Disaster in the Forest

This honey locust tree that I'd been nursing along ever since I became his owner (his previous owner had topped him, severely stunting his growth), was coming along well. His only problem was that the new leader wouldn't seem to take control and become a real leader. By 2004, this is what he looked like. But the high winds kept his new leader bent (blown) over and it looked like he might be forever stunted.

So, I took matters into my own (non-arborist) hands and put guy-wire-type ropes on three sides, with one rope on the leader. Then, getting impatient, I pulled the ropes too tight. And this is what happened: The leader (roped off) and a secondary limb separated at the crotch and split down the middle of the trunk about 8 inches. Oh, my, what a disaster. Because I was unable to come up with an instant solution, and because the secondary limb (helped along by the high winds that we have in this area year-round) continued to pull the trunk apart in an ever-lengthening split, I chose to cut off the secondary limb, leaving a stump of about eight inches, until I could decide what course of action to take.

After much information-gathering and a few unsuccessful tries to repair the split and bring the two halves together, more than one week later I managed to winch the split halves back together and tighten the halves in place. My great expectation is that the split will heal and grow together, though not without a few lumps and distortions. I'll keep photographing it as the summer progresses.

It's my hope that this tree is strong enough to return to its healthy and sturdy self.

The Weather is HOT! The Garden is HOTTER!

The first zucchini of the season. This flower should turn into a little yellow fingerling (yellow zucchini) in a few days.


This little guy is the surprise of the year. I can't remember how many hazelnut plants I've started (thank you, The Arbor Day Foundation), and all have gone where all good and dead plants go. I was heartbroken when my last three plants never budded or leafed out this spring . . . then, wow! all of a sudden, this guy popped up. Skinny as he is, he's already got three leaves. He seems to have come from the roots of one of what I thought was a dead hazelnut. I'm all a-twitter.


The rose garden has a new member . . . this Tropicana, a Hybrid Tea patented in 1963, and wowing rose lovers for all these many years. It's now considered a non-patented rose (I just learned that this happens after a number of years to any patented rose), and it's going to add a beautiful orange color to the garden. I'll let her stay in the nursery pot for a week or two; then she'll get transplanted to a nice big pot where she can flourish and let her colors shine.

Last, but not least, the Hot Lips Salvia is doing so well in her little garden space. She really likes the bright sunshine and the warm weather. She's getting settled in her new home right now, and will soon grow quite large, attracting lots of hummingbirds to her brilliant red flowers.

Birding

The Eurasian Ring-necked Doves are in my yard again. They're a large bird, the size of a typical Mourning Dove, and their call sounds very much like the Mourning Dove---coo-coo-coo. They usually appear early in the morning around my birdbath to drink water. My Mockingbird sometimes tries to scare them away, but the Doves are a much larger bird and apparently not scared off by all that wing-flapping and chattering.

I also have a male Oriole, his bright yellow and orange breast and head add a brilliant spot of color when he flies around, looking for nesting materials I believe.

I wish I could post a photo of them. I'll look for a free picture on the internet.

This once Giant Columbine has become a dwarf over the years. It's been in this spot for more than 7 years. The soil was poor to begin with, and I've not added any compost or fertilizer. So, I took a spin-off plant and put it in some really good soil. I'm curious if it will again become a Giant. If it does, then I'll move this guy, too, and hope he'll be restored to his former self.

Roses

Roses love it up here in the warm dry climate. Never a problem with powdery mildew. The buds are sometimes bothered by grasshoppers, but this red variety doesn't seem to have any pests...it's a Double Delight.

Then, there's something quite breathtaking about a wild rose.

Flowering Plum

This little guy is doing nicely even though some crackpot gardener took his pruning shears to it last fall while I wasn't looking. He actually topped the poor little guy before I could race outside and stop him. I'm not sure which of these new sprouts will take over as the leader, but after the summer growth is over, I'll pick one and brace him up to be the leader. Needless to say, the crackpot gardener isn't allowed in my yard anymore.

River Birch

The 10 River Birch trees that I planted a few months back are all alive (I think). Some have shown green leaves; others seem more ornery and are still in the bud stage. I've been watering them every other day and have no idea if this is enough, too much, not enough water. It's how I watered all my other baby trees, so am hoping for the best. As it gets hotter, I may have to water them every day. It's all guesswork for me, but so far I've been fairly successful with all the little trees I've planted in the yard. Certainly, shade or sun make a difference: some are planted where they get a lot of morning shade; some get late afternoon shade.

My garden has enough zucchini plants to feed the entire neighborhood if all of the plants develop fully. We'll see. In one of the zucchini beds, I also planted a Yarrow, which should had a lot of color to the area, and I planted (from seed) dill and basil. From a whole packet of dill, I have 3 good plants (I think I overwatered them), and the basil is being especially hardheaded about sprouting and growing. A few green shoots have come up, but at this point I'm unsure if they are weeds or basil.

New Planters, New Plantings

I put up some concrete blocks in squares, loaded in some good garden soil (with time-release fertilizer) and planted some herbs. One, the Hot Lips Salvia, will be a great hummingbird tempter. In the same planter, I put my Sage and another plant that I can't remember the name, but it's little pink flowers are edible. Hmmm, maybe I'll put some in one of my salads.