Fall/ Winter projects!

GilaMonster

GilaMonster

Active member
The seasons are changing! What projects will you work on next? 

Do you like to keep busy working on something on your off season? (if you are in a different climate like southern hemisphere how are you prepping for your growing season?)

I'm in phoenix so my winter wont start until January, I'm getting ready to work on quite a few projects:

  • Mulching all tree beds
  • planting 6 more fig trees in ground
  • shade tree trimming and removal
  • planting potatoes and onions!
  • installing stakes for shade cloths next season
  • installing new irrigation system to trees
  • starting herbs inside in sunroom
 
Getting prepped for pruning
Gathering soil ingredients and pots for up-potting in Spring
Evaluate trees to be root pruned
Winterize fertigation system
Figuring out how the hell I'm going to fit everything into winter storage, lol  

Fall just started 3 weeks ago Don't rush Winter getting here!!!
 
Do you have a fertilizing system? Is that what fertigiation system is? I've never heard of that!
What storage do you use? Garage, basement?

My grandfather put his figs into the insulated garage for years (massachusetts / zone 6b) and they did quite well.
 
I just finished my first project - chasing a groundhog from under my deck, filling in the burrow and installing hardware cloth around the deck perimeter. 

My next tasks will be harvesting flower seeds and various cuttings to grow during the winter. Collecting, shredding and storing leaves from neighbors to use as mulch next Spring. Try my hand at making a liquid fertilizer and determining where I can plant a cherry tree grown from seed this season and another fig tree in the yard.

Fall is my favorite time of year.
 
Good job getting the rodent out of there, such pests. MY first year gardening one ate all my figs and peppers...that critter was evicted shortly after.

I absolutely love cherry trees, we had a sour cherry growing up in Massachusetts, delicious! what type have your grown from seed?
 
I should rephrase - I plucked a cherry tree seedling from the ground this past Spring when it was a few inches tall. It was growing next to my sour cherry tree - it’s now ~2.5’ tall.
 
I have some raised beds that need to be reworked.
Probably get that done while nothing is actively growing.
Finish green house.
I have a lot of over growth on my property preventing me from using my trails...be clearing that. 

Plenty do to. Lol
 
@"GilaMonster"#153 I'm not really too sure what the next move will be. A lot of the pruning and shaping has taken place in late summer, and Autumn. The plants have mostly already been trained, and I'm not ready for root pruning next year. Probably more propagation. Also creating care packages for newbie fig Growers. Lots of Peter's honey, strawberry verte, strawberry latte. I will have 30 ++feet of Peter's honey cuttings. I may have to take them to the CRFG exchanges in Southern California. We plan to put in some Flats of @"Chato9b"#70 CA seedlings in the back section of the house.
 
@"GilaMonster"#153 are you a greenhouse owner, or someone who wants to build a greenhouse? I'm very curious about you, and greenhouses. Also if you feel like sharing how many fig trees are you growing, and what are some of your favorite varieties.
 
@figless  I grew up with a greenhouse in Massachusetts but live in phoenox now so it would just boil the plants. I do have a small 3ft by 4 ft I purchased to put the littlest plants inside to retain warmth in Jan and Feb. I've got an olive and 6 baby figs I'll add into it.

My property came with lemon, grapefruit, lime, and orange, and a pomegranite, those are mostly doing well. I've been working on getting them on the best watering routine and fertilizer schedule, hopefully they do even better next year. The lime and orange are struggling.

Figs: all mine are about 1 yr or less, I am brand new to gardening so am learning as I go. I have kadota, Mary lane, Stella, black mission, hollier, and strawberry in ground right now.  In pots I've got negronne, Maroc noir, lattarula, LMF, champagne, desert king, golden riverside, BBN. I'll be planting as many as possible of those in ground this winter. 

Pomegranates: 2 in ground and just ordered 2 more, azadi, wonderful, and 1 is a volunteer of unknown variety.

I used to clear the property for my grandfather I loved it, I'd mow down the lawn and get out the clippers and pile up the rubbish, brings back great memories!
 
@"Figless"#18

I have a small 3x4 green house I purchased for the small plants, it keeps them warm in winter. Ill put my olive tree and the tiny baby figs in it. I grew up with proper glass greenhouse in Massachusetts but now I'm in phoenix and I don't feel I need one here. 

In my yard I have citrus and figs and a few pomegranates. I am brand new at gardening and I think most figs I have are under 1 yr. In ground I have: hollier, mary lane, stella, kadota, strawberry, and 2 black missions.

Citrus came with the house and most are doing great but I've been tweaking the watering and fertilizing routines, the grapefruit and lemons and tangelo are thriving, but the orange and lime are struggling. I lost 1 tangelo to the heat wave this summer.

Pomegranates: I have a mystery volunteer I found growing in a bush next to my garage! I planted a wonderful in ground that is struggling, it may die, and I have a sirenyevi in a 5 gallon pot doing fantastic, I've also ordered 2 azadi poms and am excited to get those. I have a idea to replace some of my bushes with pomegranates in the future.

This winter I will put 4 to 8 more figs in ground, it depends on how far we get with tree trimming and removal and repaving the driveway.  Then will also put potatoes and onions in ground with my son, maybe a few other things. Planting in the pots on the patio is a fun activity with him so we may do more depending on what seeds I've got.
 
GilaMonster, welcome.

The best thing fig growers can do is to improve soil.  Most places in USA are not good to plant fig trees.  Soil is too heavy and lack of ground water.  If there is anything that we can do, that will certainly help.  But improving soil is also the hardest thing to do.  

We get a very long dormant season, about 4-5 months.  I normally leave my fig plants alone and won't even touch them.  Maybe just to water some smaller pots once or twice over the winter.  Then my early spring overseas travel for about 5-6 weeks.  

I still carry too many plants and will continue to downsize.  Variety-wise, will be stable.  Not adding or substracting.  I get another truck-load of wood chips.  Will be spending more time to mulch my garden areas.

I see that you are looking for Haku Butan white pomegranate.  I have it and it flowered this year.  The flower did not open so well.  So I did not take photos.  I'll see if I can root anything.

Both Wonderful and Garnet Sash also flowered.  I did get a fruit from Garnet Sash.
 
@"ktrain"#2 

Sounds like a big project clearing out the overgrowth but fun! Most of my teen/young adult life I helped my grandfather clear his property, I'd mow, trim, gather the rubbish, weed, look for pests. My gram would work in her herb garden while I worked.

@"Red_Sun"#104 

Wow! Too bad the Haku Botan didn't flower completely, maybe it is too young still? If you can root it let me know, the flowers look so beautiful. 

My unknown/volunteer Pom makes a bright red-orange flower and has fruited a few red fruits, but I've removed them so it can focus on growth instead. I think next year it will be large enough to really support good fruit.
 
@ [font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]GilaMonster[/font] 

I did not pay so much attention to the pomegranate plants since they are in the middle of all the fig plants to fend off deer.  When I noticed the white flower, it already past its prime.  White color already faded.

I grow pomegranate for the their bright flowers.  I'm also looking for bright red oleanders.  But someone always came out to attack me for asking for the "toxic" flower at the old REDACTED forum.
 
[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]@ [/font][font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]GilaMonster[/font][font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif] [/font]

[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]I did not pay so much attention to the pomegranate plants since they are in the middle of all the fig plants to fend off deer.  When I noticed the white flower, it already past its prime.  White color already faded.[/font]

[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]I grow pomegranate for their bright flowers.  I'm also looking for bright red oleanders.  But someone always came out to attack me for asking for the "toxic" flower at the old REDACTED forum.[/font]
 
@"GilaMonster"#153  . How many Grandchildren did Grandpa have? What a wonderful Horticultural backstory about your childhood. I believe early training like that makes for a lifelong connection to the land, and the growing of fruits, and vegetables. My grandfather had nine grandchildren, but I was the grandkid he taught to make cuttings, and to grow trees, succulents, and flowers. While my Horticultural knowledge eclipses his he never had the gardening space he needed to really do his thing. Certainly I wouldn't have any green thumbs without Grandpa..

You're thriving Citrus Garden with an unhealthy looking orange tree makes me Ponder. Sometimes when a new subdivision is put in some imported soil is brought in as well to enrich the garden... either that or you had a citrus Orchard in your neighborhood, and some trees were left to provide a citrus Orchard for the houses being built. Do all your neighbors have some citrus trees? What's your soil consistency of is it clay, sand or a mixture of the two? My first guess would be that your orange tree either has some disease, or is out of the improved soil area. It is interesting usually Citrus thrives in hot areas like Phoenix especially where other Citrus varieties are thriving as well. LOL looks like you're going to have a very busy winter, dominated by pomegranates of which I know very little.
 
Since I have no inground fig trees to wrap, the trees will just have to do the shuffle dance to the shed for the winter then I just have to water them once in a while.  So I’m just going to do a crochet project or 2.  Got several skiens of leftover yarn I could use to make a nice scrap blanket.  Was thinking of using the “star” stitch pattern.
 
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