GARDEN ALL PICTURE NEWSLETTER by Andrew G. Van Cleve at the flowering shrub farm.
April 27, 2017
I change the days date to the current one whenever I edit this page or add new pictures (bookmark this page so you can revisit each week to see what we have added). Additional links at bottom of page. Click on the picture and it may open a larger version with more detail. January February March April May June July August September October November December
Moving Lilacs down to 40 Voorheesville Ave. Preparing for going to hospital tomorrow in Boston for the next month. Roses are being inserted wherever there is space after lilacs are removed.
Taking roses from the cold box and placing them on drip line so its easy to water while I'm gone. I wont be able to edit this newsletter until I come back but plants will get watered by just turning the water on.
I'm going for a Stem cell tansplant at Dana Farber in Boston. Curt will come once a week and verify plants are watered etc.
On Left is the farm showing drip lines in the fore ground and our victorian house in the back. Click the picture to open a larger image that you can study more closely or save as wallpaper. See the date this picture was taken in the lower right hand corner of the larger image. In March and April while plants are still dormant, those that flowered and were clearly identified last year are cut back so that they will form a thicket of stems (later they will be transplanted into a larger pot and sold for a higher price or divided).
Aucubaefolia (double blue flowers and variegated gold and green leaves) and Krasavitsa moskvy (double white flowers from pink buds). Mike called and asked about fragrant lilacs so I told him French Lilacs with double flowers. These were grown from cuttings over the past 5 years, then when they flowered we marked the identity on the side of the pot, cut them back and turned the pot so you can see what we wrote on the pot (KM is Krasavitsa moskvy) then took a cuttings picture. If you right click the picture on the right the file name begins with the word cuttings and is followed by the variety name.
Michel Buchner (double blue flowers)
We positioned these in a rectangular group on drip line so you can see the variety for those on the near line and on those in back in a picture with a date in the lower right hand corner. Ask me to look for other varieties and take their pictures too (include your phone number so I can call you back). Click the picture for a larger image where you can see the date I took the picture in the corner.
Cold Box in the upper field with roses inside that will be placed on drip line as lilacs are removed and set up at 40 Voorheesville Ave. Check out my answer page where I answer emails. The links January through December are where I add the old pictures from past newsletters at the end of each month.
I over-wrote these cuttings pictures of Ispahan, Complicata and Leda. Click on the picture for a larger image. If they flower in June or July I'll stick a price on and over-write with a new picture then. Click each of these blue links and you will see the cuttings pictures as they appear in the varieties pages. Complicata Ispahan Leda
On Left are drip lines in the upper field with cold box in back. I obtained 6 Harisons Yellow roses and 4 Agnes that we will plant in 3 gallon pots to place on drip line. The variety name, year planted, and $50 (a price we use on the side of 3 gallons that shows its not for sale until divided) will be written on the side of the pot. In later years we will divide them in half, then sell half of them for $25 each returning the rest to drip line.
april 15 and april drip line
On left above are lilacs that were cut back last year that will be either repotted into a larger pot for $40 or divided into two or three, each to be sold for $20. I am leaving for Dana Farber in Boston on April 28 to have a stem cell transplant done and wont be updating my newsletter or maybe not answering my email until I get back hopefully by June (you can call me on my cell phone at 518-526-9978). You will be able to tell when I'm back as I will start updating this newsletter at that time.
Fertilizing everything. On Left Stewarts sandwich shop in back ground and On Right cold box at plant sale location.
red door on left and supplies in the barn on right.
The "red door" gives us access into the potting shed in front of which is one of our mist propagation boxes (the lower story of the potting shed has sliding windows that can be slid open to take potted plants from the bench to place in the cold frame or within the propagation box). Went and got 10 more bags of Rose tone so we can finish fertilizing this month and 10 bags of potting soil. As I prepare to go to the hospital in Boston for a stem cell transplant I have to bring in plenty of supplies so Curt and Rich can continue to set up the plant sale , label lilacs as they bloom and take roses from the cold box and place on drip line (prices and more at the plant sale link).
april cold frame on left and april pot in pot on right
Small roses are stored for the winter in the cold box on the left side of the cold frame (another cold box is in the field) and plants we take cuttings from are potted into seven gallon grip lip pots and stored during winter with their roots surrounded by mulch pot-in-pot or actually inserted in the ground. As trees overhead leaf out these 7 gallons will be placed in the field on drip line. I edit and re-edit what I have written here almost every day when I have time.
Lilacs that have been divided and potted into one gallon pots are shown in my "Lilacs by mail" picture. I took this picture on Main Street in Voorheesville, NY because of the false fronts on some of the buildings.
On Left is front porch in April. Shelves along front of porch with spagetti tube drip lines is where many lilacs for sale are placed when they are in bloom. On right is april cold box where we store rooted cuttings of roses in winter and that we will place on drip line later when trees above the box start to leaf out.
As we take lilacs off this drip line and place on the weed mat at 40 Voorheesville we will fill the space with roses taken from the cold box.
On Left are black buds on Sarah Sands Lilac. On Right and below are Grafted roses in grip lip 7 gallon pots that I purchased this spring that we will use as a source of cuttings in July and August. In winter these grip lip pots are inserted in the ground then in spring pulled back out and placed on drip lines.
Got these grafted roses from David Austin Roses in TX.
March 30
March 30
Cutting back lilacs we labeled last year when they first flowered.
March fertilizing
march 23 and march label cut back
As we cut back lilacs that were identified and labeled last year we attach the label to the pot by locking it through a slot we cut in the rim.
Cutting back lilacs that flowered last year but no one bought at plant sale, were identified and labeled with an individually numbered yellow label with the variety name painted on it. Once the snow is gone we will feed them all with rose tone and divide some of them.
march17 and March 19
We had one last big snow in March. Its keeping us out of the fields for now. I am replying to many emails in my answer page.
Cutting back lilacs we have at this time on drip line. Individually numbered yellow labels, that we printed the variety name on last year when the lilac flowered, are moved down to the base of the stems as they are cut back to just above the drip line (price stickers are on the side of the pot). Those that are cut back will be easy to sell mail order before they respond by producing a thicket of upright stems so its easier to divide them or sell them in larger pots for more money.
In Winter roses are stored in the cold box so they dont get nibbled on by rabbits, mice or deer. In March or April they are taken from the box, placed on drip line and fertilized with Rose Tone. Right now space on drip lines is taken by Lilacs that will be removed sometime soon.
Mme Lemoine Lilac on left and Hybrid rugosa 'Blanc Double De Coubert' on right. In March many Lilacs that flowered last year and were identified with a label and price sticker will get cut back so that when they grow back they will be multi-stemmed. The Hybrid rugosa is in a 45 gallon pot and we will take cuttings from it sometime this year.
Checking poison baits in cold box 1.
Pot in pot on left where we store many roses that we take cuttings from with their roots surrounded with mulch. Beyond the red door we pot up plants and pass them through the sliding windows.
Snow drops on left may indicate how close to spring we are by comparing with snow drops in past years. This 'Roseraie de l'Hay' planted in the ground will be used as a source of cuttings once its a bit bigger.
Ispahan roses in cold box
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