tree.  I was unable to obtain more than a few tiny roots.  I planted it anyway.  This week I noticed a significant start of growth.  Seven months later, and all of the other fig trees are already lush and green now.  I gave it some balanced fertilizer and water.  Now that it is growing, I want to continue the TLC and see if it establishes and becomes a tree.

It's difficult getting the I-phone to focus well on such small buds, so they are a bit blurry.

This is the offset that I started with in November.  I didn't have a lot of expectation it would grow, but fig trees can be surprising.  That's really not much root for such a big top.  On the other hand, sometimes fig trees can be grown grow dormant cuttings that are all stick and no root at all, when they are started.

 

Planting More Seedlings. 6.24.22

 There are a few more seedlings to plant.  

African marigolds - planted the rest of them.  The ones already in the ground are already perking up.

The cosmos seedling that I set out a few days ago are growing.

More seedlings to plant - mostly French marigolds from home saved seeds, cleome, and thunbergia seedlings that I think don't like chilly nights and cool days we have now,

I want to plant those during the next couple of days,

An Excellent Gardening Aid for an Older Gardener. 6.20.22

 I bought this at Bi-Mart.

In this position, it's a nice seat for resting or working in raised beds.

In this position, it's an excellent kneeling pad.  The cushion is just the right firmness, and the side handles make standing up again a LOT easier.

 What a great tool.