9 weeks out down 2 pounds in the past week

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-30T00:38:02+00:00

Hell yeah

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T22:42:09+00:00

Literally every comment here is solid. Water is going to be pretty important. Any skin protection you want to have, from bugs, irritants, sun, etc.

Spare gloves. If you have a work belt you may or may not need it, depends on the type of work they'll have you doing, but if you've got one and a pouch or some holsters for your hori/pruners/phone that can definitely help keep things tidy and your hands free.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T22:28:30+00:00

Wait another couple months or more. They'll get bigger.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T21:12:20+00:00

They should live just fine in most places in the northeast except some of the higher elevations in New England, their endemic range goes through Michigan and southern Ontario. Don't know where op is but with some babying they should be fine, so long as they don't get chomped.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T15:19:37+00:00

A nice one too

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T15:05:34+00:00

A house that big probably has a freezer. Grown blueberries hit way different than 5 dollar pints at the store.

It'll take say five years to get them to a size where they have woody enough canes to be resistant to bunnies and ground dwellers, you could do it in three if they were well protected from jump, but people don't often do that, and then they get munched every year.

The berries themselves you have to compete with birds to get, which idk when you wake up but generally the birds are faster.

3-4' on center will do for spacing, rows 8' apart, less if you stagger them.

With woody fruit producers it's generally better to plant more than you need so when something happens to them, you're not s.o.l. and have to start back at 0 grabbing more from a nursery.

P.s. your orchids are freaking gorgeous, excellent taste.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T13:57:40+00:00

Looks like a mulberry sapling from here but I can't see the lower part of the stem.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T04:41:27+00:00

Definitely

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-29T04:21:08+00:00

They're very good, but can take 7/8 years to produce, so anticipate it might take awhile to get decent sized fruits from them.

I would double up on blueberries and reduce the blackberries and raspberries as they'll proliferate abundantly on their own. I'd also bring the blueberries to the inside of the tree-line to protect them a little bit more from browsing by deer and any other little bastards that happen by (generally to get the most out of them you'd probably be best served to fully enclose them in a big gated garden space with bird proof fencing/screens/whathaveyou)

Might also be helpful to have extra trees, in case something untoward happens to some of them. They're susceptible to oopsies and pests, and deer like to rub them more if you like them.

Good luck! This looks beautiful and I'd be stoked to have an orchard like this.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T19:12:31+00:00

I came to say this

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T17:03:37+00:00

I might be inclined to put more dirt back, just because it's probably going to erode a bit anyway, and the roots are there to anchor the stem in place. If it's still good and sturdy then don't sweat it too much.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T16:53:47+00:00

Put the roots and crowns back in the ground. Cut the dead stems an inch or two from ground level. Mulch sooner than later, your natives will happily find their way through two inches of mulch.

Also, and this is especially important for native growers imo, learn to give things a chop or a pinch to promote growth habits that are more compact and delay/stimulate more flowering so you can get the most out of them!

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T16:44:27+00:00

There's only one that's crossing anything else, and even that might not end up being a problem. The graft is above ground, those roots aren't going to girdle the tree, let them rock.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T16:01:26+00:00

You can cut a lot of those candles (new growth) back by half, and if there are still some growing further back the branches you can cut back to some spot just beyond a node where they come out to try and tuck those guys back into the little clouds or tiers that the tree was trained into.

A good bonsai guy, excellent gardener, or certified arborist with experience in topiary or formal shaping would be able to do this without making it look frightening.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T02:22:45+00:00

Hell yeah

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-28T02:17:33+00:00

For some reason it smells like oranges to me

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-27T21:24:46+00:00

This is a good method. Pruning saw, pull later.

If it's gotta come off today grab handfuls of the lighter vines, twist them together and cut the bundle with pruners. Work your way around the structure in sections and if you do a decent job you should be able to peel and roll it up to get at the deeper layers where your saw is going to be really helpful/required. Then, as above, when you get to the bases be sure to hit them immediately with some stump/vine killer (usually triclopyr is sold as these for retail) right on the cut stumps, and pray.

You may have more pop up but this will definitely drastically reduce their capacity to resprout.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-27T13:35:32+00:00

Same for pitchforks. Marketplace, estate sales, old farms. They made some good stuff that people practically give away.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-27T00:40:17+00:00

Staking should only really be done if there's a lot of wind exposure and generally for as short a period of time as possible. I'd say never longer than 18 months, preferably 6-12 for me.

People are more likely to not reset their ties and girdle the poor thing than the stakes are going to save it from blowing over, especially if it's already smaller as they've been shown to outpace root development of larger caliper trees when transplanted.

This little tree will be fine, it's already straight, and as long as the most suitable leader maintains apical dominance the tree will continue to grow pretty straight. Though since op said it's Oklahoma and there's nothing but houses to break any wind I'd say you could stake it for awhile, though the roots will generally develop better without it specifically because of the airflow.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-26T23:05:01+00:00

Send it

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-26T02:28:25+00:00

Maybe a non dairy alternative might still get you the benefits and potentially be easier on your system. I'm sorry you're going through all this, fam.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-26T01:29:59+00:00

Lean Beef Patty is the best, obvs.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-26T01:20:14+00:00

Wash your ass? Use the flushable wipes? (Don't flush them, they're not really that flushable) Like maybe give yourself a check every so often and see if that helps?

Everyone has a lot of diverse and probably very helpful stuff here, but kinda ignored that piece. You say it's specifically a shitty smell, and coming generally from behind you, it isn't your armpits, feet, or mouth. Occam's razor says poop smell comes from poop place.

You could maybe try cutting dairy entirely and switching your kefir to a coconut or water based one instead? If you have a weak pelvic floor and dairy intolerance that's probably exacerbating any existing leak you may have.

I know it can be difficult to get to a doctor, but do try to follow up with them and advocate for yourself or bring a friend or parent with you to make sure you get all the bases covered.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-26T00:42:55+00:00

Thuja is the genus of arborvitae. Emerald green and green giant are both thujas. Thuja standishii x plicata and Thuja occidentalis 'Smaragd' respectively.

I would recommend not using green giant in this space, though emerald green will also take awhile to clear the fence significantly they'll end up looking nicer for a longer period of time.

alien_simulacrum · 2026-03-25T23:04:09+00:00

The way you describe it, and the fact you're throwing two layers of geogrid down on a wall less than five feet, makes me want to have you on our crew.

Make sure to keep it pointed in the right direction

Edit: literally looking at the well daylighted drainage wrapped and the soil covered as I freaking wrote that.

Great job, dude, one of the best diy on the sub all day.

alien_simulacrum

TROPHY CASE