Fifty Shades of Shimoda

[JT in Japan]

Finished my first shade house, finally. Took about 10 weekends to get her done, but Phase 1 is finally up and running. I’m still having trouble with my irrigation, so that’s a pretty important problem to tackle. But here’s where we are so far.

I took over the land on June 01, and set about clearing it. Had to bring in some “heavy” machinery to get all the weeds. It took a full 9-hour day to weed, level, and pack it down.

The plot is in Shimoda where I have my weekend house. A lovely little valley at about 5 meters’ elevation and 150 meters from the sea. It’s conveniently only about 3 minutes’ drive to my house.

 

 

[JT in Japan]

The land was originally a farmer’s field for various market crops (eggplant, watermelons, corn, etc), but the last farmer moved on. But it’s apparently fertile soil, so weeds love it. Thus the need for anti-weed barrier.

 

[JT in Japan]

I’ve built a few fences, and anticipated an easy job digging in fluffy earth. I wasn't disappointed. The holes were dead easy, even doing them by hand with a post-hole digger. The one or two rocks I ran into though, I had to break them up from above with a heavy iron pike I keep handy, for use at my less-forgiving garden at the house (it’s built out of a solid rock of a mountain).

One thing I haven’t done before is pull a wire fence. I’ve seen it done on youtube, but the farmers or ranchers always seemed to have a tractor handy. I now know why: pulling it tight enough to be useful is tough grind by hand. I really should have begged or borrowed something bigger. As it turned out, I used a come-along and a DIY rigging to pull it along. My fence is designed to keep out wild boar; I’ll know over the next few months if it’s tight enough.

 

 

[JT in Japan]

After I got most of the fence up, I put up top supports to hold the shade-cloth. I’m making this up as I go along, so I really don’t know how this will fare in a typhoon, which usually come 2-3 times a year. Fingers crossed.

 

[JT in Japan]

The wife and I took a break and went to Canada for July 01. Spent a good long-weekend with about20 family and friends at my brother’s lake cabin… and their 14 dogs (not only my brother’s; all attendees seemed to have a couple in their back pocket).

The result of that visit was my inspiration to get my own pup, to join our family already full with three cats. Here she is, one day old, Bee the Cockapoo.

 

[JT in Japan]

Okay, back on topic, back to the field and the shadehouse. Had to put a gate in, so that took another post and another post hole.

Then, finally, I hung the shadecloth.

[gyuseppe]

6 minutes ago, JT in Japan said:

 

from canada  in Japan?

 

 

Edited August 14, 2016 by gyuseppe

[JT in Japan]

At this point, about 8 weeks had passed. I had about 450 plants already potted up and ready to go, so I spent last weekend putting them in place. Then I started fiddling with the irrigation. As I said, I’m making this up as I go along, so some things might be a little backwards. Be that as it may, here’s what it looks like with my first line of pots in place.

So here’s what 450 pots look like (I thought it would be more impressive!). I still have another 400 or so at the house, that will be moved down in the coming weekends. Wifey has been very generous giving me so much time to be away on the weekends while she stays in the city, so at some point, I have to stop spending every. single. weekend. at the farm.

My inventory so far is as follows:

Butyagrus – 26

Livistona Decora – 24

Butia Odorata – 29

Trachycarpus Fortunei (Vancouver) – 60

Trachycarpus Fortunei (Shimoda) – 3

Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana – 133

Beccariophoenix Alfredi – 36

Chamaerops Humilus – 56

Sago – 30

Phoenix Rupicola - 65

[JT in Japan]

Final shot, from yesterday at 5:00 pm. Fifty Shades of House is up, palms in pots are in, boars are outside for now. Shimoda Palms is in play.

 

[palmfriend]

JT,

all the best with your new project!

We, down here, are trying to get a hand on the neighbor's property which is not used at all and therefore 

overgrown by weeds - to keep those away from growing into our own yard became in the meantime a serious

and time consuming (frustrating) part of my gardening activities - but it is still declared as farm land and for that 

reason not in reach for us....because my wife and I are NOT FARMERS, no matter if we would use it for 

growing something or not. 

It seems to be a big bureaucratic act to change the status of a property, but we still haven't gave up hope,

we are on it. If nothing goes I will consider to look for another property in closer range....for my palms.

JT, thanks for posting all the photos and good luck with all your plants -

best regards

 

[Monòver]

Wow, good work!!!

Now you have place for thousands palms.

I think will better if you put more shadecloth on the sides, this will protect the seedling in the windy days.

[Neil C]

Wow! Seems like quite a big project but well done and hope all your hard work pays off. What do the locals think of your nursery? Who will you sell the palms to?

 

Regards Neil

[Kim]

Wow, you are getting in deep!    True palm dedication!  Best wishes for a successful enterprise.

[JT in Japan]

20 hours ago, gyuseppe said:

from canada  in Japan?

I bought her in Japan, Gyuseppe, for life in Japan. We have experienced flying one cat from Tokyo to Toronto, and then seven years later flying three cats from Toronto back to Tokyo. No more of that for me!

:-)

jt

[JT in Japan]

19 hours ago, palmfriend said:

JT,

all the best with your new project!

We, down here, are trying to get a hand on the neighbor's property which is not used at all and therefore overgrown by weeds - to keep those away from growing into our own yard became in the meantime a seriouS and time consuming (frustrating) part of my gardening activities - but it is still declared as farm land and for that reason not in reach for us....because my wife and I are NOT FARMERS,...

Thanks for the note, Lars. You may have thought of this already, but you can buy agricultural land in Japan if you have a company with an agricultural purpose (like "nursery"). You don't need to be Japanese  or a farmer. I did it, and it's quite easy. It may take a year to get a tax return (one cycle), but in the long run, that's not bad.

cheers,

jt

[JT in Japan]

14 hours ago, Monòver said:

Wow, good work!!!

Now you have place for thousands palms.

I think will better if you put more shadecloth on the sides, this will protect the seedling in the windy days.

I agree, and have a cloth "fencing" material all ready to install. It'll provide a wind-break, and also give my pots a little more privacy from tourists walking to the beach.

jt

[JT in Japan]

13 hours ago, Neil C said:

Wow! Seems like quite a big project but well done and hope all your hard work pays off. What do the locals think of your nursery? Who will you sell the palms to?

 

Regards Neil

Thanks Neil. It took longer than I thought, and still needs lots of attention. The locals are all farmers, and I think they get a kick out of "the foreigner" doing foreign things. We chat most weekends and I give them updates to my progress, and they give me watermelons or tomatoes.

I'll sell to anyone online who wants a palm. I hope there's at least one of them out there. :-)

jt

[palmfriend]

1 hour ago, JT in Japan said:

Thanks for the note, Lars. You may have thought of this already, but you can buy agricultural land in Japan if you have a company with an agricultural purpose (like "nursery"). You don't need to be Japanese  or a farmer. I did it, and it's quite easy. It may take a year to get a tax return (one cycle), but in the long run, that's not bad.

cheers,

jt

JT,

thank you very much for this advice!! I have indeed thought about starting a nursery (in the future) but I thought the other way around - purchasing land and then starting

a nursery company, not starting a company and then purchasing land for it....Sometimes you don`t see wood for the trees.....

I got to call a meeting with my wife

best regards

 

[JT in Japan]

I wonder if anyone can advise me on how to fix my current irrigation setup? The key problem right now is water only flows out of the mini-tubes nearest to the tap/source. Water flows from the downstream tubes in a haphazard manner. I suspect it's because the water pressure is too low, since it's well water, but what's the work-around?

Here are some stats to further explain:

Source: well water (don't have a guage so don't know what the water pressure is. "Low" is appropriate; "weak" is not.

Total length of 20mm (3/4") tubing run: 25 meters (82')

Total length of mini-tubing stuck into 20mm run: about 8 meters (26')

Any pressure-compensation valves or drip heads: no

Thanks in advance.

JT

[Neil C]

Maybe install an in-line pump to up the pressure. Do you have access to electricity on site?

Regards Neil

[Josh-O]

looking real nice John,

before you know it your whole area will be bustling with great looking palms.

what are your average high-low temps?

[JT in Japan]

50 minutes ago, Neil C said:

Maybe install an in-line pump to up the pressure. Do you have access to electricity on site?

Regards Neil

Thanks Neil, I was hoping someone would make that suggestion. I suspect there's already some sort of pump at work, but maybe I can buy a bigger, stronger one. I'll contact the farmer and see what he says. I was thinking I might have to opt for a city-water hookup, which would be expensive (as opposed to "free" well-water).

A neighbor suggested I turn the 3/4" tubing upside-down (180d turn) so that the valves are facing down. Is that worth the trouble to try? (it would require cutting the main line, installing a couple of couplings, and re-staking all the tubes...)

JT

[JT in Japan]

26 minutes ago, Josh-O said:

looking real nice John,

before you know it your whole area will be bustling with great looking palms.

what are your average high-low temps?

See my sig file, Josh. Thanks for the encouragement. I've got your place to use as a model of "bustling..."

:-)

JT

[rick]

4 hours ago, JT in Japan said:

The key problem right now is water only flows out of the mini-tubes nearest to the tap/source.

Sounds like you have too many lines coming off your main line for your current water pressure.

[JT in Japan]

16 minutes ago, rick said:

Sounds like you have too many lines coming off your main line for your current water pressure.

and so far, I only have about 1/4 of the pots hooked up to feeds. Need to change this quickly.

JT

[JT in Japan]

And then, two days after I declared the shadehouse "built," and had 600 seedlings happily enjoying their shade,...

Typhoon #9 hit.

And tore my structure down.

 

This presented a couple of immediate problems. 1) the seedlings were in danger of being crushed by the wood and the sodden shade cloth, and 2) removing the shade cloth would subject the seedlings to the broiling hot sun (always more intense right after a typhoon, and intense anyway in August), which could roast them to death in one or two days.

So I spent $100 bucks on hoop supplies, took a half-day off work, and set to work. I tore down all the damage, dried out the shade cloth, sorted & straightened the pots (righting some, repotting others), and built a couple of temporary hoop houses. Let's see how long these last, given another typhoon is forecast for Tuesday.

[Monòver]

Wow!!!

I am sorry!!!!

[Neil C]

That really sucks but I guess if typhoons are a regular event where you live then something much more sturdy will need to be built. All the best.

 

Regards Neil

[JT in Japan]

I appreciate the sympathy, and empathy. 

You know, this is a learning process for me. I don't have any instructor beyond this valuable resource of Palmtalk. I look around and suppose I could learn from what others are doing. For instance, there are no other shade houses in Shimoda; is that because of typhoons? There are no other palm nurseries; is that because there's no market? Nor are there any palms for sale besides Trachies, the odd Butia, P. Roebiis, and Sago palms (!); is that because the climate is unforgiving for marginal species?... I go through a lot of this kind of inner dialogue. But when I consider these local facts, I have to ask: are they doing/not doing this because they've learned better? And most of the time, the answer is "no." They do it their way most often because it's the easiest way,... to understand, to be accepted, to make a living.

So I go off and do my thing, and make silly mistakes, and fix them.

It's a good thing I actually enjoy it!

cheers,

jt

[Alicehunter2000]

There's a lot of people in Japan and Japanese love plants and collecting (from what I've seen on tv...lol) .... I would think the market would be there. You might be on to something big if you have no competition for rare and unusual palms....just gotta figure out the typhoon issue.

[Dave-Vero]

The temporary hoop houses look good, though I wonder whether they'll concentrate heat.  

We in Florida haven't had a serious storm since 2005, so are getting sloppy about being prepared for wind.  

I'm not sure about your possible market.  I'm sure Trachycarpus is being grown; it's certainly present in Japanese gardens but doesn't seem to get much respect.  I get a feeling that in Tokyo parks it may be tolerated as a self-perpetuating almost-wild plant.  

There's got to be plenty of specialists in Rhapis.  No need to go there.  I just removed some R. excelsa that was was encroaching on smaller R. laosesis.  

Small spaces would seem to call for small palms.  Trachies could make good street trees, but of course so many streets have overhead wires....  Then there's the business of attempting to hack southern magnolias into near-shrubs.  Some of the US cultivated varieties would be suitable for that.  

For indoors, I think some of the Chamaedoreas would be charmers.  I bet they're also on the market.

Parts of Japan seem to have a combination of steam heat in the summer and mild winters (without eastern North America's wild freezes) that might allow for some southern Chinese palms that we don't much see.  I've got a Chuniophoenix in the back yard that seems to be taking a long time to fully settle in (a bit like a Rhapis?).  I wonder whether it might like western Japan.

 

[JT in Japan]

6 hours ago, Dave-Vero said:

The temporary hoop houses look good, though I wonder whether they'll concentrate heat. 

That's exactly what I was thinking, Dave. But 4 days in, things seem ok. The soil is retaining moisture still, so no dedication worries. And now that we're almost out of August, any captured heat will probably be beneficial. Just had to get them through the summer (I'm hoping).

jt

[Dave-Vero]

In Oct., I'll be with a tour group of about two dozen, a loose collection of friends from the Portland area, to Tokyo-Sapporo-Tohoku-Fukushima.  Too far north for palms, but I'll have a free day in Tokyo, probably mostly revisiting some of the grand old garden parks.  

It looks like your little palm growing enterprise is helping give the neighborhood a nice Japanese look of tended-ness.  I've been amazed by perfect, weedless vegetable gardens, persimmons hung to dry, the whole deal.  

It's a pity that the US has lost most of its sagos to an aphid from Thailand.  I hope that catastrophe doesn't happen to the wonderful old plants in Japan's gardens.   

[DoomsDave]

On 8/25/2016, 5:15:51, JT in Japan said:

And then, two days after I declared the shadehouse "built," and had 600 seedlings happily enjoying their shade,...

Typhoon #9 hit.

And tore my structure down.

 

This presented a couple of immediate problems. 1) the seedlings were in danger of being crushed by the wood and the sodden shade cloth, and 2) removing the shade cloth would subject the seedlings to the broiling hot sun (always more intense right after a typhoon, and intense anyway in August), which could roast them to death in one or two days.

So I spent $100 bucks on hoop supplies, took a half-day off work, and set to work. I tore down all the damage, dried out the shade cloth, sorted & straightened the pots (righting some, repotting others), and built a couple of temporary hoop houses. Let's see how long these last, given another typhoon is forecast for Tuesday.

ITAI!

Sucks, but seedlings are a lot tougher than they look.

Maybe some diagonal braces in the rebuilt shadehouse? They'll help in an earthquake, too. Well, storms are worse for something like that.

How about some pictures of the town? And the general situation?

 

[JT in Japan]

On August 29, 2016 at 9:19:18 AM, Dave-Vero said:

In Oct., I'll be with a tour group of about two dozen, a loose collection of friends from the Portland area, to Tokyo-Sapporo-Tohoku-Fukushima.  Too far north for palms, but I'll have a free day in Tokyo, probably mostly revisiting some of the grand old garden parks. 

Enjoy the trip, Dave. I'm up in that area about once a month for work (we have a factory in Yonezawa). Beautiful country. And plenty of good parks in Tokyo, just none for palms.

jt

[Dave-Vero]

Looks like serious, and very rare, typhoon damage north of Fukushima.  Oddly, I got a first story from New Scientist magazine.   I remember Koishikawa Korakuen (at the Tokyo Dome) as having Trachycarpus, probably mostly seedling.  Easy to follow the Nanboku Line up to Rikugien and Kyu-Furukawa.  I remember seeing big magnolias from the southeastern US at Rikugien and oversized stonework at Furukawa (Meiji era), but no palms.

[palmfriend]

The last typhoon was really bad for the northern area - the reports are currently on all channels.

It was for a while moving toward Okinawa and then a made a complete u-turn, never seen that before...

And at the moment the next one is just emerging (#12)...

On 2016/8/26 9:15:51, JT in Japan said:

And then, two days after I declared the shadehouse "built," and had 600 seedlings happily enjoying their shade,...

Typhoon #9 hit.

And tore my structure down.

 

JT, sorry for those damages!

Our greenhouses down here are almost bullet-proof because of the regular typhoons - usually a steel construction

with a kind of very strong plastic foil spanned around it like on an airplane wing. Because of that they are obviously

a bit pricy - I have already checked our local home depot for a smaller one - so at the moment it wouldn`t pay off for me as

long as it is just a hobby...maybe later.

So, I am still carrying my babies into the house if it is necessary...

best regards

 

[JT in Japan]

On August 29, 2016 at 1:16:50 PM, DoomsDave said:

ITAI!

Sucks, but seedlings are a lot tougher than they look.

Maybe some diagonal braces in the rebuilt shadehouse? They'll help in an earthquake, too. Well, storms are worse for something like that.

How about some pictures of the town? And the general situation?

 

Dave, I just found this video of a guy bicycling through my town of Shimoda this summer. 14 minutes of street view, with lots of palms along the way. The town is a beach town of 50,000 residents. It's fairly sprawling with about 8 beaches to enjoy, and probably 10-15 Km's from the easternmost beach to my area on the western edge.

http://youtu.be/0HlTsqVEJbQ

[DoomsDave]

7 hours ago, JT in Japan said:

Dave, I just found this video of a guy bicycling through my town of Shimoda this summer. 14 minutes of street view, with lots of palms along the way. The town is a beach town of 50,000 residents. It's fairly sprawling with about 8 beaches to enjoy, and probably 10-15 Km's from the easternmost beach to my area on the western edge.

http://youtu.be/0HlTsqVEJbQ

Well, I'm beginning to understand why a ganjin (I think that's the word) has gone gonzo for Japan!

More?

Pictures by JT?

 

[JT in Japan]

On 8/14/2016, 12:29:24, JT in Japan said:

I think I'm open to an accusation of "over-engineering" the irrigation, but I have a defense. I'm not an engineer, and I think I'm actually improving something. You can see from the above First Run that i have about 50 rows of pots, with three holes and 6 spagetti tubes per row. The problem I had immediately was no water flowing to the pots way down at the end. First supposition was that I didn't have enough pressure in the line.

Well, since I can't change the pressure of the source readily, I decided to instead try to minimize the loss through the line. Thus I present my Second Run, which has the same number of rows (about 50), but with only 1 hole and 2 spagetti tubes per row.

 

Pop Quiz Time: Why, after the re-engineering, does this solution still not work? (hint is in the second picture)

Let me know.

JT