Plants I'm Growing: Early Figs (June 30, 2013)

In the back yard, we have a fig tree, a variety called "Black Jack," which has dark figs rather like mission figs, but bigger. I chose this one because the tree stays small. It's been in the ground about seven years now, but it remains small enough that I can harvest the figs mostly without the use of a ladder. Normally, a few figs form in the spring. they usually stay small, shrivel and never ripen. The main crop comes late in the summer--usually sometime in August. For some reason, we've had viable early figs this year--not a lot (so far about ten)--but good-sized fruit that has ripened beautifully. I had six for breakfast this morning, doused with yogurt and honey. Fruit has set well this year on all the fruit trees, actually. We have pluots on the "Dapple Dandy" tree for the first time in many years. The "Flavor Queen" tree is groaning under the weight of all the fruit on it. About 200 Santa Rosa plums sit in the kitchen. I'm making jam from the bruised ones. We have apples and pears on the way, too. Perhaps it was because we had little rain while the trees were flowering this year? The grape vines have set a lot of fruit as well.

Plants I'm Growing: First Blooms--(March 2-4, 2012)

Sometimes it's hard to keep up with all the new plants coming into bloom in the garden. Today saw the first bud open on the pink species tulip (Tulipa bakeri) called "Lilac Wonder." The Santa Rosa plum I planted a couple of years ago as a pollinator for our pluots is now in full bloom. The first flower opened on March 1. The Rhododendron "Noyo Dream" is also in full bloom. The first flower opened on March 2.

The first Lilac Wonder tulip bloomed on March 15 in 2011, on February 24 in 2010, and on March 5 in 2009, so this seems a fairly typical date--about in the middle of the range. The plant has calculated years of 356 days, 384 days, and 355 days so far, which average to exactly 365 days.

The Santa Rosa plum bloomed on February 23 in 2010 and on February 16 in 2011, so March 1 seems comparatively late. So far, the tree has calculated years of  358 days and 379 days, which average to 368.5 days, still somewhat long, but there's not enough data yet for that to be very meaningful.

The Rhododendron "Noyo Dream" bloomed on February 25 in 2009, on February 7 in 2010, and on February 2 in 2011, so this this seems quite late this year. So far, the plant has calculated years of 347 days,  360 days, and 393 days. Despite the odd lengths, these three average to just under 167 days, or close to an actual year.

Plants I'm Growing--First Blooms: Santa Rosa Plum, "Flavor King" Pluot, "Pink Snowflakes" Rhododendron

A number of plants have come into bloom in the garden in the past couple of days: the Santa Rosa Plum I planted two years ago as a pollinator for the pluots, the "Flavor King" Pluot, and the "Pink Snowflakes" rhododendron. The pluot Dapple Dandy" is now in full bloom as well.

"Flavor King" began to bloom on February 13, the Santa Rosa plum on February 14, and "Pink Snowflakes" today (February 16). The Santa Rosa plum is in the first photo, the pluot "Flavor King" in the second. "Pink Snowflakes" is below. The Santa Rosa plum calculated a year of 356 days this year, 364 days last year. "Flavor King" calculated a year of 363 days this year, 375 days last year. "Pink Snowflakes" calculated a year of 357 days this year, 367 days last year. Interestingly these six data points average to just under 364 days, very close to an actual year.

Plants I'm Growing: Spring in Full Swing

A series of warmer days (although it's been cold at night) and a break from the rain has brought many plants in the yard into full bloom. Shown here are Tulipa bakeri ("Lilac Wonder"), a species tulip rather than a Dutch hybrid. Plants like these are the ancestors of what most people think of as a tulip today; daffodils; and the little Santa Rosa plum tree that went in last year as a pollinator for the pluots.

Plants I'm growing: First Blooms--Ceanothus "Ray Hartman," Dwarf Peach, Santa Rosa Plum

The warmth and sun today has coaxed out new flowers in the garden. The "Ray Hartman" Ceanothus (or California lilac, top photo) and the dwarf peach (bottom photo) have both started blooming today. The Ray Hartman is now a small tree. It looks fabulous when at its peak, which should come within about two weeks. The dwarf peach has grown very slowly--left behind by a dwarf nectarine planted on the same day. Small differences in location (the trees are only a few feet apart) can make such a big difference; the peach gets an hour or so more shade both in the morning and afternoon. The fruit of the two trees is delicious. The deep pink blossoms contrast nicely with the rosemary always in bloom at the same time.

Yesterday brought the first flowers of 2010 on the little Santa Rosa plum tree and on the two-toned daffodils that went in last year.

I missed the first blooms on the Ceanothus in 2009, but I seem to have noted on March 19 last year that they had been open for about a week, suggesting the tree bloomed around March 12. That would make the flowering quite early this year. The dwarf peach started blooming on March 2 in 2009, which means a year according to the peach was 357 days. The Santa Rosa plum bloomed on February 23, 2009, so a year according to that plant was 363 days. I don't seem to have a 2009 record of the first blossoms on the pretty white and coral daffodils that opened yesterday.

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Plants I'm growing: First Blooms: Santa Rosa Plum

Last year I planted a small Santa Rosa plum as a pollinator for our pluot trees ("Dapple Dandy" and "Flavor King"). The tree is still just a stick, but its first blooms opened today. I'm happy to see that the blooms overlap with the flowering of the trees it was intended to give a boost to.

 If the rain ever stops, the bees may get out and do some pollinating.