Comment

Comment by Sentient Biped on April 19, 2013 at 9:25am

On cherries - I think it's a matter of local climate or microclimate.  I can't grow apricots at all - I've planted 3, and an aprium, and all died after the first fruit bearing year.  Peaches do lousy here due to peach leaf curl disease, which can be controlled by heroic efforts but I am not that heroic.  Cherries do very well here.  I keep the trees pruned back to under 8 feet tall.  I cover with a net to discourage birds.  No worms.  Which is better than I can say for apples here.

The easiest / most productive fruits so far for me are figs, cherries, and various berries.  Some plums do very well, and from the looks of the falling flowers, I'm hoping for a banner year for plums.  Grapes do well here.  I'm trying paw paws, jujubes, and persimmons, but the trees are too small to even call "trees", so we'll see a few years down the road.  Blackberries here are an invasive weed - brambles grow into an impenetrable thicket in a few years, 12 feet tall.  The berries are so tasty.  I'm leaving the thickets in the area around the beehives, they bloom  like crazy and honey bees love them.

Comment by Idaho Spud on April 19, 2013 at 7:56am

Dominic, I like sour fruit also.  I'm going to get another cutting from an excellent tasting (and looking) crab apple tree this spring.  I couldn't get the one from last season to root.  I'll try Sentient's method this year.

Sentient, nice trees & flowers.  The Bleeding Heart brought back some fond memories of living across town in my parent's house.  My mom had the hearts growing right by the front door.  It was a nice view to come home to.

Randall, I'm close to giving-up growing cherries also.  It's almost impossible to keep the fruit fly worms out of them, and they take-up too much room in this small yard.

Comment by Randall Smith on April 19, 2013 at 7:29am

Regarding Dominic's comment: My parents always had a cherry tree. Then so did I. But after it died (split in half), I decided I'd had enough of pitting and freezing cherries (and eating worms). Besides, one can only do so much with them, athough with vanilla yogurt, they're great.

Comment by Dominic Florio on April 18, 2013 at 8:47pm

When I was a kid, growing up in NY, we had a huge cherry tree in our yard, as big as an old oak, with a huge trunk.  They were sweet cherries. I used to eat them right off the tree, until I learned to open them first, because a number of them had worms.

But, I have always been a lover of sour fruit.  On my walks home from school, I knew of a sour cherry tree in two yards.  They both hung over the fence onto the sidewalk.  I would stop and eat some each time I passed them, although one house put up a sign warning that the tree had been sprayed for bugs.  I never believed them and ate from the tree anyway.  I too would have not done well in the garden of Eden.  LOL

Comment by Lillie on April 18, 2013 at 8:30pm

Yes, Dominic, when we are recycled, that is eternity.

Comment by Dallas (on hiatus) on April 18, 2013 at 8:25pm

Asian pears are great if you get a good one. The ones at the restaurant I used to work at were fantastic. The ones at the grocery store are like cardboard. 

Don't the birds eat all your cherries?

Comment by Sentient Biped on April 18, 2013 at 7:41pm

Dallas, nice plants!

Thought  I would show some of what's blooming here.  I can't do much right now, but I can take photos

Amanogawa flowering cherry.  The honey bees like this one.  It's too young to make enough nectar for a varietal honey.  Sweet scent.

Miniature iris - these bloom really early.  About 6 inches tall.  This is the first in my yard.  Variety is "Cherry garden"

Montmorency Cherry.  Last summer I moved this one to the new place.  Glad it survived.  This is a pie cherry, tart and lots of flavor.

Asian pear, unknown variety.  Yellow, size of apple.  Last year it had one pear.

Bleeding heart.  I planted this due to report of deer and rabbit resistance.

Scilla.  A weed but also deer and rabbit resistant.

For what it's worth, all of these were originally end of season close out sale, or I propagated myself.  The asian pear came with the place.  I'm too cheap to buy them in season.  But they are worth the effort and wait for the following year(s).

Comment by Dallas (on hiatus) on April 16, 2013 at 8:41pm

My tecomaria got hit by the freeze, so I just got one of these, a Mandevilla sanderri hybrid. Hopefully this will do okay. I like pink better than orange, anyway (the tecomaria had orange flowers). This is just a picture I found. 

I also bought a Mexican Bush Sage to put in a pot, so I hope it does well, too.

Maybe not though. This looks pretty vigorous. Perhaps too vigorous for the pot I have it in. 

Comment by Dallas (on hiatus) on April 16, 2013 at 8:37pm

Joan, I did not know that was a clematis. I recognize the name, but would not have been able to ID it. This is not mine, it was at someone's house, and I didn't recall ever seeing it before. 

As for the oregano, do you all remember me telling you about the area in my condo they were going to pay me to plant? Well, I ended up doing an herb garden last year. I think I mentioned that. The Italian oregano, Greek oregano, sage, rosemary, garlic chives, and winter savory all lasted through the winter. They are growing like gangbusters this year. 

I guess I am going to have to cut back the oregano though, as it is too vigorous. 

I just planted about four types of basil: a ruby red purple kind, a wavy-leafed purple one, spicy globe, and one other one. I also planted lemon thyme, fern-leaf dill, Mexican mint marigold, a new kind of lavender I found (like French, but with wider, grayer leaves), chamomile, lemon verbena, Russian tarragon, parsley, and seven different kinds of peppers. 

I'll post pictures in a month or two. 

I do have trouble getting thyme to grow here though. I think Texas is too darn hot for thyme. It lasts a while, but eventually dies.

And yes, Daniel, I love oregano with potatoes, and tomatoes, too. I put it in my salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette. 

Also, dill is great in a green salad with Ranch dressing. Nom nom. 

Comment by Sentient Biped on April 15, 2013 at 11:02pm

Fresh oregano is great with root crops, baked with some olive oil.  Potatos, parsnips, carrots.  

I have a small patch of greek oregano.  Herbs are great because they smell so good and bees love them.  I've interplanted them with irises to see if critters will stay away from the irises.  Thyme is also great and stays small.  Roman chamomile seems to stay small.  Mints and lemon balm are pretty invasive - I have them planted around fruit trees.  Almost all herbs attract bees and other beneficial insects.  Most grow easily form cuttings.

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