ronbre
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sun May 16, 2010 7:34 pm
Location: Michigan

calling it finished, my final order arrived, but short

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seems like I just can't win, I've tried for years to plant paw paws and of course my order was short 2 paw paws and 2 elderberries..wah.

well so I changed my plans in my food forest garden as what would go where, naturally since I'm tired of ordering paw paws, things are going to be planned differently.

Well now my food forest begins on the north end by the woods with 3 walnuts (black, carpathian and butternut), then 20' south is a hedge of 4 wild plum, 6 hazelnuts interplanted with 3 mulberries.

then south of that are two areas of circle gardens, the two on the left are separated by a hugel bed and those 3 beds have dwarf apple tree guilds in each bed under planted by herbs, perennial and annual fruits and vegetables.

to the west of this set of circle beds now are 2 chestnuts, one large fruited hawthorn between them, one buffalo berry and about a dozen or so raspberries (gold, red and black) and some blackberrries. Between the circle beds and the wild plum hedge is a huge bed with coles, tomatos, lettuces, carrots, beets, etc as well as another rhubarb (all over) and a few herbs.

to the south of this section is a hedge that now has 9 blueberries and 2 serviceberry trees.

to the east of this entire combination is another circle garden that has an ornamental red canadian cherry in the center of a lawn surrounded by 4 curved beds with paths going out to each direction N S E and W. The two northern curved beds each has a dwarf pear tree, a goumi, a lilac, a climbing rose, a grapevine to go over an arbor with swing, jerusalem artichokes, several squash plants, tomato plants and other annual vegetables and herbs as well as morning glories going over the southern arches and luffa.

the two south beds are each different, the one on the west has another dwarf pear and a goumi and the morning glories, luffa, herbs and squash and tomatos as well as cucumbers and a childs swing over boards with sedum, and a grape and climbing rose over the arbor and the west bed is larger than the others going off to the south another 16' and it has a mountain ash, goumi, as well as the morning glories and luffa and grapes and clilmbing roses, but also tons of asparagus planted with a mulch of pumpkins, tomatos, peppers, and rhubarb, as well as some coles..and a sweet cherry tree dwarf...and iris and herbs.

there are two more beds south of the one with the pear in it, one has a matcing dwarf sweet cherry, onions, more jerusalem artichokes, and some melons a rhubarb and some iris. The next bed to the south is hugel bed and it has potatos, corn, melons, bush beans and a few onions, and south of it is horseradish

Other than the one ornamental cherry and the asparagus, horseradish and rhubarb, this bed is all new since last spring, so nearly all of the trees and shrubs are tiny babies, but I'm very pleased with the way it is working out.

Last year the chestnuts had leaves on them, but so far this year there are no leaves on them, so those might not make it. and a few of the other small trees were just planted yesterday and last week (mulberries), so there are some ifs on those too.

I also have perennial flowers planted here and there in these gardens as well as some annual flowers and lots and lots of baby herb plants, daffodills and some minor bulbs like crocus and grape hyacinths..There are onions and marigolds and chives and garlic chives planted throughout.

It was a big project, but it is nearly finished now (well if a garden is ever finished) . Basically now it is maintaining, replanting annuals as they are harvested, moving in a few more perennials, allowing some of the hardy ones to reseed, and see where we go from there..

Surrounding these areas are a woods I'm developing into a managed forest garden, as well as a 175 x 75 pond that I'm planting around to make a lovely setting and south of that is a grove of aspens that I've still yet to develop and a windbreak to the west that will need a few more trees..and then of course the dozens of perennial mixed beds (trees, shrubs, flowers, herbs, etc. ) all around our house and property besides this new area..but this new area has been my 2009 and 2010 project garden...and I'm very happy to nearly have the permanent plantings done. I'll still be bringing in perennial division as I'm able..but mostly I'm fairly satisfied with it. May also have to replace some dead trees if they don't do their thing..this year.
Just wanted to share.

Toil
Greener Thumb
Posts: 803
Joined: Tue Jan 05, 2010 4:18 pm
Location: drifting, unmoored

is paw-paw the same as persimmon?

cynthia_h
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 7500
Joined: Tue May 06, 2008 7:02 pm
Location: El Cerrito, CA

Oh, no; they're completely different from one another.

No time right now to go into it, but they're very different.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

Uh-oh: Vergil has now figured out how to use his enforced inactivity as a ploy for extra trips outside, "come look at me" visits, etc. Looks like that will be this week's challenge....up twice this morning before 0600.... :x but he's doing well, medically speaking! :)

ronbre
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sun May 16, 2010 7:34 pm
Location: Michigan

no paw paw is called custard banana or Michigan banana, it is shaped and colored like a potato when ripe but hangs from a tree, has a soft peachy/strawberry kinda flavored pulp with large seeds, quite good if you like it..some like it some don't.

here is a link to my photos on my facebook album
https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22539&id=1846485863&l=e05859fdc6



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