Hi, B! The front yard of our home is our new orchard area. I have 5 blueberries, 5 plum trees, 2 apples, 3 cold hardy bananas, and 3 pear trees. I have little or no idea what to do with them except keep them watered and pruned. Past that, no idea! I think that's why I'm a bit concerned about having the correct pollinator. I realize I could waste a few years waiting on fruit if I have to wait till spring, then plant another tree and wait for it to grow up. I love the idea of having an orchard and I've always wanted to do this. Now, I just need to figure out how to do it all correctly. I read today that you aren't supposed to mix the soil when planting, but we have fairly heavy clay soil in our yard, so I did mix it with compost and manure. Is that going to be a major issue? I have a wild pear tree that I think is probably a Bradford. It has never set fruit, but is about 20 ft. tall. And it STINKS in the springtime. It also has a very narrow fork in the center. It survived Katrina, so I guess I'll have to keep it. The local nurseryman tells his clients that Bradford will pollinate the other pears. Little concerning because my Dad, who has grown pears for a number of years tells me that "A Bradford pear will ruin a good tree!" I think he was talking about fireblight. Guess we'll see! Any advice, encouragement, etc. that you can spare as I'm starting this process would be greatly appreciated!

Aren't alliums triggered by the day length? Summer heat isn't here yet in maritime Northwest, but long days are. Differences could be due to microclimate next to building, sidewalk, wind protection, etc. My gardens in at 500' elevation seem about 2 weeks behind -- my dad 15 min. away & daughter 30 min. away in the valley. Budding: Leek, Egyptian walking onion, native nodding, 'Hair', & another ornamental w/ pink flower. In bloom: chives Oxeye daisy blooming on roadsides, but no sage or shasta daisy blooming yet. Late spring flowers still in bloom: ajuga, sweet woodruff, columbine, hardy geraniums... Some of the early summer blooms have started: foxglove, nepeta, Astrantia, & bellflowers. Corrine

Hello! I'm a postdoc at Harvard, studying flowering time changes across time and space. I want to find out what type of research questions would interest people who are into gardening and botany. My question to all of you is: If you get to find out the answer to only one of the following questions, which question would you be most curious about, and why? (1) How has flowering times changed historically across the years? (2) How do the changes in flowering time vary with temperature and latitude? (3) Which species experienced more changes in its flowering time? Thank you so much! I'm really curious about what you think.

These are on YouTube, too. So beautiful! The channel is here: EchinopsisFreak