The climate for gardening in Poland

@pawian
Not really a greenhorn I have been growing a wide variety of fruit and veg for decades and working with bees for about 20 years. Like the hippocratic oath the first lesson is do no harm. Placing additional blossom can help and there is nothing wrong in doing that but I suggest its unnecessary as pollinators will work their magic regardless thats why no one I know does it its unnecessary.

It makes me happy seeing people share their love for horticulture and the riddle/quiz twist you put on the thread makes it all the more interesting. I recall you said you would like to husband honey bees I would encourage you to do so. The native Polish bee is under pressure from commercial bee keepers with their hybridized stock and needs support, the same in Ireland.

You are still talking about self sufficient varieties to which you are used. I already told you I keep cross pollinated trees. The magic is different in their case. :):):)

You are not aware of many factors that play a role here.


Do you keep an orchard in Poland?? No. So what do you know about taking care of fruit trees in Poland? Nothing. :):):)


Ireland has a different climate than Poland. It is called an Emerald Island while Poland is called the country of polar bears roaming the streets. HA!!!

@pawian
I really don't want to explain genetics here but almost all fruit trees need cross pollinated from one or more similar species. You dont live in a barren environment as there is wild blossom available so I still maintain your practice though not harmful is unnecessary. Genetics is not country specific and nor is bee behaviour.

Surely Polar bears eat all the fruit left by the wolves and Bison

Amasing comment coz a day or two ago you said that most cultivated fruit trees are self pollinating.

Let me be honest for a while - I find it difficult to discuss those issues with you coz you contradict yourself much too often. :):):)

Sorry, forgive me this sincerity but I don`t have time for such silly games. I have to plough, sow and plant before it is too late. :):):)


You can maintain your opinion in Ireland. But it doesn`t hold too much water in Poland. :):):)
Thank you.

Also to saw - the mini birchwood in the corner of the garden has grown too tall and casts a shade onto one of veg patches.


Actually, bee behaviour is. Bees in Poland act according to Polish climate while Irish ones according to theirs. Isn`t it simple???

So, when apricot trees started blooming in March, I didn`t see a lot of pollinators in the air coz despite warm temps, it was humid with regular drizzle spells. I only saw two bumblebees.

Apricots bloom the earliest of all fruit trees in Poland. And there is a huge problem with pollination and blossom/young fruit survival in early weeks of spring when it is still very cold. That is why after buying only one tree in 2015 and getting zero fruit, I planted another one in 2019 and still nothing although they grow close to each other. I eventually ended up with 5 trees of different varieties which grow within 5 metres from each other to enhance the pollination process. And this year I have seen young fruit for the first time in my life. WOW!!!!

sadyogrody.pl/owoce/101/jakie_czynniki_warunkuja_skuteczne_zapylenie_kwiatow_moreli,1158.html

Fruit set in basic varieties is lower with the distance from the pollinator. - The research found that even in the case of apricot varieties grown in the closest proximity to the pollinating variety, a larger amount of fruit is located on the side of the pollinator - said a representative of the Institute of Horticulture. He added that pollinating varieties usually constitute 8-10 percent. all the trees in the orchard.

According to Dr. Sitarek, when pollinators are placed in rows, the distance between them should not be greater than 20-25 m. This means that with the most frequently used distance between apricot trees in orchards being about 3 m, a pollinating variety should be planted every 7-8 trees.

Last winter the lowest temp in my area was -20 C. And it is a regular occurence coz two years ago it was -18 C.

While the lowest temp ever recorded in Ireland was - 19 C in the year 1881. Amasing!!!

Sorry, not fruit buds but young fruit.

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the temperature of -19 C was probably recorded somewhere in the mountais of Ireland like the Wicklows

If you say so. I know little about Irish hills.

Strangely enough, it wasn't but then our climate is a bit weird because of being an island in the Atlantic and having the Gulf Stream warming us. Mind you it's cooling now, the Gulf Stream. If we didn't have that, the weather would be even more dismal! Well, it would a lot colder. We'd be more like Iceland or somewhere because we're so far north.

Anyway I checked and that lowest temp was recorded in Sligo which is in the north west of the country at Markree Castle in Collooney where the elevation is only 62 metres :))

In the 20th century the lowest temp of -18.8 degrees was recorded in Kildare in a place with an elevation of only 90 something metres.

I guess then temperatures in the Wicklow mountains would have been much worse, Kildare is just next to the Wicklow mountains, isn't it (just nobody lives there in the mountains)

Do you have snow in winter?

I know what you mean about how it was colder generally in those days and winters were certainly colder, that's true.

The Wicklow Mountains have long been lived in though and there was a British Army presence there because of the rebel hideouts which they were always trying to find. There are also a few great 'estates with the vast country house and some smaller but significant gentlemens' residences, so measuring, observing etc. could have been going on there at least on an amateur level but I suppose there may be no official records.

However, the Wicklow Mountains, as mountains go, are not especially cold or snowy. More than anything they're wet. It rains alot. Mostly you only get very cold temps and heavy snow in certain parts and some areas are known for often being impassable for days at a time in December/January.

Yes, I grow for seeds which I use in pickles or my fermented red borsch.

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I do too and that is how I knew those were mustard seeds.
I have grown the same strain of tomato, pumpkin and cucumber seeds for decades now too.

Normally the harvest time for garlic falls in July. However, since early June, I dig out bulbs for immediate consumption. - I can eat the whole bulb for supper or breakfast cos this young garlic is so mild. Delicious.

I tried to grow it but forgot to water it and it vanished. Now I am thinking of giving it a second try coz it looks peculiar, indeed. .

Do you recognise this fruit which grows on a tree??

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This year was unusual coz the ripe season came very early. About 1 or 2 months earlier than normally depending on produce.

I could dig up our own potatoes at the end of May and collect a lot of fruit in early June. Amasing changes are taking place in the Polish climate.

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There are old and new riddles waiting for garden enthusiasts`s answers:

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In spring, the fields in the area become white:

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Are they black raspberries?

Sorry, black raspberries which I talked about years ago grow on a bush. While my riddle fruit grows on a tree and it is the utter novelty this year. That`s why I am offering this riddle.

Sorry, I forgot to give a warning: it isn`t raspberry!

Artichoke?

Sorry, no. I will tell you coz I can`t bear this torment anymore. :):):) It is the root of horseradish which spreads nicely across its patch and I don`t have to buy it at a hypermarket for my fermented red beetroot juice.

You still get a prize for Polish style persistence. Thanks! :):):)

Looks a bit too small but are they mulberries?


I only had one guess!

YES YES YES! It is the first time I saw them in the orchard. Unfortunately, birds devoured those few fruit which you can see in the photo.


Sorry, this is an old riddle. If you didn`t answer it then, it means it was too difficult. I care about guessers, you see. :):):)

Or I didn't see it. I'm not camped out on the forum!

Ok, next time I will wait a little longer.... :):):)

Why are these leeks unusual???

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