Yesterday

The wind-chill topped out at 565 degrees Rankine yesterday. The weather-weenies predict it will be five degrees colder today. 

I gave blood yesterday. Unfortunately, I scheduled it for mid-morning so I had a big donut-hole in the center of my most productive time to work outside. That is, the time between mosquitoes and spontaneous ignition. The nice lady who was passing out treats to donors told me that they had just run out of pitchers of sangria and the chef who made the Crispy Chicken Caesar wraps had just stepped out for a smoke-break. I settled for a 0.5 ounce packet of cheese crackers (for the salt) and a bottle of water.

I cut three oatmeal canisters in half and used them for collars around filbert shoots. I filled the collars with potting soil. My hope is that they strike roots and I will have something to graft named varieties on next spring.

All of this indoor time is messing up my sleep habits.

I have a tree that is mostly Kerr apple-crab. "Apple-crabs" are apples where the fruit is too small to be properly called an apple (the cutoff is arbitrarily at 60mm or 2-3/8" in diameter) and it too big to be considered a crabapple (smaller than 30mm or 1-1/4" in diameter. Highly resistant to fireblight, hardy down to USDA Zone 2b and, very rare for a very hardy apple, the fruit stores well. Kerr was one of the parents used in developing the Vineland apple rootstocks.

USDA Zone 2b can be expected to experience a low of -45F about once every ten years. 

There are a few branches of a rootstock called Geneva 935 grafted into the canopy for pollination. At the time I put these scion into the tree, G.935 looked like the best of the free-standing rootstock but field exposure uncovered a risk of sudden-death syndrome...possibly related to a susceptibility to latent virus that doesn't bother domestic apple varieties.

If I had a chance to do it again, I would graft Geneva 214 because it has not shown the sudden-death syndrome and is better at moving calcium from the soil to the fruit than any of the other Geneva rootstocks. 

Both varieties are susceptible to bearing in alternate years. This is the first year in the ten years since I grafted in the branches when both bloomed and both varieties have a very nice fruit set.

Mental note to self: Harvest a bunch of the fruit from the G.935 branches for seeds and plant them for rootstock and wildlife plantings.

Bangstick related 

I lubricated a batch of .223 Rem brass with Motor Honey. I put a tiny dab on the palm of one hand, rub my hands together and then run my hands through the brass, rubbing the way a Kindergarten kids works a ball of clay into a snake. One dab will adequately lubricate about 300 .223 Rem brass.

I started resizing them and promptly broke the de-capping wire off of the resizing die. Dang! 

I keep hearing that Michigan finally eliminated the "Rifle Line" which prohibits certain types of firearms in the southernmost half of the Lower Peninsula. In days-of-yore, only shotguns could be used south of the Rifle Line. Then they allowed muzzleloaders. Then straight-walled cartridges that are shorter than 1.8" long.

Chronic Wasting Disease has the DNR spooked and they would deerly (pun intended) love to knock the herd back to 30% of its current level. They are pulling out the stops.

I don't think the elimination of the Rifle Line will move the needle. We will know they are serious when the DNR allows land-owners (often absentee investors) to SELL the carcasses on secondary markets the way Australia allows "wildlife control agents" to sell kangaroo carcasses.

Must have been a slow day at Amazon 

The power cord and other assorted items I purchased on-line the day before yesterday arrived yesterday. Next day delivery! I selected free, 7 day delivery but they arrived the next day.

Random picture

Chillin'