Garden Notes

Yesterday was a busy one!

I got 40 feet of Russian Finger Potatoes put in the ground.  One feature of the Russian potatoes is that I cover a few hills with deep straw in the fall and then I can dig potatoes all winter.  Then, in the spring, I dig up what is left and replant then in a new spot.  We get plenty of potatoes for the next year without buying seed potatoes.

I am growing 4 kinds of garlic.  Silver rose, Walla Walla, Elephant and Italian Softneck.

I also put in almost 60 feet of onions.  I usually buy the onion deal from Henry Fields or Gurneys and I get yellow, white and red onions.  I think I need to buy some sweet white onions next year.  I am getting really boring with the onion varieties.

I got several shrub bases with roots out of the pathway areas.  One large one and two small ones were directly on the way to the new veggie garden gate and I knew that one of us would be tripping over it eventually if I didn't get those things out of the way.  The other  shrub base and roots was in the pathway to the new horse pen.  It was a wicked looking thing with pointy branches sticking out from where I had chopped them off a few weeks ago.  I sure didn't want to bring my new buddy in and have him spook at the goats or some such and then cut his leg on a branch stub.

I finished getting systemic onto the trees.  We think  we have peach borers although we haven't managed to literally catch one of those little devils.  We had an apricot tree bleed to death and the next year another apricot tree died.  We have also lost a couple of crabapples and one or two apple trees to those monsters.  We have had attacks on cherry trees and another 2 apple trees but we dosed them with systemic right away and they survived.   We don't really like using systemic but we haven't much choice since the willows, peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, crabapples and apples are all susceptible to borers.   I've been using it on the Siberian elms, as well, since they have rough bark [which we think is what the borers like since we haven't had any attack our pears or other trees with smooth bark YET] and the elms get those annoying elm beetles that get into everything.

I watered the North Zone yesterday.  I watered the Front Zone and the Back Zone, both near the house, for three hours each.  It has been so dry this winter that I am already working hard to make sure the plants have water.  Spring is finally here although it can be a bumpy ride for 4 or more weeks.

The Kwanza flowering cherry trees are starting to bloom and the lilacs look fantastic this year.  Hoping for a good show.

It was chilly in the house so Hubby started a fire to warm us up a bit.  I called the burn line and it is a permissable burn day.  I don't want to spend much time on that but I might get a bit of the last stuff near the veggie garden in a pile and burn it.  We shall see.

41 degrees overnight.  Yesterday was 64 degrees and very little wind.  I hope today will be just as nice although it definitely looks cloudy, I am sure it won't rain.

I put the tomatoes and the artichokes [yes, I am growing artichokes from seeds] into the greenhouse and left them overnight.  Fortunately it was 52 degrees in there this morning.  Any time it stays over fifty I am happy since the baby plants do okay with that temperature and above.