The Observation Beehive is coming together!!! Keep following the channel and the blog for more information, we are also taking orders for custom furniture
Showing posts with label pollination. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pollination. Show all posts
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Mulching the orchard with the wood chipper
Although it is still considered Winter I am getting excited about this Spring's gardening. I plan on taking the orchard to the next level this year and have the next phase of the food forest installed. So far we have our Fruit trees laid out with Plum, Persimmon, and Apricot in the first tier terrace, Italian Prune (Plum) in the second terrace, Cherry in the third, Pear in the fourth and Apple in the fifth.
Each terrace has a row of fragrant herds for scent masking, pollinator attractant and cooking/ medicinal uses. these include Rosemary, Lavendar, Valerian, Borage and Sage.
Another row of flowers for attracting pollinators includes Columbine, Foxglove and Lupine (also a nitrogen fixer)
In between the fruit trees running perpendicular to the herbs and flowers are Goji Berry bushes. these are both extremely nutritious but also provide nitrogen to the soil. Along the edge, also running perpendicular to the herbs and flowers is a row of ceonothus acting as both a pollinator attractant and a nitrogen fixer.
As the trees will take time to mature this year I will be adding bean and pea trellises to produce vegtables as well as fix nitrogen in the soil. The trellises are being contructed out of Alder that we acquired this year and will be inocculated with mushroom plugs. Like I said, I'm getting excited about what is in effect Year 4 for our Orchard and Garden turned Permaculture. Check out some of the videos on YouTube and Subscribe, we need all the help we can get! Also check out some of the links for products I use around the yard!
Like the new Nikon D5600 I picked up to help up the quality of the YouTube channel and spme of the photographs I put up on the blog!
http://amzn.to/2HeG2ws
Each terrace has a row of fragrant herds for scent masking, pollinator attractant and cooking/ medicinal uses. these include Rosemary, Lavendar, Valerian, Borage and Sage.
Another row of flowers for attracting pollinators includes Columbine, Foxglove and Lupine (also a nitrogen fixer)
In between the fruit trees running perpendicular to the herbs and flowers are Goji Berry bushes. these are both extremely nutritious but also provide nitrogen to the soil. Along the edge, also running perpendicular to the herbs and flowers is a row of ceonothus acting as both a pollinator attractant and a nitrogen fixer.
As the trees will take time to mature this year I will be adding bean and pea trellises to produce vegtables as well as fix nitrogen in the soil. The trellises are being contructed out of Alder that we acquired this year and will be inocculated with mushroom plugs. Like I said, I'm getting excited about what is in effect Year 4 for our Orchard and Garden turned Permaculture. Check out some of the videos on YouTube and Subscribe, we need all the help we can get! Also check out some of the links for products I use around the yard!
Like the new Nikon D5600 I picked up to help up the quality of the YouTube channel and spme of the photographs I put up on the blog!
http://amzn.to/2HeG2ws
Tuesday, May 9, 2017
ArbequinaOlive and Camellia Sinensis
Unboxing my order for Arbequina Olive and Camellia Sinesis.
The Arbequina Olive should fair well in our orchard and hopefully provide us with some good nutritious olives. Camellia Sinensis should also fair well on the border of our orchard providing winter and early spring color as well as amazing leaves for all the tea we can imagine.
Friday, May 5, 2017
Landscape Master Plan
| Landscape Master Plan | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1. To govern the overall maximum benefit to the health of all inhabitants (Humans, Bear, Deer, Rabbits, Mt. Beaver, Birds, bats, bees, etc…) |
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| 2. To protect and enhance the watershed | ||||||||||||||||||
| 3. To act as a potential Wetland Mitigation Plan in anticipation of any additions, alterations or renovations |
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| 4. To provide food, shelter, harvestable materials and beauty. | ||||||||||||||||||
| 5. To follow the basic principles of permaculture with an emphasis on native species where appropriate. | ||||||||||||||||||
| 6. To include management of soil erosion caused by storm water runoff and bioremediation through phytoremediation and myco remediation. | ||||||||||||||||||
| 7. To remove and eradicate invasive species including ivy, knotweed, something and something and something else???? | ||||||||||||||||||
| Plant Purpose Abbreviations | ||||||||||||||||||
| PNW | Native Species | |||||||||||||||||
| M | Medicinal | |||||||||||||||||
| FB | Fruit Bearing | |||||||||||||||||
| PA | Pollinator Attractor | |||||||||||||||||
| N | Nitrogen fixer | |||||||||||||||||
| EG | Evergreen | |||||||||||||||||
| BA | Bioaccumlator | |||||||||||||||||
| T | Edible tube | |||||||||||||||||
| BR | Bioremediation | |||||||||||||||||
| Plant List | ||||||||||||||||||
| Plants on this list are to be introduced in addition to the existing landscape of canopy trees, understory fruit and nut trees, shrubs, flowers and herbs, groundcover, and mushroom patches. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Native Species are labled PNW (Those listed shall be used in any mitigation plans) | Code | |||||||||||||||||
| Red Flowering Currant Ribes Sanguineum | FB | PNW | ||||||||||||||||
| SnowBrush Ceanothus Veluntinus | PA | PNW | N | EG | ||||||||||||||
| Cascade Pentsemon Pentsemon Serrulatus | PA | PNW | ||||||||||||||||
| Service Berry Amelanchier Alnifolia | FB | PNW | ||||||||||||||||
| Wild Ginger Asarum caudatum | M | PNW | ||||||||||||||||
| Kinnikinick Arctostaphylos uva ursi | M | PNW | FB | EG | ||||||||||||||
| Arrowhead Sagittaria Latifolia | T | PNW | BR | |||||||||||||||
| Great Camas Camassia Leichtlinii | T | PNW | PA | |||||||||||||||
| Yarrow Achillea Millefolium | M | PNW | BA | |||||||||||||||
| Elderberry Sambucus Caerulea & Nigra | M | PNW | FB | |||||||||||||||
| Agricultural Plants | ||||||||||||||||||
| Camellia Sinensis | Tea | PA | EG | |||||||||||||||
| Goumi Elangus multiflora | FB | N | ||||||||||||||||
| Seaberry | FB | N | ||||||||||||||||
| Comfrey | BA | |||||||||||||||||
| Hibiscus | Tea/wine | PA | ||||||||||||||||
| Jujube | FB | |||||||||||||||||
| Olive (Arborquina) | FB | |||||||||||||||||
| Passion Flower | FB | PA | ||||||||||||||||
| Kiwi | FB | |||||||||||||||||
| Moringa tree Moringa oleifera | M | |||||||||||||||||
| Saffron Crocus Crocus sativas | Spice | PA | ||||||||||||||||
| Pineapple Broom Cytisus Battendieri | N | |||||||||||||||||
Sunday, April 16, 2017
Happy Easter- Joyeux Paques!!!!!
Ah J'aime les Printemps!!!!! Happy Easter, and for the Poles out there, Happy Dingus Day Eve. I love this time of year as for many almanacs it is officially planting season. For the orchards and perennials we get to see what survived and what was lost. An obvious existential insight into our lives here on this great planet.
For us we managed to not lose any fruit trees to the beaver and the deer have given us some reprieve. I think it is mere luck and little defensive adjustments but really, luck. We sacrificed dozens of Wax Myrtle for the new beaver lodge, wherever that may be, and I've been trying to add similar fast growing un-killable and deer loving plants to keep them off of the stuff I want to eat! While I certainly am not trying to attract them, I would like to distract them while they creep through in the middle of the night or while were away.
I have a good jump on the garden this year, the plastic hoop house worked wonders and we have plenty of salad greens, Our newest raised bed is just about ready for squash and zucchini. I'm also adding a layer of squash, zucchini and pumpkin in the orchard as a ground cover!
Really hope I get to add a swarm of bees this spring, with the orchard in it's third year, and the blueberries laddered in 1,2, and 3 years I really hope to get some fruit. The blue orchard mason bees are coming back and will hopefully stay in their new home. With the hop trellis up and running we should have a good harvest and very enjoyable growing summer.
So far in the Orchard level story we have Plum, Italian Plum, Persimmon, Apricot, Fig, Cherry, Apple and Pear. underneath the we have black currant, red currant, gooseberry, goji berry, evergreen huckleberry and I'll soon be adding seaberry. Surrounding those bushes are herbs and pollinator attractors, almost ALL in a blue or purple, Rosemary (4 varieties) Lavender (3 varieties), and Valerian. On the other side of the terrace from the herbs are all flowers for the bees, Lupine, Foxglove, Delphinium, Columbine, and Hollyhock.
Check back in to the blog and youtube channel! I'll be adding a copy of our Master Plan and some drawings explaining the grid planting I established intermixing nitrogen fixers, fruits, bio-accumulators, pollinator attractors and beneficial plants.
For us we managed to not lose any fruit trees to the beaver and the deer have given us some reprieve. I think it is mere luck and little defensive adjustments but really, luck. We sacrificed dozens of Wax Myrtle for the new beaver lodge, wherever that may be, and I've been trying to add similar fast growing un-killable and deer loving plants to keep them off of the stuff I want to eat! While I certainly am not trying to attract them, I would like to distract them while they creep through in the middle of the night or while were away.
I have a good jump on the garden this year, the plastic hoop house worked wonders and we have plenty of salad greens, Our newest raised bed is just about ready for squash and zucchini. I'm also adding a layer of squash, zucchini and pumpkin in the orchard as a ground cover!
Really hope I get to add a swarm of bees this spring, with the orchard in it's third year, and the blueberries laddered in 1,2, and 3 years I really hope to get some fruit. The blue orchard mason bees are coming back and will hopefully stay in their new home. With the hop trellis up and running we should have a good harvest and very enjoyable growing summer.
So far in the Orchard level story we have Plum, Italian Plum, Persimmon, Apricot, Fig, Cherry, Apple and Pear. underneath the we have black currant, red currant, gooseberry, goji berry, evergreen huckleberry and I'll soon be adding seaberry. Surrounding those bushes are herbs and pollinator attractors, almost ALL in a blue or purple, Rosemary (4 varieties) Lavender (3 varieties), and Valerian. On the other side of the terrace from the herbs are all flowers for the bees, Lupine, Foxglove, Delphinium, Columbine, and Hollyhock.
Check back in to the blog and youtube channel! I'll be adding a copy of our Master Plan and some drawings explaining the grid planting I established intermixing nitrogen fixers, fruits, bio-accumulators, pollinator attractors and beneficial plants.
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
I'm calling Winter Over
I set out this past winter to be more active with writing. Nope, I really don't get that many views so I tried to keep up with making videos of past projects and use the dreary winter weather as an excuse to be inside editing all the video I shot while the weather is good. I figure that's when people will be trying to waste some of the dark days hours anyway.
Well, I'm calling it. I'm going to say that spring has sprung. I'm going to go back and recap on some of the projects I was able to accomplish and see if I can get this blog back on track, views or no views damn it. I don't do much writing these days so I have to keep up my typing skills somehow!
I have a good backlog of photographs to go through and I should put them to use. Since launching Spatial Recognition last year most of my time has been directed to getting that off the ground. We are attempting to focus on Historic, Natural and Cultural Resources in an area that is more about demolition and Mondrianesque painted vertical shipping container looking buildings.
So, sticking with the post and a notion to be succinct I'll turn my attention to the excitement in the landscape. The Ivy War continues and there will be another chapter coming soon but it has led to a more ambitious plan of permaculture. We intend to create a Master Plan (which I will outline later) that provides us and the animals some of our daily requirements. One of these initiatives is what I call indicators, indicators are plants that are typically consistent in their cycle. I plant them, or they plant themselves, in areas where I need certain functions. First, color! I need to see something that is not white, grey, or brown. While the evergreens are helpful I want some pink, red, purple, yellow, you know a bright garden billboard that says IT'S SPRING.
Flowering Quince- The humming birds are already VERY happy to see this starting to bloom. Although this is not the giant sweet quince fruit producing variety, we do get small tart quince that are loaded with pectin that go wonderfully with rhubarb and blackberry the the wife makes in to a jam. Keep these trimmed up and it'll flower almost all summer.
Hyacinth!!! One of my favs. What more is there to say? Both of these are perfect wake up calls to get your beans and greens started. They are also extremely important for the first food source for early bees. This is vital in the event the fruit trees blossom early as you want to keep the bees around. A couple of these planted strategically near the fruits and veggies will boost your yield.
Well, I'm calling it. I'm going to say that spring has sprung. I'm going to go back and recap on some of the projects I was able to accomplish and see if I can get this blog back on track, views or no views damn it. I don't do much writing these days so I have to keep up my typing skills somehow!
I have a good backlog of photographs to go through and I should put them to use. Since launching Spatial Recognition last year most of my time has been directed to getting that off the ground. We are attempting to focus on Historic, Natural and Cultural Resources in an area that is more about demolition and Mondrianesque painted vertical shipping container looking buildings.
So, sticking with the post and a notion to be succinct I'll turn my attention to the excitement in the landscape. The Ivy War continues and there will be another chapter coming soon but it has led to a more ambitious plan of permaculture. We intend to create a Master Plan (which I will outline later) that provides us and the animals some of our daily requirements. One of these initiatives is what I call indicators, indicators are plants that are typically consistent in their cycle. I plant them, or they plant themselves, in areas where I need certain functions. First, color! I need to see something that is not white, grey, or brown. While the evergreens are helpful I want some pink, red, purple, yellow, you know a bright garden billboard that says IT'S SPRING.
Hyacinth!!! One of my favs. What more is there to say? Both of these are perfect wake up calls to get your beans and greens started. They are also extremely important for the first food source for early bees. This is vital in the event the fruit trees blossom early as you want to keep the bees around. A couple of these planted strategically near the fruits and veggies will boost your yield.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Spring Time!!! Mason Bee House
As the Winter thaws and the blooms are budding I started building Orchard Mason Bee (Osmia Lignaria) Houses to put around the yard and hopefully the whole neighborhood should anyone ask for some. Super simple and straight forward, to start I drilled out a block of wood and capped it with some cedar for a roof.
If I get the chance I will try to pick up a pack of cocoons with larvae. I am going to try several variations of the houses and see which ones get the most action. This one is near the blueberries tucked up against a tree for rain protection and facing the morning sun.
 |
| Jason Kotarski |
If I get the chance I will try to pick up a pack of cocoons with larvae. I am going to try several variations of the houses and see which ones get the most action. This one is near the blueberries tucked up against a tree for rain protection and facing the morning sun.
 |
| Jason Kotarski |
With an ample supply of water and mud, I hope these little friends move in and help us with the garden! I'm excited to see how this year's harvest goes. We expanded the blueberry patch this year with four more bushes and are looking at four more next year.
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