What is everyone eating from their orchard today?

I want that apricot!

Get in line :slight_smile:

I had family over yesterday afternoon and we spit the already small fruit 6 ways. I sacrificed a bit of my tiny slice to measure the brix (18.5, even higher than the bagged one which fell).

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Isn’t amazing that we split pieces of fruit at least six ways! We orchardists with young orchards, go through all lengths to save that first, plum apple or apricot! The first year I had 22 plums on one tree I had a small cocktail party inviting everyone to the orchard to see the miracle! My pals wanted to know what the fuss was over. . . enough said!

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My cherries are light red. I want to eat them but they will be better when dark red to black. I hope the birds don’t get them I only have about fifty! Last year there was only about twelve so I’m getting there.

How about Honeyberries? Anyone have a good crop? I had about 40 berries that where almost ripe. I left town for a few days and not one berry was there when I returned. evidently a bird tried one and decided it liked them. Raspberries are a few feet away and so far the birds have left the ripe Preludes for me.

What I find fascinating about these things (pardon me as I natter) is that its behavior dependent mutations that drive them. Like the main lactose persistence gene (which gives older children and adults the ability to digest lactose) is about 7,500 years old and occurred during the shift towards agriculture and likely early cheese making (and in Africa the use of fermented milk in ceremonies). The gluten sensitivity issue will likely improve with increased exposure and mutations that gradually allow more people to digest it. That these things are all driven by early farming-type folks, people experimenting with growing things to feed themselves and their families and observing the effects to improve strategies…well, they remind me of all of us!

Ok, natter over. :wink:

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I picked my borealis ones today. (June 22nd, zone 4a) This bush is about 6 years old, but small. I keep it encased in chicken wire. There were about a half cup of berries on it. If you dip them in sugar, they taste much like red raspberries. The older varieties of honeyberries (Berry Blue, Blue Belle) are more like grapefruit and have much smaller berries. Without chicken wire, I would have to give up gardening! I have several other borealises and a tundra, but they have only produced few, if any, berries so far. Also planted an Indigo Gem this spring. If you are looking to feed a family, these are probably not the best use of space, as they don’t seem to produce heavily, although they do grow in shade. But if you have the space, they don’t require pest control, except for birds, rabbits, and deer, so are easy to care for.

Persian cukes, tomatoes, kale, purslane, onions, peaches, blueberries, lemons, sweet peppers and hot peppers.

Wow! Those look really good!! Do you have a few favorites?

Ginny

My Flavor Kings are coloring up nicely. I can’t wait to eat them!

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On the late maturing pluots coloring occurs months before ripeness. I’d say Flavor King is about two months from being ripe. My Flavor treat looks darker than your FK and is at least three months from picking.

Good to know FN. But with all varieties ripening early this year, dates don’t seem reliable. Do I just wait till the fruit softens a bit?

Yes that’s what I do for pluot, peach, apricot, and nectarine.

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Bob-

I don’t spray anything…although what i did do was cover a branch full of cherries that were just turning with a long strip of clear plastic…i then tied it loosely… While the other fruit unprotected rotted like crazy those cherries under the plastic did just fine (may have been a few that were rotted some, but nothing like the unprotected fruit)…there was some rain during this time. I ended up picking the tree clean about a week ago. I think a spray, protection of some sort or pray for no rain is the only way i’m getting clean fruit.

I ate my first Northland blueberries that were turned…still not super sweet but getting there.

Cherry Of The Rio Grande (Eugenia involucrata). This one picked today is about 1" x 3/4". It’s the first of the summer crop – there was also a spring crop.

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That’s really cool. What is the flavor like?

That is one gorgeous piece of fruit. The coloring is beautiful. Now I have Pluot envy.

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Somewhat berry-cherry, but no tartness or sub acid overtones. Like many other south American natives this plant is in the Myrtle family.

Thx! The color keeps getting darker by the day!

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I’d picked my first Spice Zee Nectaplum a week ago, almost one month too early by the official dates. A bird had pecked it and the fruit started softening up around it. I ate it yesterday and it tasted very good. Super sweet like a nectarine yet had an acid profile in the skin. True freestone too!

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