Nynke Muller

J. Syme wrote:...My main issue comes when the ladies go away for a trip, and I'm tasked with allocating the proper amount of water to the plants. Orchids apparently drink less than lilies... john

Oh, is that the issue?!
When we go on a trip I ask my dad to take care of my plants. Before I leave I do a check and remove everything (almost) death or dying. I rearrange the plants to their needs. For example all orchids in one windowsil. I water them perfectly before I leave and I stick a note on the window: "water once per two weeks." I put all plants that will survive my absence without water, in one room, he knows he can skip that room and focus on the others. I dont think I ever lost a plant because of his care. Every time I arange them in the same location. I dont even think the notes are necessary anymore.

I hear your sigh. It could have come from my husband. The number of houseplants fluctuates, because mine go on summer holiday as well, and sometimes I have guests. I made a deal with my husband: I can have as manny plants as I want, as long as he can sit in his chair(s) and stretch his legs completely. Isn't he the best man a woman can wish for? Today, 25 years later, he learned to love them all. I developed the habit, that each new plant is a gift from... to him! Plants make us both happy!
SO: Draw a line that every reasonable person, and certainly your wife and daughter can and will respect. Claim a plantfree territorium. Learn to love the plants in your house as your babies and your wife and daughter will love you back and think you are the greatest!

Update on paper pot experiment (continued)

Hardening off
In the mean time, the beans that are hardening off on the balcony, are looking a lot better (this picture is two weeks ago). The plants in the toilet paper rolls filled with sand (number 6), have dried out because of bad watering regime on my part. At this moment, the plants are almost the same size as the leggy ones I planted in the garden. So these were planted too early as well. I will try to wait one more week and when the weatherforcast promisses no freezing temperatures, I will plant these out 2 weeks before my last frost date, so still pretty harsh on beans.

The experiment is not completed yet. I will keep you informed.

I have to say that I like the number 3 so much that I have made 20 more and sowed some borlotti beans from the kitchen cabinet in it and a few more in pots and kept some behind for direct sowing. Maybe I can redo some of the “not hardening off” experiment.

Lessons learned so far:
• Don’t start your bean seeds to early (not again).
• Experiment! You can discover something new and be amazed.
• Paper pots hold better during transport (over bumpy roads)
• For beans, the toiletrolls filled with sand can not hold the moisture as well as any of the others.

Update on paper pot experiment (continued)

Not hardening off
Which brings me to the third issue. What is hardening off? Or better, what is “not hardening off?”
Normally I take my trays outside as soon as the seeds unfold. When it is cold (at night) I keep the lid on, or put them back inside. I act depending on the weather. I live in an appartment building and my balcony is pretty sheltered. It seems really weird not to do this.
 
The plants I kept inside in my warm living room (where I started both groups), started to grow really fast and became leggy and started to fall over. Fungus appeared. I really did not know what to do with them. I am not supposed to do anything that would resemble hardening off. It is 6 weeks before my last frost date. If they grow any higher, I don’t even know how I will transport them to my garden (4km from my house) without damaging them.

Since keeping them inside would lead to no good at all, and the night temperatures are well above zero, I decided to plant them, assuming they would turn out to be snail fodder anyway. So straigth from the living room, strapped on my bicycle, towards the garden. And this is where the paper pots score much better than the plastic pots and the not so compacted soilblock. The last part of the road is pretty bumpy and the plastic pots started to “jump” and the soilblocks were shaken until they fall appart (except for one). The wind snapped some of the weak stems.  Normally I never transport them in this tray, this was the first time.

Planting
Upon arrival in my guarden, I immediately started planting. I planted them 4 in a row, than leave space for 4 identical pots that are still hardening off. Then the next 4 pots of a different type and so on. If less than 4 survived the trip, I still kept there place free, in order not to get confused later. I marked the end of each set of 4 with a stick.
I scooped them one by one up with a hand rake. The paper pots with the flaps have 2 strong sides and two weak ones. The number 2 pots, made from one layer of paper (half of what was instructed in the video), got damaged when I took their neigbours out. However, the soil held up well and remained square.
I sprinkeled ashes around the base of the plants to chase away the snails. I dusted the plants with rock dust, that makes them less tasty for slugs and snails. I really tried to give them the best start against all odds. I expected absolutely nothing from these pathethic, sad, misserable plants at all. I expected them to be eaten by slugs before I left for home. And HERE IT COMES: Maybe it is still to cold for slugs, but now, 2 weeks later, most of them are neither death nor eaten by slugs. They still look misserable, but one of them even shows a new leaf unfolding!

Update on paper pot experiment (continued)

Set up
I wanted to make 8 pots of each, to divide them in two groups, one that I will harden off, and one that I won’t harden off. Of course things went different than I wanted: The paper for the thick paper pots had different dimensions. So I managed to make 2x four identical ones that I spread over the two groups. Probably not a big deal. (if you look well in the pictures above and below, you can see the difference).
 
The second thing that went “wrong” was germination of the bean seeds. I germinated them between two paper towels, to be sure that all pots had a germinating seed. However I needed 64 germinating seeds, but I did not reach that number. Therefore I had to add different bean seeds at a later time. I decided that this diverser group will be the one that I will plant outside without hardening off.

Good morning Richard,

YES! This looks like a tree that is going to make it!

On the thin branch at the top: Vertically there is a nice distance, but the directions are closer than you would want them indeed. You could redirect the branch with a string. It is so young, that will work! Remove the string in the fall or next spring, and the branch will remain in its new position.
Cutting the main leader lower is another possibility, but I don't think it is necessary.
You can watch what happens now and even cut away this small branch in favour of another when it appears.
It seems like you are starting to get a feeling for it, so thrust your judgement and do what you think is best.

On  shortening the other branches: I am with Phil. Every year I cut off half of the new growth in summer (I mean half of each branch). It will cause more side shoots and probably more fruits for the next year. (I have a smaller space than yours, so I have to keep my trees more compact.

Return to this tree regularly to keep an eye on the new growth, because there will be a lot! Expect to have regrowth similar to the amount you have removed! Manage that regrowth while it is thin! Check position, direction and length and remove what you don't need for a beatifully structured tree.

And don't forget that picture in the fall or next spring! We would love to see how it recovered. That will complete this story.

Update on the paper pot experiment

Type of pots:

From left to right:
1. Folded pot “with flaps” from first movie (double layer paper), posted by Megan Palmer
2. Same type of pot used half the paper (Single layer paper)
3. Folded pot from second movie, posted by Sarah Joubert
4. Same pot with thicker paper (the kind Jen Fulkerson used)
5. Newspaper wrapped around a jar
6. Toilet paper rolls (with sand in stead of soil)
7. “Soilblock” made like a sandcake but from soil (uncompressed)
8. Plastic pot for reference
9.     Direct Sowing

Making
Personally I think number 5, wrapping the newspaper around a jar, was unexpectedly difficult to make. I had to start all over a few times. For me it was not faster than the folding. To my own great surprise I could make pot type 3 and 4 faster than type 1 and 2.
Filling
When filling the pots, numbers 1 and 2 felt quite weak, because they have two thin sides and two much thicker sides and the flapps are in the way of filling. I had to act carrefully. Nothing wrong with that, but all other pots felt firmer.

Good morning Richard,

First cut: well done! You have started.

On the second cut: You understood us well.
Allways look twice and cut once. So I took a good look at all your pictures again. Just above the yellow line, on the right side, I see two thin branches. In another picture it looks like at least one of these branches is growing in a different direction than the thick one on the right.  If so, you migth want to save one of these thin branches (and cut the other one away). Having 3 branches spreading in 3 different directions would be a nice start of a new, more balanced tree. However, if they grow in the same direction as the thick branch, you have to cut below these thin branches, or it will cause trouble in the future.

On the exact direction of the cut: the goal is a nice clean cut, without ripped bark. You want all damage to be removed completely. You want an inclined surface from which the water can roll of easilly. The strongest regrowth will happen at the top of the cut. So,
-  If you are going to cut above the thin branch, I would make this my highest point. That would mean, if you would take a picture from the right side of your tree, you could draw the yellow line best. Around the thin branch, there will be a collar of bark that looks a little different in structure. You don't want to cut into that.
-  If you decide to cut below the thin branch, I would cut a little lower than you draw the line or, even better: make up my mind on what direction I would like the new top branch to grow and cut from there downwards. That could well be just below the end of the tear. There will be sleeping buds that wake up when you cut there, and make a new branch/top of the tree.

It is probably wise to reduce the height of the tree first with a higher, random cut, so the weigth of the tree won't do any more harm when falling down.
When the final cut is made, return on a regular base and remove, just with your fingers, all excess growth, and keep only one new branch at the top. Imagine all new growth becoming thick branches in the future, and remove now whatever will cause trouble in the future, so you will never have to do something this drastic again.

And don't forget that picture at the end of the year! :)

Hi Richard,
Sometimes we humans, can feel actual pain when we see a damaged tree like yours, and we feel the pain when we have to cut large limbs. I can feel your pain. I have been cutting off limbs of my plum tree (and others as well). Some cuts made me almost cry. But always I have been amazed by the resilience of a tree to recover. I have learned a lot over the years on pruning. Nowadays I look at (young) trees and try to immagine how they will look in the future when their branches grow thick and heavy. I remove them when they are young and small. preferably so early, that I can do it wit my fingernails.

When I saw the pictures of the damage on your tree, I can see what Amy and Phil see. And I am sorry to inform you that after your pruning cuts, I still see problems for the future. I think the situation at the upper limb will repeat itself on the remaining crotch at the next storm.

If it was my tree, I would cut the main leader well below the damage, above a nice healty branch. Cutting under the lower damage, above the healthy  branches would create the start of an open vase model, which is advised for plums anyway. I never seal wounds off. I would keep an eye on the growth this summer, because I expect strong regrowth on a healty tree like this. I will prune heavily on the young shoots and try to imagine the thick branches in the future, creating a nice future shape.

I know that if you will do it, it hurts now, but a year from now, you wont regret it, because your tree can be healty and strong and full of fruit.

All this is a sad event. See it as the start of a new learning curve. I have learned a lot on pruning here on permies and on U-tube. There are some real gems, and you know it when you are watching them. I have made lots of mistakes, and learned from them. Now, when I see a tree, I know what should be done or should have been done in the past. Google for pruning for strength. That is what went wrong here.

Please find the currage and practise some though love on this tree, for its own good. And dont forget to send us a picture a year from now to show off your beautifully recovered tree.

Hi Dale Poole,
Normally I would harden them off. However, I was intrigued by the suggestion of Dale Nute to transplant without hardening off in a deeper pitch. I wanted to try that anyway. Maybe I should do it 50-50. Maybe I should just double the amount of pots for this.

I like that you feel inspired to experiment as well. Maybe somebody else would like to join us? We can make it an all climate experiment.

Nynke