Elderberry Experiment: Update #8

[NeoGreen]

The experiment has done well-enough through spring 2018:

I had some deer come through Memorial Day weekend and their browsing caused quiet a bit of damage:


I lost a hand full of some of my best cuttings,


But I have learned to not give up on any single plant too soon,

I originally thought this one was a loss, but it surprised me with growth up from the roots.

The deer nibbling necessitated some counter measures:

I opened up and reshaped the circular/cylinder cages I built last year.




Plus, it has been relatively dry so I have set up a solar watering system


Which pumps into a 200-gallon tank,


Which I then use for gravity fed watering,





The 2-year old plants I bought and planted last year are doing very well and seem to have been untouched by the deer (so far),


So, despite the general attrition on the first year plants, I looking forward to a much larger crop of berries this fall, maybe even up to 30-pounds:



Links to previous updates:
Elderberry Experiment: In the beginning: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597228
Elderberry Experiment: Update #1: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597235
Elderberry Experiment: Update #2: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597246
Elderberry Experiment: Update #3: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597391
Elderberry Experiment: Update #4: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597481
Elderberry Experiment: Update #5: https://www.democraticunderground.com/11597520
Elderberry Experiment: Update #6: https://upload.democraticunderground.com/11597703
Elderberry Experiment: Update #7: https://upload.democraticunderground.com/11597833

[Cracklin Charlie]

1. I saw elderberry growing by the railroad tracks last week.

6-8 feet tall and covered with blossoms. They must like hot weather.

[Ohiogal]

2. Hi NeoGreen!

Are you telepathic? I was just looking at all the white blossoms on the bushes in my little elderberry grove in the back yard and started wondering how yours were doing!

Sorry about all the deer damage. They sure can be destructive critters. Those wire enclosures you fashioned ought to keep them out.

My husband and I are curious about your solar watering system. Is that something that you came up with yourself? How does it work? or is there a link to a website that describes it?

Wishing you and your berry bushes all the best!

[NeoGreen]

3. Yeah the deer were bad...

Last edited Mon Jun 18, 2018, 01:53 PM - Edit history (1)

...but not as bad as they could have been.

The water system is entirely my "design" from my head (not that I actually planned it out with sketches or anything).

I bought a small 12-volt water pump (something similar to this):
https://www.amazon.com/YEHAM-Micro-Submersible-Water-Pumps/dp/B06Y2T63PX/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1529344094&sr=8-10&keywords=Submersible+12V+Pump

Along with a solar battery charger:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017K6PH1S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#HLCXComparisonWidget_feature_div

And used an old 12-volt battery, wiring, tubing, PVC pipe and fittings and the water tank I had laying around.

I fill the tank from my pond (takes about 2.5-hours for 200 gallons) which doesn't seem to stress that battery in the least. I keep the solar charger hooked up to the battery 24-hours a day and only fill the tank once every 5 to 7-days, depending on usage.

The water flows from the tank by gravity. In the evenings, I just lower each tube to a plant to drain the tank. I then relocate the tube to another plant every few minutes, which makes for a long walk of circles from plant/tube to plant/tube for the 3 lines I have built in to use at a time (all part of the "get off the couch" plan). Each plant get about 2-gallons per watering.

[Ohiogal]

4. Awesome!

Thank you for the description of your system! Quite ingenious!

You must have a grove full of happy plants! (except for the ones affected by the deer raid)