Looked out the window, saw that the White Gold cherry tree was suddenly red. Fruits pinked up very suddenly and the birds already into them - but so small! I suppose it must be the drought, although I watered the trees over a week ago. They may never be worth picking, tho I suppose I’ll deploy Indar and nets in case they size up.
Oh no. I feel your pain Kevin. After I read what happened to your Spring Satin, I went out thin more my unwilling-to-thinoff plums . This time I thinned off a lot more! Hope my branch can sustain the weight as the plums grow heavier.
I would use these unripe Spring Satin plum to make fruit snacks. I don’t know how easy it can be pitted. Either with or without the pit, I would salt them first for a day or two. Drain the water then put them out under the sun to let dry for few days till skin is wrinkled. Then I would put them in a container, covered them with honey or sugar, and pickle them for a month or two. Then season them with your favorite herbs. I like perill ( either red or green) with plums. I think they compliment each other. And dry them again under the sun or in a dehydrator. After it is about 80% dried, they can be stored in a airtight container. When I want eat something but don’t want add carb, I just pop one in the mouth and suck the sweet sour flavor slowly.
If they are still firm, I suppose they can be infused with wine to make plums wine that similar to Japanese mume wine. The tart flavor in unripe plum really add another dimension to the wine.
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Harvested and pickled my garlic scapes today. First canning session of the season. 
Got 5 pints, now off to dice the flowering ends of the scapes into the dehydrator.
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Now help refreshing my memories, why do you dehydrate the flower head? And how are you going to use those dehydrated flower heads?
I figured they would be hard to pack into the jars, being thin and flimsy so I just pickled the thicker round part.
Plan is to dice them up pretty fine, dry them, then store and use them like dried chives.
I use garlic chives’ flower heads for dipping sauce( after grind thm in a blender). The garlic scape heads might make even better tasting dipping sauce. When I get around I might try a batch and see how it turns out
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What exactly are garlic scapes?
Scapes are the curly seedpod / flower that grows out of hardneck garlic plant about a month or so before the garlic is ready to harvest. They are typically removed to get a larger head of garlic. Very tasty, kind of a mild garlic/ onion taste.
What The Heck Are Garlic Scapes? - Farmers' Almanac - Plan Your Day. Grow Your Life.
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Thanks so much!
So, this weekend I had a VIP guest (VIP to me anyway) come tour my orchard and pick some fruit and it was extremely rewarding for me. It was the TN state Representative for our district, who is also a medical surgeon and all around great guy who happens to originally be from India. He really is one of the best Representatives we have ever had, so it was a thrill for me that he came to my humble orchard. Later that night, he posted this article and these photos on Facebook.
Directly quote with minor redactions:
"Way back in the late Fall of 2019, XXXXX City Manager Kevin XXXXX invited Mrs. Linda and me to come out to his place in the Summer for a tour of his fruit orchard! We were excited and put it on the calendar for the Summer of 2020! However, with the arrival of Covid that Spring, there was no tour of the fruit orchard possible so we put it, again, on the Summer 2021 calendar! The day has arrived! Today, was fruit orchard tour day! What a fantastic afternoon we shared with Kevin and his hunting dog Macy in the fruit orchard! Kevin was raised a city boy, now turned country boy, who began his fruit orchard 12 years ago! Today, that little fruit orchard has 150 trees! He has Apples … lots of apples … Ambrosia, Gala, Honey Crisp, Do-nut to mention a few. He even has a grafted apple tree with 3 different apple varieties on a single tree! There are berries galore … varieties of blueberries, blackberries, mulberries, gooseberries and boysenberries. Grapes are abundant. There are varieties of figs, persimmons and nuts. There are hybrid plumcots (plum dominate and apricot) and hybrid apriums (apricot dominate and plum). A unique fruit called pawpaw is a stocky short fruit similar to a banana with a mango-banana flavor. All of these fruits were growing, some beginning to ripen. But, it was the cherries, the sour variety for making pies and jams, that were at their peak of ripeness! They were in abundance! The trees were covered with nets to prevent the birds from eating most of the cherries. The challenge of controlling insects and pests must be balanced with nature and Kevin does it admiringly! The earliest of the peaches, the clingstone varities were abundant, as well. And, the plums were ripening with a few ready for picking. As we all visited and picked fruit we realized how special God’s Creation is and the joys of shared times together! Kevin, who loves his fruit orchard, calls it his passion … his hobby. As the fruit ripens each year, he lets it be known that picking time has arrived. He invites folks to come pick the harvest … at no cost. As we were ready to depart Kevin took what he had picked and added it to our pickings, sharing his labors of love! What a special City Manager the City of XXXX has in Kevin XXXX … what a special friend to us all! We thank you, Kevin and hunting dog Macy, for a most delightful and tasty afternoon! Thanks be to God for His many Blessings!
Here are the photos he took and posted,
For most people it wouldn’t be that big a deal, but for someone in my position in government it was a huge thrill to have a State Representative come to my home, let alone post such a nice article. And he got most of it right, which means he was actually paying attention as I drug them through my orchard and told them way more than any normal person wants to know about fruit growing. ha. This has been one of the highlights of my fruit hobby. Hope you don’t mind me sharing it.
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outstanding Kev.! looks like you folks had a great day!
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Kevin, that is fabulous! What a great day. You have worked so very hard growing your orchard, and what a blessing to share it with others. Your Representative sounds like he is a pretty outstanding individual. It is encouraging to read about folks in prominent government positions being down to earth, humble and praising our Creator. I happy for you that you had such a wonderful day with your VIPs!
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You should be very proud. You work hard and it shows and to get the recognition is fitting and should make you feel good!! Those pictures make my mouth water! 
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Dear Cityman! What a tremendous honor and your fruit performed right on time and looks perfect! Of course, he listened. He is a doctor. They make excellent growers and want to know how it all works. Well all of your hard work shows and what a great job you have done! Thanks for sharing it all! Hotdog!
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Kevin,
So happy for you. You should be very proud. What a generous gardener you are. We are planning a trip to your orchard!
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WHAT KSPRAIRIE said, plus ‘congratulations’!
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Just wanted to offer a very, very sincere thanks for all the wonderful comments and the likes on my post about our State Representative coming to my orchard and the things he posted about it. Honestly, I was very worried it would come over as me being boastful- and honestly I was a little prideful about it all- but it was a big deal for me and I wanted to share it with my friends here on Growing Fruit dot org as I do most things orchard related. SO thanks for letting me do that and for showing an interest and for forgiving me for being a little prideful.
BTW…if any of you who live within an hour or two want to come over for a tour, I have more ripe cherries and peaches than I can possibly use and I’d sure love to share some. I’m free every evening this week!
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