Why I Oughta...

Just when things were going swimmingly with dahlia season pop'ing off, we have a setback.  And, this one was an accident.  I planted a number of dahlias in the Pizza Oven Bed.  I called it the "Pizza Oven West Bed" because it is, well...West of the oven.  And, that makes them *close* to tree swing.  Which, up until this week hasn't been an issue.  But...kids will be kids.  And, one-way-or-the-other, someone found themselves in, amongst the dahlias.  And, unfortunately....that means that two of them had stems that were cracked off.   A Milena Fluer decorative dahlia.  And, Rip City.  Or... what I was sold as Rip City (but I'm pretty sure isn't really Rip City.) Here, below, are a couple of photos.  Milena Fleur on the left.  "Rip City" on the right.  Both were cut down by about half.     Below are a couple more photos showing the close-ups of the cracks.   And, here below, are a couple of...

In the Fall of 2021, I planted a pair of SugarTyme Crabapple (flowering) trees along the south-face of our house in a sunny spot .  These were my third set of espalier'd trees following my pair of Greenspire Lindens and the Apple-tree Belgian Fence.   My goal was to transform the big blank wall into something more 'green'.   Over the years, these small trees began to grow and branch-out to what they've become today:  four-tiered horizontal cordons.    Here, below is a photo showing how they look today.   The tree on the left has the lowest tier still to grow outward.  But, the tree on the right is further-along.   These trees are beginning to bloom.  Below is a photo showing some of the blooms beginning to open on the branches: These needs a little bit of work this growing season.  My plan is to try to create a support system for them that will help straighten-out the branches and remove the arching curves to som...