Breaking temperature records in Chicago...

(The legendary Dandelions of Grayslake, Illinois - Sunday May 8, 2011. Had to lie down on the grass(er, Dandelions) to take this photo of the Dandelions)

This is going to be a bit of a housekeeping entry.

- Bird thought to be injured
- Moon over Chicagoland
- Nest came after the bird
- Video of possibly eery night sky
- Dandelions
- Temperatures in Chicagoland

(I was catching up with the neighbor downstairs the other week and there was this Robin sitting on my front porch. To my eye, the bird looked like it was staring down the last few hours of its life. Why I interrupted the event as such, I have no explanation. Anyway, press the right-facing triangle and notice the bird's nest atop one of the pillars of my front porch. I think it is safe to assume that mama bird's water was about to break. Anyway, every time we come home or leave the apartment, we are greeting with a fleeing bird. She essentially flees the nest because we seem a potential harm to her egg. The bird, despite being with egg, really worked quickly to get that nest put together, and it is amazing engineering. Czech the photo below to bear witness. I haven't heard the sounds of a little baby chick just as yet. Photo taken Thursday April 7 2011.)

And, the bird nest:

(I just took this photo on Wed May 11, 2011. Just as I opened the exterior door to the apartment, the mama Robin immediately flew out of the nest and started chirping at me from a tree branch only 10 feet away. Very cute how dedicated she is. But the photo showcases her craftsmanship on that nest. Wow! The bird has a skill set if I have ever seen one. Just needs a resume and a cover letter.)

Greetings. I realized today, don't know why I would forget this, that I actually have 6 viable grape vines growing in Southeast Logan Square Chicago, Illinois. The varietals are, once again:

-  Mars Seedless
-  Syrah (not supposed to be growing here with temperatures like we get in the winter)
-  Cabernet Sauvignon (not supposed to be growing here either)

Two of these varietals I bought by listening to my heart and not my head (Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon). The Mars Seedless I bought at Lowe's Hardware because it was already a developed vine, unbeknownst to me that it was an inter-specific hybrid brought about in 1986 by the lovely folks at the University of Arkansas (Ar-Kansas as the folk musicians say).

And about that moon...

(Photo taken April 17, 2011 Grayslake, Illinois)

(Photo taken April 17, 2011 Grayslake, Illinois)

Today Tuesday May 10, 2011 in Chicago, the temperatures reached 90 degrees Fahrenheit at O'Hare International airport. Talk about craziness, but it was a lovely day. I even gave some of the plants outside a little drink from the garden hose. This temperature apparently broke a record for April 17, which has not been breached since 1896. Big deal, for sure.

(Mas Dandelions! Sunday May 8, 2011 Grayslake, Illinois)

(Many, many, many Dandelions in Grayslake Illinois Sunday May 8 2011)

As I sign off right now at this ripe hour of dawn, the current temperature is 68 degrees Fahrenheit. The world is alive here in Southeast Logan Square. Birds even like it here at the apartment. The next blogulation is going to involve the most recent photos of the vines on-site here at this urban appellation.

The Catch-All Blog Posting

(cuttings from the Mars Seedless vine. I decided to prune it back to experiment, in all honesty. After the rat poison incident of early summer 2010, the vine struggled and I am just hoping to give it another lease on life in the big city, The Second City actually. We'll see how it develops. Photo taken March 3 2011 Thursday)

(This photo is just for the sake of indicating the green Xylem inside the vine, even after a harsh Chicago winter. This is the first year I have begun to take notice of such physiological characteristics. I am encouraged. Again, these are the few Mars Seedless cuttings I was able to extract. Rolling dice here by trying to get cuttings off these plants in Chicago. Photo taken Thursday March 3 2011)

(Syrah grape vine cuttings. I am a little worried about how the vine wintered. I realize the vine is not matched well with the climate, but I worry a bit about the color that the vine took. My question is whether or not the Periderm actually developed properly. We'll see. Photo: March 3 2011 Thursday)

(Syrah grape vine cuttings just a little bit closer in scope. Note the green of the Xylem. Seeing the green took me by surprise. Photo: March 3 2011 Thursday.)

(Syrah grape vine cuttings. Another close-up of the vine's Xylem after wintering in Chicago, Illinois. This region has seen harsher winters. Seeing the green on this Vinifera planted is a considerable surprise. Photo: March 3 2011 Thursday.)

(Willamette Hops from Thursday March 3 2011. This was a very cold day. On March 2nd, I was in Bloomington, Indiana and the weather was very agreeable. The very next day in Chicago on the 3rd I had been smacked in the face by the winds coming off Lake Michigan as I waited for a bus (downtown Waukegan, IL) after my transmission blew on the blue 1996 Toyota Camry - I had to get to work somehow, right? The result was windburned cheeks, but the experience made me grateful. These Hops still keep growing despite the chilly temps. I am watching these to see what they are capable of. They look like fighters to me.)

(Willamette Hops from Thursday March 3 2011. Look on the right half of the photography to note the faint green in catching a glimpse of this Hops growth.)

(Willamette Hops from Thursday March 3 2011. Again, look for the green in the photo.)


Plenty of photos to catch up on. The weather today reached 59 degrees by 1PM in Chicago. Currently it is 34 degrees Fahrenheit and has been raining quite extensively for well over 8 hours. This storm is massive in its expanse.

How about a photo of the car? Whaddya say? We all need a good laugh after all, right?

(Nothing but a day in the life.......Coaching myself, "Chin Up! Chin Up!!!!!")

Chicago vines and hops updated photographs w/o snowcover!!!! - Wed Feb 23, 2011

The title of this posting says it all!!!! And a crashing computer prevents me from wanting to write too much tonight.

Surprising new growth from either an Iris or a Lilly. I actually purchased the plant in Wilmette, IL in the parking lot of a CVS Pharmacy for $1.00. The store was trying to Clearance its little 'Home & Garden' section. Such an early rise for plants. Interesting to note.

Neighbor's gargoyle without snowcap.

My beloved treebase garden. This was conceived of by my neighbor and building manager back in the summer of 2009. I absolutely love this little thing. It adds so much to the yard, I think.

Cabernet Sauvignon grape vine Chicago 2010 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Cabernet Sauvignon grape vine Chicago 2010 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Cabernet Sauvignon grape vine Chicago 2010 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)...Recall, this vine was planted about 4-5 weeks later than the two previous. It was planted in early August 2010 with the hope that it would better weather the winter by getting acclimated to the soil before temperatures dropped.

Syrah grape vine II Chicago 2009 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)....The vine trunk is not to be confused with the darker tree limb that fell into the chicken wire protective guard I have around the vine. The limb will soon be extricated.

Mars Seedless grape vine 2009 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Syrah grape vine I 2009 - (Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Willamette Hops refusing to let the winter temperatures get them down (Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Willamette Hops continued....(Wed Feb 23, 2011)

Enjoy!

winter 2011!!!! from Southeast Logan Square

I am back!


It has been a long time since contributing here on this blog.  I am in the midst of finding more employment and it has been a job in itself.  I am hoping someone calls me back today from an interview I had on Thursday.  Anyway, this process has been nerve-wracking but is still going on.  It is pretty all-consuming.

But the Chicago Blizzard of 2011 happened last Tuesday/Wednesday (Feb 1st and 2nd) and O'Hare International airport registered at least 20.2 inches of snow.  Today and tomorrow the Chicagoland area will dip into low temps of  -8, maybe -10 degrees Fahrenheit beginning this evening.  I think the snow will keep the vinifera vines insulated here in Chicago during the low, low temps.  It is currently 10 degrees as I write this little bit.

(photo of a neighbor's gargoyle during the blizzard of 2011)

A couple of cool things are happening very soon. I have asked a nearby vineyard if I could observe them and, maybe, help on a day of pruning - as it is soon to be the season. It is a whole skill that simply escapes me. I know how to chop up an unkempt vine, anyone does. But to get the vine to behave like they are supposed to in a proper vineyard, I don't have that skill developed. So this vineyard agreed to let me come along and hang for a day or two. Stoked about that.

The wine kit that I started on October 6 turned out to be rubbish. Well, I have taken to calling it Sulfite Water. Everyone is getting a good laugh at it. A bit disappointing but we keep pushing on with better controls on the next batch. I have determined that I was so panicked about introducing any bacteria from the outside into the wine that I probably oversulfited. Took loads of video on December 20 2010 when I was siphoning and bottling the batch. We'll see. Hopefully it gets better in 9-10 months time. I am not terribly interested in drinking anymore Sulfite Water for a longggggggg time.

I am not enrolled in any viticultural programs at the moment because the expense is just too damn much. Debt is not a fun idea to me and that is what it would involve in order to re-enroll in classes. Not to worry. The Russian immigrants from the 1800's that landed in northern California didn't go to viticultural school. They planted those 'Old Zin' vines with practical life experience as their reference point. I know how to go to a library and check out a few books on the rhythms of working in and owning a vineyard. Things will be fine.

Last year on the last weekend of February 2010 I went to St. Louis to prune the original Cabernet Sauvignon vine. That was a life-changing moment. I can't wait to do it again. According to my Gregorian calendar, I am 17 days away from that anniversary. St. Louis also has a few vines that need to be pruned apart from the original Cabernet vine. As well, there are some Merlot and Seyval Blanc vines in place that have wintered in the soil. Curious how those experiments will result.

In Chicago, I have one Syrah vine and one Mars Seedless vine that need pruning. The Mars Seedless vine was impacted by rat poison that the city of Chicago put down to cull the rat population in the entire city. They leave little adhesive sticker notices to inform the residents that they came by to drop off rat poison. It was after that time when the vine really went south and struggled pretty much throughout the summer. The life of a scrappy, small-scale, urban vineyard, eh? I guess some would say, "Dems da ropes, kid.".

In Glen Ellyn the vines there will need to be pruned back. They had a fantastic year of growth and I am certain their root system is ready and set for stun.

Lots of lumber and steel wiring to be purchased for the vines in St. Louis, Glen Ellyn, and Chicago in order to better situate them for sunlight and proper growth.

The Indiana vines are under the watchful eyes of mad science men. Things should be pretty excellente down those parts. I am very interested in the La Crescent vine (dubbed as 'Moon Beam'). The vine had such vigorous growth, it was shocking to witness.

Many positives, even ruined wine is a positive. We take it all as it comes.

More to come!!!!

46 Degrees Fahrenheit for the low temperature last night

Growth cannot be sustained any longer for this particular growing season of 2010. Today is Sept 28 2010 Tuesday. It's been an amazing year. There is a ton to celebrate and there is a ton to look forward to as things proceed into the future, the unknown.

When the temps dip below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, growth ceases for the grape vines. As a result, I think it might be nice to provide some comparisons, at the end of the growing season, of two of the varietals that I am growing at the apartment in Chicago. My Mars Seedless won't be featured in this bulletin, partly because it is recovering from the roots being hammered by rat baits placed about by the landlord, which I have no protest for or against. But let's begin with the photographic comparisons, the emphasis will be on the leaves of the two varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. Cabernet Sauvignon starts it off.

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Cabernet Sauvignon grape vine leaves. (All photos taken on Tues Sept 28 2010)

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Syrah grape vine leaves

Syrah grape leaf Tuesday Sept 28 2010

Lead shoot on Syrah grape vine Tues Sept 28 2010

Another view of a Syrah grape leaf Tues Sept 28 2010

The temperature is currently at 69 degrees Fahrenheit in the city of Chicago. The vines and the rest of the fauna are experiencing at least a 23 degree discrepancy between mid-day temps and late-night/early morning temperatures. Actually, the vine by the red stairs seems to be behind the vine along the side of the apartment with respect to how advanced the periderm is developed as the march toward winter carries on. I am very interested in seeing what the impact of my decision to not crop the vine at 5ft tall will be. As well, I am very interested in learning about the prospect of winter injury to the vines and to see if I can possibly get some viable cuttings from these vines. They won't be this long in length by late Marc 2011. I fully intend to prune these back so that I can begin to develop canes that will provide for the cruciform component most readily seen in anyone else's grape vines.

One final note for today. I feel even more certain that August 15 in Chicago, Illinois is probably the best marker to use as the final time to get any young vines in the ground and expect them to be fully acclimated to the soil before the autumn chill arrives.

Overall, I am learning a tremendous amount, and feeling very proud about progress with all of the vines planted in Chicago, Grayslake, southern Indiana, St. Louis, MO and Glen Ellyn, Illinois, with many, many thanks to friends and family, roommates, and building-mates. More to come....Thanks for reading.

Wednesday to Wednesday growth measurments with photography - Syrah vines

A beautiful Syrah grape vine leaf.  Chicago Illinois Wed Aug 4 2010. That's a vine growing in Southeast Logan Square, my readers!!!!  Dig it!

Note the green string on the left of the horizontal fence post.   It was placed on the fence July 28, 2010 Wed to begin measurements.   Measurements on Wed Aug 4 2010 (date of photo) conveyed growth of 8 inches, perhaps 9 in one week's time since the 28th of July.

Front porch Syrah grape vine. Wed Aug 4 2010

Front porch Syrah grape vine, picture # 2.  Wed Aug 4 2010.  This is the vine that is doing the best of the two being measured.  Very hardy and vigorous growth for an urban setting.  Curious where things will be come Sept 15, 2010 despite my estimation that the better part of the growing season concludes around Sept 1 for the Chicagoland area.

We'll be back with more updates. Just pulling it all together.


Happy growing!

Syrah grape vine experiments

The videos I am going to provide in this posting will indicate that I have taken some direction from a relatively nearby vineyard (west of Bloomington, Illinois). The deal is that the vines are truly enjoying the July heat typical of the Upper Midwestern region of The United States of America. Therefore they are growing like mad, which I certainly encourage. However, my poor planning (part of jumping into something that I had no idea about) needed to be addressed. I had eventually run out of wooden stake as these lovely vines were outgrowing them. In the videos one can see what I have chosen to do.

Also, because of what I have read regarding the wonderful ability of Fava Beans, I have decided to plant a few of my remaining Fava Beans (from Territorial Seed Co. - a great company, by the by) near the base of both of the Syrah grape vines growing in my gardens. I have often read about Fava Beans being used as a cover crop during the winter seasons. My idea was that maybe I could borrow from that concept and apply it a little bit early here in the oh-so urban Southeast Logan Square neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. These flower beds have only been getting lovin' spoonful from myself and my neighbor in the past 2 to 3 years. I am uncertain how long it takes to get a soil back up to par after so many years of neglect and plastic covering (weed preventative methods for The Lazies out there). I'll be sure to blog about whether my vines thrive or dive as a result of this science experiment. I figure if graffiti, far-flung 40oz bottles of King Cobra malt liqour, or the Fourth of July celebrations from the locals do not harm the vines, then perhaps lowly and meek Fava Beans won't do much harm. (My Latin neighbors really know how to outdo the City of Chicago in the usage of fireworks with full f*#king report). Y'all come to the neighborhood one summer during this particular period of time and you'll get a better sense of things. Sit on the stoop, pour wine for you and your friends, have a radio playing your favorite tunes full of professionally studio-compressed mp3's and take in the fireworks. Why go downtown and fight the crowds? Just don't expect to get much sleep on the night of the 4th of July because these folks don't stop with the explosives until about 6AM.

Final Notes:
I must actually correct a misunderstanding: The Fourth of July celebration in my neighborhood actually begins around the 27th of June and extends well into the days after the 4th of July, certainly the peak is on the 4th of July. It is pretty rad, but man, I can't help but think of all of the money going up in smoke. For someone as broke-ass as I am, I weep internally when I see so many fireworks go up in smoke.

Syrah 01-2009 Chicago, Illinois (Conejo Loco Vineyards)




Syrah 02-2009 Chicago, Illinois (Conejo Loco Vineyards)

I am stoked

I am taking a few pointers from Mackinaw Valley Winery in Mackinaw, IL with this next picture.  I returned back to the urbanstead where I lay my head in Chicago, IL.  In the few days I was gone away at the shrine of the original Cabernet Sauvignon 01-2008 St. Louis vine AND my parents' home, the Syrah vine 01-2009 just took off, so did Syrah 02-2009.  I have been trying to figure out how to deal with the next challenge of determining where the vine goes once it outgrows my little low-budget wooden stake that is keeping it upright.  Well, I have a video to accompany this photo I am providing.  Check them both out.  I'll keep the updates coming with how this turns out, as it is all an experiment.  Also had a face-to-face with 2 rats last night as I was watering the vines.  Jealous, aren't you?  ...

Black Squirrel on the Prowl

Syrah Grape vine # 2.   These leaves are beautiful.

Syrah Grape vine # 1, good to see how progress has come along since the photos began weeks ago.

As I was watering the Willamette Hops yesterday morning there was a protest from the gallery.  This black squirrel came up the tree from its base and stuck its head up and locked its eyes on me, it felt like two laser beams on my chest as I had hose in hand flowing with gushing water.  I don't think it was too pleased with my presence.  I was able to pull the trusty old camera from my right pocket before he/she darted up the neighbor's tree.

This is Syrah Grape vine # 1 from above the growth.

Mars Seedless grape vine. These leaves are getting big.


This Black Squirrel was seen last year, probably in August or September 2009, in the tree immediately in front of the apartment. Apparently the animal found a mate and the two created a family since then. My roommate reports having seen two offspring in recent weeks.