The Death of Dale and Recovering from the Snow

Dale ("It's a Braeburn") had to be cut down.  The flat-headed borers got the best of him.  Best to quit while they were ahead and contact the Master Gardeners to see what they suggest.

* Can I replant in the same raised bed?
* Can I prevent the same thing from happening (since it's hard to get rid of them once they dig in)?
* Are plum trees any healthier?

My neighbor has plums and she doesn't do anything to them, but gets piles of plums.  I get an apple tree, prune it, spray it, baby it, cover it's tiny apples in individual nylon socks, etc. and I get no apples (coddling moth larvae) and borers.

I sniffled a little.  Poor Dale.  He was my first fruit tree.

Dale in better days - spring 2013

His former bed - Boo and his ever loving tennis ball

 The stupid snow (I took to kicking it and calling it "stupid snow") is gone!  Oh, a teeny bit lingering here and there, but not enough to bother with!  Thanks to last night's rain!  After it melted I expected to find more dead plants than I did.   Most everything survived just fine.  The tender mints are coming back already.

spearmint

lemon balm

The aster looked completely dead, but the cold seems to have triggered a growth spurt.

aster

I am worried about the two azaleas against the house.  In hindsight (the kind of sight that is 20/20) I should have moved it under the carport or somewhere sheltered.  I don't care for the color of the leaves or their appearance.

I'll really miss them if they don't make it.  They were left here by the former owner of the house, and bloom so pretty in the spring. 

SNOW!

We got snow yesterday!  Lots and lots of snow!  (Well, maybe not "lots" to you, but "lots" to Southern Oregon!)

Enough to make a real snowman... you can't tell by the photo, but he is about 4' tall.  He has the traditional carrot nose; the other embellishments are wood chips.  And my scarf.  And I think my Santa hat.

I didn't know enough about them to realize you really do roll the balls around the yard to make them bigger!  It really works that way!

the herb garden

raised bed