Fruit trees

~ MaryG

We hired the young man who plowed our driveway last winter to help install my husband’s new vegetable garden (aka The Retirement Garden), which will have four large raised beds, irrigation, and a deer fence. (Fingers crossed the kid is up to the job. The soil where the fence posts need to get sunk in is very hard.)

In the meantime, a few of the many fruit trees my husband planted about twenty years ago have survived deer and other blights and are producing fruit. And for some reason, this year, the squirrels are missing in action. Typically, they would’ve had these trees stripped by now.

I made my first ever pie from the apples in our yard yesterday.

According to Google,
“Winesap apples are a classic American heirloom variety prized for their deep, cherry-red skin, exceptionally crisp texture, and unique, tangy, wine-like flavor. Dating back to the colonial era, they are famous for an intense sweet-tart profile with spicy undertones, making them a premier choice for fresh eating, cider brewing, and baking.”
My Winesap apple pie was really good. I used the basic recipe that’s printed in the bottom of my pie plate, but these apples definitely have a complex, spicier taste than the usual store-bought varieties.
Thank you squirrels for taking a vacation this year.
Bosc pear tree
Asian pear tree
I have done some baking with our Asian pears in the past, but they’re very sweet. They’re best eaten fresh off the tree.
These beautiful pears are hanging just out of my reach, untouched by squirrels. We finally broke down and ordered a fruit picking tool so we can get these down, but it’s not being delivered until Tuesday. 😕 I really I hope we beat the squirrels to these.
And here’s a throwback photo (August 2002). Check out that harvest. My husband grew all that food! He actually remembers the exact moment he went Organic after reading the ingredients on a bag of grub killer at our first house in Canton, MA in 1995.

Growing some of our own food again has becoming increasingly appealing in Trump’s America. Between skyrocketing food prices, never ending news of American food supply contaminations, and now an absolutely ridiculous trade war with Canada, we want to put our sunny yard back to doing something useful.

4 thoughts on “Fruit trees”

  1. Wow that’s so awesome Mary! I’m always amazed when I see fruit actually hanging from a tree because it doesn’t exist up here (well except crab apples I think).

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  2. That’s all insanely beautiful to me! Our backyard is way too small for much, but we’re putting in four raised beds as well, and maybe we’ll get a smidgeon of this next year. Your trees though – gah! That’s a gorgeous bounty!! I adore fruit pies, too.

    I’ve a chef friend who lives in France now, and she said the only condition under which she’d move back to the US is if she could grow all her own produce, that what she can buy in the grocery store here is too pitiful: too expensive, too bland. I’m kind of glad my ignorance is bliss in this situation.

    But, that throwback pic has made me envious! I’m looking forward to seeing your pictures next year.

    (My husband rented an auger to dig the post holes for a fence in our back yard, and the ground was so hard it threw him on his back. I’m sending all best wishes to your hired help!)

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    1. Thanks for your good wishes on the fence installation Shelly! The kid has an auger—hopefully it’s good enough 🤞 I hope we at least get some good tomatoes next year – like yours!

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