Something Nice and Something Not.

In the garden outside our bedroom window my favourite Viburnum is just beginning to flower.

 It's full name is Viburnum plicatum tomentosa.

 It's leaves are just as beautiful as the flowers.They have a slight red margin when they first unfold. The bees like the flowers too.

 The something NOT nice is in the orchard.

 We are currently finding tiny patches of the bacterial disease psa in our MALE kiwifruit vines. ( this is the first year we have had the ooze stage )

 Here is a cane we cut out . I laid it on the ground to get a close photo of it. The wood discolours and red ooze appears. This is at the very early stages. We want to keep on top of it to stop it's spread.

 Here is how we are dealing with it.

 saw the piece out.

 Burn ( cauterise ) the cut using a small flame thrower.

 Paint the wound with anti bacterial paste( red ).

 Tie a red ribbon by it so we can check on it over the next few weeks.

 Collect all cut out cane into a large plastic sack. Dispose of either down the offal hole or burn in an enclosed place.

 Disinfect all tools immediately. (Spray with meths ) Squirt hands with similar gel.

 Move to the next vine I have found and repeat the procedure.

 The buds are just bursting on the vines and this is the most critical time. Hope for fine sunny days. ( psa spreads most during cold wet conditions - which is surprising. ) The way psa spreads is still a bit of a mystery. We know since it is a bacteria it is spreads by touch, by the  wind, by birds and animals, by vehicles, on clothing etc. etc.  The vines have had a protective copper spray ( several ). We can only be vigilant and hope we don't have too big a reduction in male flower because of too many cut out canes. We will use additional blown ( collected and milled ) pollen as well but it will be scarcer this year as many orchards have this far, far worse than we do.

So that is a job for this time of the year that pre psa we didn't have to spend hours doing.

***

 Meanwhile back in the garden and around the house we are busy cleaning and tidying as this coming weekend we are having  lots of guests for a celebration for R's 70th birthday. We have the big BBQ machine coming so we really, really want it to be fine.

 Lots to do. ( the sewing machine has been put in it's carry bag and stored in the cupboard till next week so I don't get tempted.....other things need doing.)

 Think Sunshine, sunshine,  sunshine!