| On the 15th of May, my siblings and I got together for a brief visit. This hasn't happened for quite some time (at least a decade). |
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Laura came from Peru to attend her daughter, KD's, Pima Community College Graduation, and since She was in the country, Karren and I broke loose from our various commitments and gathered at Mark's place. |
| Mark seems to be doing well, although He is not yet back to doing his full range of activities. While I was there, Tom was roto-tilling the garden. |
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I spent some time with Mark, learning how to introduce grafts onto apple trees. The apple tree in our side yard is a dwarf tree. It does not produce the type of apples that the fruit tree catalog claimed. Dwarf fruit trees all have a hardy root stock onto which has been grafted the desired fruit producing portion. After reflection, it seems to me that the grafted portion of this tree must have died, leaving only the hardy root stock (which doesn't produce desirable fruit). |
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The obvious solution (and it only took 20 years for me to arrive at this conclusion) is to graft desirable fruit bearing stock onto this tree (sometimes my perspicacity amazes even me...). This is most successful if done in the early Spring, just before the tree breaks dormancy. Given that I got away without any graft buds, that window of opportunity is probably already past for this year. Foot note: At the reunion, I talked Mark out of some grafting buds. I still think it is too late this year (my tree already has fruit set on it) but I am going to give it a try. Stay tuned for late breaking news... |
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At any rate, we had a good visit. Given that I drove up and back the same day, it was short, but I enjoyed seeing my siblings. Believe it or not, we shared relatively close proximity for multiple hours without having a single noisy disagreement (a sure sign that we now really do belong to the geriatric crowd). |
| The other event that deserves mention (which I'm sure will be in AJ's next post [possibly scheduled for June of 2020, baring delays]) is the graduation of Brittney and KD. |
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The combination of low light conditions and extreme range tested the limits of my (Sony DSC-S85) camera's capabilities. |
| KD wore a mortar board on which was written the numbers "2010," and Brittney had one with a white flower having 5 petals. |
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These photos would never win an award for photo of the year but, given what I could see with my unaided eye, I am impressed with them. If this were a CIA operation, the conclusion that Brittney and KD participated in the graduation exercises would be irrefutable. Congratulations! |