The onions and garlic are growing quickly now that warmer weather is here, and the flowers we planted last fall are coming up - gladiolus, lilies.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Spring has arrived!
Spring has arrived. A tour of the yard today revealed Almond trees in bloom, sprouting beans, peas, and zucchini, blossoming strawberries, and swelling buds on the Apricot and Grapes.
The onions and garlic are growing quickly now that warmer weather is here, and the flowers we planted last fall are coming up - gladiolus, lilies.
The onions and garlic are growing quickly now that warmer weather is here, and the flowers we planted last fall are coming up - gladiolus, lilies.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Pomegranates
We have a 10-year old pomegranate. It is the Wonderful variety, which is what nearly everyone in North America is familiar with if they have ever grown this tree or tasted pomegranate juice. However, there are other varieties with significantly different characteristics. I read a book about them which related the story of Dr. Levin who brought a selection of varieties from his nursery in Turkmenistan when he came to America. These are now being preserved and propagated at U.C. Davis and only in the last 2-3 years have they become available in retail nurseries.
You have to give me a chance to wax poetic here - we are talking about a man who had hundreds of varieties of pomegranates under his care, all with different genetic traits developed in many different climates by people with a desire to grow this fruit. When he left Turkmenistan Dr. Levin brought of the best or most interesting (from a genetics standpoint) in order to preserve them.
Two of these varieties are Parkfianka and Desertnyi. There is one nursery in the Phoenix area that carries both. Yesterday I planted one of each in our yard. Parfianka always rates among the best for overall flavor, Desertnyi has citrus overtones.
Pomegranates are one of the perfect fruit trees for the Phoenix area. Deciduous, drought-tolerant, beautiful as a landscape plant, and the fruit can be eaten fresh or made into jam, or into wine, or juiced and bottled. Plus they have great health benefits.
You have to give me a chance to wax poetic here - we are talking about a man who had hundreds of varieties of pomegranates under his care, all with different genetic traits developed in many different climates by people with a desire to grow this fruit. When he left Turkmenistan Dr. Levin brought of the best or most interesting (from a genetics standpoint) in order to preserve them.
Two of these varieties are Parkfianka and Desertnyi. There is one nursery in the Phoenix area that carries both. Yesterday I planted one of each in our yard. Parfianka always rates among the best for overall flavor, Desertnyi has citrus overtones.
Pomegranates are one of the perfect fruit trees for the Phoenix area. Deciduous, drought-tolerant, beautiful as a landscape plant, and the fruit can be eaten fresh or made into jam, or into wine, or juiced and bottled. Plus they have great health benefits.
Spring Garden
Tomatoes are in the ground. There is a slight historical chance that we'll get another frost, but only it's only slight and I find that an early harvest (before the high summer temperatures) is worth the risk. We have 53 tomato plants in the ground.
Additionally we have peas sprouting and have planted bush beans, zucchini, broccoli, and carrots. We'll see in the next week or so what germinates and what the birds leave alone. Often the birds make sprouting peas their breakfast so we are hoping the cooler weather will prevent this. So far, so good.
Garlic and onions are doing great and we are using them in sauces and marinades. The lower portion of the stem and developing bulb works great - you don't have to wait for them to be "ripe" and this way you can enjoy fresh onions and garlic year-round in our climate.
Roses are out of dormancy. Pomegranate trees are also out of dormancy. We pruned back the frozen bits of the lemon tree (temperatures here were between 15-20 degrees Fahrenheit for a couple of days so we had major damage to the lemon tree). Vinca flowers also froze but they usually don't survive the winter unless kept in a warm spot. We have trimmed everything and see new growth starting so in a month or so things will be green again.
Additionally we have peas sprouting and have planted bush beans, zucchini, broccoli, and carrots. We'll see in the next week or so what germinates and what the birds leave alone. Often the birds make sprouting peas their breakfast so we are hoping the cooler weather will prevent this. So far, so good.
Garlic and onions are doing great and we are using them in sauces and marinades. The lower portion of the stem and developing bulb works great - you don't have to wait for them to be "ripe" and this way you can enjoy fresh onions and garlic year-round in our climate.
Roses are out of dormancy. Pomegranate trees are also out of dormancy. We pruned back the frozen bits of the lemon tree (temperatures here were between 15-20 degrees Fahrenheit for a couple of days so we had major damage to the lemon tree). Vinca flowers also froze but they usually don't survive the winter unless kept in a warm spot. We have trimmed everything and see new growth starting so in a month or so things will be green again.
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