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labruscagrape - [OFEX] Update & a couple questions.

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  • From: "Biz Storms" <biz.storms@sympatico.ca>
  • To: "Ontario Fruit Explorers" <labruscagrape@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [OFEX] Update & a couple questions.
  • Date: Wed, 25 May 2005 09:30:40 -0400

Hello to All,
 
I'm back after a bit of travel and loads of orchard and garden work up at the farm. Before I forget, thanks Jo, for the Bartlett website info. I've taken advantage of it for several items.Things have been quite busy for me - since I managed to take on more than I realized. Massive transplanting of trees from the nursery out into the orchard, which finally made room for a large order of rootstock, plus about 60 plus trees that have been heeled in since last November/December. There should be a law about ordering things in the winter, when you forget about the last two or three orders already placed.
 
We now total 240 varieties of apples, and have blooms on about 70 different trees, which, allowing for some doubles, translates to about 55 varieties to potentially fruit this year. Of course the bloody weather hasn't helped, so I've been out hand pollinating. Our bee hives crashed this winter, and the wild bees aren't encouraged by last week's cooler weather. Thank goodness for crabs with tons of blooms. Although the pollen seems almost invisible this year. Many of the new trees are on M.9 rootstock, and I've been stunned to see blooms on about 1/2 of them. Talk about precocious. Many of the M.26 are also blooming a year earlier than expected. Just like the comments on nafex from a while back.
 
The black currants are just exploding with blooms, and the bumble bees can barely get off the ground.
The grapes are just beginning to show buds. We tried an experiment with mounding and wrapping half the grapes, and leaving the remainder untouched. Those that were protected look a great deal stronger. Bert - do you wrap yours, even if only for the first year or two?
Red, yellow, purple and black raspberries, plus Illini Hardy blackberries, were planted -  and those planted last year are budding up nicely. We discovered that raspberry plants are trying to take over the kitchen garden. These little babies are like bullies - shoving their way into everything. You have to be quite ruthless with them since they travel great distances under brick paths and fences.
 
Part of my recent labour was to plant a wack of nut trees that I'd ordered from Grimo during the winter. Black walnut, chestnut, hican, hickory, butternut, buartnut, hazelnut and mulberry. Also splurged with some figs, but they won't go into the ground, potted, for another week or two. Hey Tom, what kind of growth can I expect from the figs this first year. They are about 12" tall, with a strong bud showing, that's leafing out. Also, can/should I fertilize this year and with what? If they develop fruit, should we let it grow, or pick it off for root development, like apples?
 
The garlic scapes in the kitchen garden are now about 8" tall, and the one's I planted around the smaller trees are beginning to show as well. We're testing to see if garlic planted at the base of some trees has any effect on insects. Just a harebrained idea that came to me last fall when we had about 60 leftover garlic buds, and the garlic patch had reached capacity. The taste is so spectacular when eaten fresh from the garden ( after some drying ) instead of from the grocery shelves.
 
My tree pruning this spring was minimal, since we're trying for more fruiting. Have been preparing various weights for tree branches - gluing stones onto clothespins, and we're about to use the "cement into egg carton, with embedded wires" idea that surfaced on nafex a while back. Tom - maybe I'll try your idea about spraying them green to not look too ugly. Or, what about spraying red, and using them for tanglefoot traps? Hmmmm - maybe not such a crazy idea after all? We could kill two applemaggots with one stone ...
 
That's the update news for now. Hey Tom, how did things work out with the old sprayer, and also with the inarching graft?
 
Cheers, to all. Bizmark.



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