I think the Honey Bees, the Bumble Bees, and the Butterflies will be pleased with the return of the Joe Pye Weed. I am, too!
Mars Seedless Grape vine
Another sense of how well the returning plants are doing. Asters on the right, Switch Grass in the center, and Astilbe on the left. There are a couple of clusters of the all-green Hosta variety, pretty scientific name, eh? Those Hostas are going to be thinned out really soon. I can't stand how encroaching they are with the other plants.
Second-year Russian Sage coming back after the winter. Beautiful flowers they are. This a 1AM photograph from May 3 2010.
This provides a nice profile of the Syrah Grape vine and its development, laterally. I am a proud parent. This could well be 'the' plant that launches the vineyard in years to come.
Joe Pye Weed.
The Big Bluestem native grass. Lots of growth in just a week. Right behind the grass is a wandering shoot of Willamette Hops.
These are the Willamette Hops vines. This photo is great because the leaves truly pop out. The leaves are enormous, enormous, enormous.
These Willamette Hops vines in the backyard. The photos were taken around 1AM at night after playing a show. But, sometimes a person does what they have to get the photographic update.
This is my only surviving Syrah Grape Vine. Here's to hoping for good things this summer! I just hope this can get established and develop some good hardy vines and a solid root system.
A horrible photo capturing the growth of the Switch Grass as it begins to reach for the sky. I am glad to see this coming around because another patch of Red Fountain Grass didn't make it through the winter. I have been pretty upset about the attrition percentages that I am noticing as Spring 2010 unfolds and it is clearer what is coming back and what is not.
******************News Flash********************
On Friday May 7, 2010 I purchased 5 new vine cuttings. I purchased from Double A Vineyards out of Fredonia, NY. I went ahead and picked up 3 cuttings of LeCrescent and (2) Frontenac. Both are varietals developed by the University of Minnesota specifically crafted to be cold-hardy. In doing some research, I discovered that both varietals have come out of a winter, with a registered low of -33 Fahrenheit, and still produced abundantly the following growing season. Sue Rak from Double A Vineyards was exceptional with any questions, etc. Originally I wanted to go for Sauvignon Blanc and Gewurztraminer cuttings, but she cautioned against it. Later, with a bit of research, I discovered that there is an article from the University of Illinois' Extension referencing the Double A Vineyards' website in the footnotes of the PDF article, I think it was an article regarding Seyval Blanc grapes.
