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Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Snow and Ice

Snow Day!! Presidents day came in like a weather lion, Cold temperatures on Sunday led to snow fall, but it melted off by the afternoon, Tuesday morning, temps in the high 20's and snow falling more with a decent amount expected all through the day.





Colchicum hungaricum 'Valentines Day'

Narcissus romiuexii
A weird weather year for sure, one of the mildest winters up until Feburary and now it seems to be kicking into gear! Expecting 6" of snow today then cold temps throughout the week.

Cheers, 
Mark

Friday, February 16, 2018

Crocus kosanini



"Men do change, and change comes like a little wind that ruffles the curtains at dawn, and it comes like the stealthy perfume of wildflowers hidden in the grass." John Steinbeck



You can probably ask a dozen people what that means and get a dozen different answers. I like this quote a lot, for one it's a simple statement of the observation of seemingly mundane or insignificant things that some may not even notice, like curtains billowing or aromas on the wind. I appreciate those types of observations, I like Mark Twain a lot and he was said to be one of the keenest observers of almost anything. Steinbeck too obviously had a penchant for observation. I like it also because by either way of compulsion, necessity or contrived fortitude, change found it's way into my life. I think this quote says it rather simply that people change, and it's usually not a sudden and sweeping metamorphosis. Rather, it's the small and almost imperceptible accumulation of ideas or traits that come at us in life, that when in small doses are not effective at changing anything, but over time and with consistency the build up leads to modification of ideals, or constitutions and thus effects change.


Crocus kosanini

I've written about this one and it's preferred lowland, oak habitat and it's probable suitability to acclimatizing well in Western Oregon's lowland Garry Oak valleys. And by the way this one isn't fragrant that I have noticed.


Snow and the coldest temperatures of the year are coming. Low's into the low 20's late this weekend with a dusting of the white stuff down to the valley floor are in the forecast. This could be interesting because if you've followed the last few posts, I've waxed on about the exceedingly mild winter we have had. The buds on the apricots are swelling now and it will be interesting to see where this leaves us. I'll be putting the frost blankets out for sure.

cheers,
Mark

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Fritillaria crassifolia ssp. kurdica

Fritillaria crassifolia ssp. kurdica JJA 17242
I've pointed out the variability in these before, but I've been trying to seperate out the different clones

Fritillaria crassifolia ssp. kurdica JJA 17242
Quite a different look in this one.

Cold and snow in the low foothills last night, this has been the coldest week of the winter so far. 

Cheers,
Mark

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Hard Frost

This is only worth writing about because it's mid February and this is the first one this year. 25 outside this morning. I put blankets on the bulbs in the greenhouse, the plunge frames I didn't, I guess we will see the impact.


Iris aucheri 'Indigo'
F 2.8/ISO 80/ with the Canon Powershot

Iris aucheri 'Indigo'
This picture is taken with the phone camera

So we have been taking this brown bag seminar photo class at work and it got me thinking about the value a digital SLR would add to my photo taking. I have always been pretty happy with my little Canon powershot and never delved much beyond adjusting the depth of field a bit playing with the f-stops. But thinking that maybe in my future is a camera upgrade at some point to help develop the skills a bit more. 

Anyway, 25 degrees out as I left for work this morning, but a sunny day ahead which means warmth so let the freeze thaw begin!

Cheers,
Mark

Saturday, February 10, 2018

Integrated Pest Management

Samwell Tarley, aka Samwise Gamgee, aka, Samsquantch, aka, Sam Stone, aka the Vole Killer......my version of IPM in the greenhouse, keeping a watch out for anything smaller then him that moves in the greenhouse.

Sunny and the rain hasn't showed up yet, but a bit cooler then the last few days.

Cheers,
Mark

Friday, February 9, 2018

Feel the Darkness............Fritillaria obliqua

“Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift.” Mary Oliver

That quote is some deep shit right there if you stop and think about it. This flower is just dark, some folks will say the flowers are brownish purple, but if you look close it's something deeper than that, it's midnight, or the hour right before dawn where the moon has faded and now is nothing but complete still and void of light. 


Fritillaria obliqua

Charles Hervey Grey's 1938 Hardy Bulbs:
A native of Greece. The bulb is globose, over half an inch in diameter: the leaves many, cauline, oblique, narrowly lanceolate, acute, very glaucus, two to five inches long; the stem fairly stout, olive-green, about twelve inches in length; the flowers one to three large, nodding, obconical, unchequered, brownish-purple, on stout, subarcuate pedicils; segments oblanceloate, sub-acute, apically incurved, over an inch long; stamens less than half as long as the segments; the anthers prominent, yellow; the ovary conical, obtusely angled, green; the style trifid, yellow. It flowers in March-April and should be grown in a sheltered position in very gritty, well drained soil. It is not I think an easy plant to establish, although it does extremely well in gardens where conditions suit it.


Maybe a hint or two of brown, but mostly just dark.

This flower has always meant a lot to me and while it's never been a great increaser, or helped put much cash in the larder. It's one of the reason's I wait for spring so patiently year after year. This one here never dissapoints, its stunning in it's simplicity and it's complicated in it's basic form. It's a black flower, it caught my eye years ago, and it still captures my imagination to this day. 

Overcast and somewhat sullen today, the freshening breeze says something is blowing in from the pacific. After a week of sun it's no surprise. Temps in the 50's.

Cheers,
Mark

Sunday, February 4, 2018

A Solid Month Early

I covered this group of flowers pretty intently last year, but they were blooming in early March and here they are this year in early February. We are definitely way ahead if these are blooming before Valentines day.
Some day when that monograph comes out, I'll get these dialed in exactly, we all know they are in the Fritillaria complex Fritillaria JJA 17255


Ornithogalum balansae
The Star of Bethlehem doing it's thing in the early season, i'm curious when it normally blooms in it's native, Balkans, Turkey and Georgia.

Mild week in the forecast, It was in the 60's this weekend and I got a sulfur spray on the orchard, a bunch of work done on the boat and some weeds pulled in the rock garden. Still no frost in the forecast, which is kind of mind boggling for the season. 

Cheers, 
Mark

Friday, February 2, 2018

"I've got you babe", is on repeat.........or Groundhog's Day is here again.

"There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded." Mark Twain


Crocus X leonidii 'Early Gold'
So I was watching this one thinking, maybe it's just poking through the ground a bit early, but here it is fully open about a month ahead of last year.  If you look in the background there are plenty of  species emerging now. It really has been an extraordinarily mild winter. I guess Puxatawny Phill saw his shadow so they are saying 6 more weeks of winter is in order. I for one don't believe it. In fact the local paper said its not going to snow and we might not even see any frost for the rest of the year! Guess it's time to get the vegetable seeds down. Speaking of seeds the NARGS exchange stuff came in and is sown with the flats sitting out in the mild weather, not sure if we will really get much of a cool period to allow for vernalization. 

Iris 'Pacific Coast Hybrids'
So this was at a local park where I worked on a small display garden outside the kids playground area. I don't know that I tracked the phenology of these for the last few years, but to me it seems early. The other weekend I saw the bees bringing in pollen on a 50 degree day and I was scratching my head wondering where the source was until I realized the big Chimonanthus in the front hedgerow is in full bloom this year, after three years of frozen aborted flower attempts. The Sarcooccoa and the Fragrant Winter Honeysuckle is having a good year as well. So good signs point to an early spring, and a productive year. This past weekend was productive as I got the orchard pruned and sprayed with a dormant oil treatment.

Mild and in the 50's this groundhogs day. 

Cheers,
Mark