The Farm

[Tad 16]

the trench is a french drain sorta thing, the benches double to hold the tall one gallon pots, the wooden slats keep the tall one gallons from falling thru, the moshav sent the cuttings early so we had to use some of the pre existing benches to set the trays on. i will use the downstairs part to hold trays and sprout seed during the winter.

[Tad 16]

(palmsforpleasure @ Sep. 29 2007,22:55)

QUOTE

Looks like you will need a nice cold beer at the end of the day

no cervesas, but I do enjoy a cold topo chico(mexican mineral water) at the end of the day,,

If I was drinkin beer none of this would ever get done!!

[Kris 1,396]

Dear Tad  

first of all thanks a lot for the step by step illustration of the shade house construction.the entire work seems to be metisculy done in search of perfection...Fentastic work.

And the the mist sprayer in action was lovely to watch..

And its nice to see your kid enjoying your work..

I was very curious & eager to see this thread all this time_so a special thanks for that and also for teaching us all how to build a world class shade house,if anyone wants to build one.

Lots of love to u & your kid,

Kris  

[Tad 16]

jeff zone 8 here is a picture of the benches in use,

this is what they were built for, the tall one gallon pots.

these are some of the olive trees that are being grown.

[Tad 16]

here is the sneeze guard we built to keep the mist off the controls. it is hinged from the top,

[Tad 16]

here is my coconut, gotta keep palms mentioned :cool:

it grows well in the spring and summer and stalls out in the winter

[Tejastropicals 4]

Tad, where can I find the EZ winder roll up device you show and does it wind from one end or both and what is the max length it will handle? Thanks for showing us your setup. Are you growing the olives to sell or for starting an orchard?

[Tad 16]

Kinney Bonded Warehouse, Donna,Tx

this one is rolling up 48 feet. one end only

the olives belong to a company whose owners are from argentina,France,and Texas, they come from Israel and are the only ones of this variety in th U.S.

They are being contract grown for this group primarily for production of olive oil, they want to grow a couple of batches of these trees, sell off a bunch to cover the initial investment and plant the rest on a farm they are planning to buy.

as a retirement venture for 2 of the brothers.

Once they get going these things are pretty speedy, some of the first rooted cuttings that were brought to the farm a few months ago are already past 2 feet tall and will be bumped up into larger container soon.

[mppalms 5]

Off topic, but what is the olive variety?  We seem to get the same types here all the time (Mission, etc.).

Jason

[Tad 16]

k-18 developed by the Israeli's

[Kathryn 57]

Great illustration Tad! I like the benches for tree pots. I might use that design when I run out of coke crates.

[Jeff zone 8 N.C. 47]

Thanks for the answers Tad. It all makes sense now. That's a great looking crop of olives.

[bubba 2,403]

Tad, Great post! I do not know how I missed it. You are the real deal and you are a tremendous asset to this Forum, particularly from that Valley area that is so interesting to Palm enthusiasts. Additionally, I greatly enjoy your keen use of the Texas idiom and encourage it's continuation.This applies to other high adepts also like Steve.(chin-up, grasshopper)

[Tad 16]

this is a pic taken this morning from cuttings that were stuck on september 7th, 2007

Now I am no expert on olive trees, and I am no expert when it comes to rooting cuttings, but so far so good.

[Tad 16]

I hope this deal works out because if I can get them to the one gallon stage they are pretty easy to take care of.

[www.dadluvsu.com 279]

Kinda looks like snot on a stick!

[oliver 251]

Tad, where exactly are you located. I have a slow growing coconut at my house, but the ones at my office which are growing in river sand are growing like weeds. (needed to elevate my slab about 6 ft so I could get flood insurance) All the other plants I put in the ground at the office are also growing about 5x faster.

[Exotic Life 120]

That a great project to see! Thanks for sharing this pics step for step.

Robbin

[Tad 16]

(oliver @ Oct. 01 2007,11:48)

QUOTE

Tad, where exactly are you located. I have a slow growing coconut at my house, but the ones at my office which are growing in river sand are growing like weeds. (needed to elevate my slab about 6 ft so I could get flood insurance) All the other plants I put in the ground at the office are also growing about 5x faster.

I am in Weslaco Tx, my cocnut only gets a half day of full sun, then what it gets is filtered thru one of the shade houses.

[Mats 32]

Which rooting hormone are you using Tad?

[Tad 16]

Dip n Grow, at a pretty high rate, soaked overnight

[Gileno Machado 228]

This is a great thread Tad. Well done, congrats...Polycarbonate is still quite expensive here in Brazil but it might work fine for wind protection... Am I too curious if I ask about the average prices for the final structure and some extra devices? Thanks.

[Tad 16]

the olive people have about 6500 invested in the whole thing including,benches,cuttings,labor,materials.

[Alicehunter2000 754]

Facinating. I always enjoy seeing your farm. How long before the 4000 trees will be in production? Are they going to be grown nearby in Texas. And I think you may have already mentioned previously, but why this particular israeli variety is prefered? Higher quality or is it the higher quantity of oil? Will the olive itself be marketed as well, or is this more of a by-product in producing the oil from the seed? Thanks Tad

[Cycadcenter 24]

Tad,

I see you are using Netafim 4 Micronet nozzles,  what pulse time and interval time are you using?

I'm looking ito doing a similar setup to propagate Wollemi Pine cuttings.

Thanks

Bruce

[Tad 16]

(Alicehunter2000 @ Oct. 02 2007,22:43)

QUOTE

Facinating. I always enjoy seeing your farm. How long before the 4000 trees will be in production? Are they going to be grown nearby in Texas. And I think you may have already mentioned previously, but why this particular israeli variety is prefered? Higher quality or is it the higher quantity of oil? Will the olive itself be marketed as well, or is this more of a by-product in producing the oil from the seed? Thanks Tad

some of the olives will go into field production, where ??????? I dont know, they still have 2 years under federal quarantine here...some of the olives will be sold off to cover the cost of the big shade house,prop house,and cuttings and plants,my fees, etc etc  

this variety is highly adaptable and tolerates salty water, fruits prolificly and at a very young age with a low occurance af alternance.

these things are supposed to fruit in the 2nd and 3rd year, I am guessing 2nd or 3rd year in the field.

from what I gather it is a major oil fruit but can be a eating type as well.

it's main draw is it is easy production, it's from Israel, and it grows well in crummy conditions

[Tad 16]

(Cycadcenter @ Oct. 03 2007,00:27)

QUOTE

Tad,

I see you are using Netafim 4 Micronet nozzles,  what pulse time and interval time are you using?

I'm looking ito doing a similar setup to propagate Wollemi Pine cuttings.

Thanks

Bruce

this week is every 10 minutes for 8 seconds, I have a 24 hour clock that turns the pulse unit on at 7 and off at 6:30 p.m.

[Tad 16]

another action shot

[Tad 16]

i am also experimenting with the micro rotor sprinklers, great if you need a heavier droplet size.

[Tad 16]

filtration is an absolute must, this house is on city water, but you still have to filter it.

the lpd's (leak prevention device) are brutal and cannot be unplugged once they are fouled....at least I havent figured it out yet.

[Tad 16]

..the lpd or foot valve is the egg shaped thing above the four way mist nozle

[steve 9atx 2]

Wow, Tad!

Great thread (although I feel I must warn you about the dearth of "palmyness").  Also, let me reiterate what a pleasure it was to meet you and your dad and spend some time at your places.  I've got some pics of my commando plant on the island at home I'll post for you at lunchtime.

Steve

[Alicehunter2000 754]

Just to keep the palminess in the thread......what kind of palms will you be transplanting into the house after the olive trees.

Ok....now......I want a couple of those other non-palm plants you got there......you say a two year wait?.....shipping to Florida?

[Kris 1,396]

Dear Tad  

lovely equipements & gadgets i love it.

but i have a request to make can you please shift your writings to something dark or better still to the regular colour..

since my eyes find it very difficult to read & concentrate your post_Please.

thanks & love,

Kris  

[Tad 16]

here are 2250 palms!!

chamaerops humillis!!!

[Tad 16]

this is in the prop house, these are trays full of livistona decora, with a delightful hats off to Bruce "phoenix king" Ironmonger!! I couldnt resist testing it out to see if germination was improved, by a warmer nighttime temp!!

[Kris 1,396]

(palmotrafficante @ Oct. 03 2007,15:11)

QUOTE

here are 2250 palms!!

Thanks Tad  

its quite clear and easy on our eyes_thanks.

Love,

Kris  

[Tad 16]

the potting soil recieved a new tarp today, a heavy duty tarp which at one time was a billboard, :cool:  this will have to do until my next big project! hopefully this one will last a while!!

[Tad 16]

the price of this tarp was wonderful, FREE!!!!!

actually I will have to repay with favors and what not but thats what friends are for!!

[STEVE IN SO CAL 15]

You're making me jealous...can't wait to get out of house remodel mode and back into nursery mode