Wednesday, May 25, 2022
May Garden Update -- Nectarines Are Ready
This morning's picture shows nectarines that are just about ready. This really is a beautiful tree, from the flowers earlier in the year to the bright red fruit. And the fruit is, of course, great to eat -- on par with our peaches, but I think even better. We will have nectarines in abundance for a week or more, depending on how hot the weather gets. I was surprised to learn that nectarine trees have been around a long time, dating back thousands of years to east Asia.
Monday, June 28, 2021
Juliet Tomatoes and Garden Update
Juliet tomatoes, thyme and garlic ready to be roasted with a little olive oil and blended with a basil for a wonderful tomato paste. All fresh. All from our garden. The only exception is the garlic, which we are growing but is not quit ready for prime time.
We are on our third straight season with this same juliet tomato plant. It just keeps going. The fruit is a little bigger than a normal cherry tomato. But the plant is just as prolific as a cherry tomato.
There is just nothing like the taste of fresh fruits and vegetables and it is fun to mark the seasons with what we get to grow, harvest and eat around here.
As I posted earlier, the citrus lasted well into the new year. Now, the lemon, grapefruit and orange trees are though with flowering and have little green fruits. The Fuerte avocado had a good year, but was done about a month ago. Our stone fruit produced like crazy last year, but is less this year. The nectarine is done as is the early Eva's Pride peach -- we savored the last with dinner last and I saved a perfectly ripe one for this morning. We have a later bearing peach (Brittain's Peach) that is loaded and a few weeks away from picking as are the figs. I am starting to pick the Reed avocado, which produces large night softball size fruit and everyone seems to enjoy. But, they are so big, we have to space out picking them. We have some summer vegetables coming, but are having to fight the deer which, for some reason, have decided to frequent our neighborhood this year.
Wednesday, April 28, 2021
Grapefruit
Last weekend we picked a lot of grapefruit. I will leave it to you to figure out which of the grapefruit in the picture is Ruby Red and which is Oroblanco. Both are a great mix of sweet and a bit tart. Grapefruits are said to have originated in Jamaica around the 1700's as a natural hybrid of orange and pomelo trees that had been brought to the island. Fresh grapefruit juice is a joy to have.
But, why do they call it grapefruit? It doesn't taste anything like a grape and is ten times bigger. The name "grapefruit" refers to the clusters of fruit on the tree that are said to resemble a cluster of green grapes. That is a cluster of young ruby red on our tree right now. An early name for the fruit was "forbidden fruit." I wouldn't say either name makes a lot of sense or helps in the marketing.
Monday, April 26, 2021
Rain? No. Weeds? Yes. --- Stinging Nettle in the Yard and on the Table.
The fun thing about stinging nettle is that it automatically arrives in our yard every year and is a legitimate food source. With a little seasoning, nettle tastes good and it is also good for you. Think of nettle leaves as kind of like spinach in that it is a dark leafy green packed with nutrients. When cooked, the nettle sting goes away and you can handle the plant without fear of stingers. There are lots of nettle recipes but we generally just pick off the leaves and use the fresh nettle leaf like we would spinach.
Sunday, February 14, 2021
The Last Mandarin Orange
Today I picked the season's last piece of fruit from our Satsuma Mandarin Orange tree. The tree starts bearing in late November and has given us a steady supply of sweet and juicy mandarins all the way through to today. The great thing about these is that they are easy to peel. The even greater thing is that they are home grown, we can walk out and pick one anytime from about November - February and they taste far better than anything you can buy at the store.
The Satsuma Mandarin has been called the "perfect" fruit tree. For citrus, the trees are hearty and are said to tolerate below freezing temperatures. They are self pollinating. And, best of all, the fruit is delicious, super easy to peel and has no seeds. In our garden, they are also the first of the citrus to bear, which means come Fall the Satsuma Mandarin gives us the welcome first taste of sweet and juicy citrus for the season. The only downside is that the tree tends to be alternate bearing with a heavy crop one year and light one the next. We had a heavy crop this year, so I'm thinking next year is going to be light.
Below you can see the loose orange peel that just breaks away clean from the fruit.
Saturday, February 13, 2021
Garden Update
The cara cara has an interesting history. They are thought to be a cross between a Washington navel and a Bahia navel orange that grows in Brazil. The orange was discovered in 1976 naturally growing at Hacienda Cara Cara in Venezuela. So, the cara cara was an unplanned naturally growing hybrid. It has been grown in the US since the 1980's but is still a speciality item in stores and restaurants.
I am watching the stone fruit trees for flowers and our Eva's Pride Peach is first up. This tree really produced last year and we had jam, ice cream and froze some peaches. Hopefully around late June we will have some peaches off this tree.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Encounter with a Legend
I had ventured over the edge. The northern edge that is. I was in Altadena.
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"Dad, is that where we're going?" Thinking there would be some educational or historical value to our visit, I had brought my teenage son along to share the experience. He pointed across the street to the house with big red out in front. The rooster crowed some more.
"No," I said. "He lives somewhere back here." Both of us were relieved.
We walked down the street toward a jungle of trees and shrubs. The sound of birds grew louder as we approached the mass of green. I saw a gray haired man on the sidewalk and called out, "Hi, are you Tim?" The man shook his head and said, "No, but I can take you to him."
The man led us down the sidewalk to the front of the jungle. "He lives in here" the man said pointing toward the wall of green. I looked to where the man pointed, but saw no house; only plants and birds. Then, with his hands, the man parted two low lying branches and stepped over a short wall into the jungle.
We followed. Once in the jungle the light dimmed as we walked over a narrow spongy path. Plants brushed our shoulders and trees angled overhead. There were more chickens and more ducks and more noise. Then geese and turkeys ran to join us, honking and gobbling. Suddenly our narrow path became uncomfortably crowded. We pushed forward.
At last we turned a corner into a small clearing. A patch of sun broke through the jungle. We had reached the house. But, we were now closed in. The porch was in front of us and the jungle to the back and sides. The geese and turkeys had followed and were a in a phalanx behind us, honking and gobbling in indignant tones and blocking our exit.
"Not many people make it this far," said the man matter-of-factly. And I do believe he was telling the truth.
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You have to be extra ordinary, highly unusual, to become famous. I think that goes double when you're talking about Los Angeles and especially Atladena. The extraordinary seem drawn to these places -- like flies to light. It takes a lot to stand out here.
But, Tim Dundon does stand out and has for a long time. His list of monikers tell you he's no ordinary guy. He's the Sodfather, the Guru of Doodoo, the Compost Crusader, Zeke the Sheik the Compost Freak. Tim's got a message and he's made his point.
Tim spreads the Gospel of Compost. He'll wax eloquently and even poetically about the wonders of compost -- how decaying foliage can be used to give life. And he walks his talk. His own jungle is a testament to the growing prowess of his methods. So is the compost pile he keeps at his home. Known as Zeke's Heap, the pile at one point reached 40 feet high and 200 feet wide.
An Altadena flag was designed bearing Tim's likeness and that of his pile.
Many stories have been written about Tim and his work. Daniel Chamberlain has a good one here and LA Weekly did a good piece back in 2004. Video of Tim is plentiful too, with good stuff on YouTube here and here. .
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So, there we were, our guide, my son, me and seemingly dozens of birds, all standing at Tim's door. After some wait, we finally met Tim. A big guy, he appeared a bit stooped over with age. Tim's gray beard flowed down past his chest and his long gray hair was gathered behind him in a pony tail.
Considering we had arrived unannounced, Tim was as gentlemanly as could be. He spontaneously talked about the wonder of compost. I told him we were getting our vegetable garden ready. Tim said his magic mulch would work miracles in the garden and talked about the importance of mulching to protect the soil.
I asked if he had compost available and he readily obliged. He pulled an old business card and a pen out of his pocket. On the corner of the card, he wrote my address and phone number. He said there were others ahead of me, but that he would he would call when he was ready. I thanked him for the visit and for the compost to come.
Tim said that he would deliver a load of "craptonite" to our house in about three weeks.
And, he did.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Blood Orange
There is an East Pasadena connection to the blood orange. Abbot Kinney, who spent his first night here sleeping on the pool table of the Sierra Madre Villa Hotel, was known throughout the state for the blood oranges grown at his Kinneloa Ranch.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Berry Good, But Berry Brief
Berries. Berry season is short, but great. Two years ago we planted blackberries. For some reason I didn't think we could grow them, but they've done just fine. Had dozens and dozens of berries this year, none of which made it into the house. Something irresistible about berries off the vine -- you just got to eat them when they're picked. I'm told it takes about 4 years before the vines will supply enough berries to actually pick for preserves or pies.
Apricot. This is our first tree to fruit each year. Seems every year I forget just how good homegrown fruit is. And then I pick my first ripe apricot of the season and it all comes back. Wow. Sweet as honey. We did a good job of getting the apricots off the tree before they rotted or birds got them. Got some fruit leather out of it.
Avocado. Lots of young fruit on the tree. Will keep deep watering every other week. We have to wait a long time for the fruit to mature, but it will be well worth it.
Plum and peach. These are young trees with a whole lot of fruit. The plums are small but really sweet and about gone. I'm disappointed in the flavor of the peach, but we will likely have enough for a run at ice cream this weekend.
Citrus. Citrus around here is a mixed bag. Our established lemon has not produced for a couple of years, but is loaded this year. We have several mature trees that were "rescues" from folks who didn't want them and transplanted in our yard. They are in various states of recovery. A few younger citrus is kind of poking along. This is all kind of wait and see. Ironic because, like much of this area, our house was once part of a citrus grove.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Anticipation-- May Garden News
Either raspberries or blackberries. Second season.
Peaches. Second season.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Man vs. Oleander
We've done it going on seven years. I snip, saw, stomp and kick. The Oleanders twist and tangle, poke and cut. Every year, I knock 'em down. Every year they come back, bigger and stronger than ever. They're relentless.
I've learned a few things over the years. Early on all I had were a pair of just snips and a small tree saw. Now I bring loppers and a chainsaw. Still it is a battle.
But, this year was different. I came with a shovel and ax. This year I came to take the Oleanders out -- all the way out.
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There are a lot of Oleanders around. Though not native to southern California, Oleanders have been described as iconic to southern California landscape. They grow quite dense and make great screens. In California, Oleanders grow in an estimated 20% of home gardens. And the folks at Caltrans love 'em. They maintain Oleanders in more than 2,100 miles of freeway medians.
So, with such great references, what's not to like?
For openers, the entire Oleander plant is poisonous, from the sap, to the bark, right down to the leaves. The Wikipedia entry says, "Oleander is one of the most poisonous plants in the world and contains numerous toxic compounds, many of which can be deadly to people, especially young children."
Then there is Oleander leaf scorch, an incurable disease that has been claiming Oleanders for years. The disease is so widespread and unstoppable that some estimate it will kill 90% of Oleanders in the next few years.
Yellow and brown edges on Oleander leaves are a sign of leaf scorch. Oleanders with leaf scorch will not improve. They will wither over the next few years then die.
If you've got Oleanders with leaf scorch, the uniform advice is to take them out.
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So, four Saturdays ago, there I was standing in front of the Oleanders. Ax, loppers, chainsaw all ready to go. I really didn't know what it would take to get these things out. But I was ready.
Each Oleander was a fight. After cutting away the branches and doing some digging, I was surprised at how big the stumps were. Then I had to dig around and under each stump to cut out the roots. One a weekend was my limit.
Last Saturday I finished. Four weekends. Four Oleanders gone. Victory.
You know, it's a very satisfying feeling -- to look out and see mounds of dirt and stumps where diseased and poisonous Oleanders used to be.
I won't miss the Oleanders. Not even a little.
Oleander Stumps
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Garden/Wine Making Updates
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Alligator Pears
I've been watching our avocado tree for many many moons. Going on six years to be exact. No production. Not a single avocado. Nada.
So this year we decided to do something dramatically different. We watered the tree. And ta-da. We have avocados! Lots of them.
I'm so excited to have avocados actually growing on our tree that I've gone a little overboard with documenting the tree -- from flowers to little fruit and now larger fruit. The photo above was taken a few months ago when the Jacarandas were in full flower and the moon happened to be out. If you look carefully you'll see baby avocados hanging toward the bottom of the photo.
This picture kind of shows why some call avocados "alligator pears." A nice descriptive name for a fruit I think.
I grew up with avocados. My grandfather grew them (and watered them I bet). He grew both Hass and Fuerte so we had avocados most of the year -- boxes of them.
To help them ripen up, my mom used to stuff avocados in the towel drawers. The towels were soft and warm and protected the fruit while it ripened. It was a common thing in our house to go to the towel drawers and dig around for a ripe avocado.
Then, of course, if you found a ripe avocado, you'd need some fresh lemon to go with it. And some toast. Salt and pepper. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
I'm told we have a couple of months before it is time to pick. I can't wait.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Gophers
I've spent this weekend and last working in the garden. We have big plans this year. I have a couple of beds already weeded, a pile of home-made compost ready to spread around and tomatoes waiting to be planted. Got to get back out and go to work!!
I've been away from the blogs for more than a month. My mom passed away on February 19 and I've not felt much like blogging. But after working in the garden today, I kind of want to get back at it. I may post more on my mom later.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Backyard Buried Treasure
One of the fun things about working on an old house is that you never know what you're going to find. This is some glass and pottery we've found while digging around in the yard. The cut glass and colored glass is really beautiful. And the old transfer ware, like the blue and white piece in the upper right corner, is particularly nice. I don't know why, but there is a lot of this old stuff about a foot or so underground. I keep waiting to find a whole plate or cup, but all we seem to get are pieces.
I've found lots of bones. These bones and teeth are the most interesting and were found lodged together. When I dug these up, there was a small fang that hooked down from the right edge of the top bone. The fang dropped out though and is now lost. I dug around for other bones, but didn't see much. Have no idea what animal this was. Any thoughts?
These are old square cut nails we've found when working on the house. These predate the mass produced wire nails that we use today. Large scale production of today's wire nails started around the turn of the century. These are square cut nails, made by shearing slabs of metal at a bias, and were often used in construction prior to 1900.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Picking and Curing Olives
I don't know how the olives are going to turn out, but they sure look nice. Oh, if you taste a raw and uncured olive be prepared for a shock. They are incredibly bitter.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Garden Update
It sure seems to me like more and more people are growing their own vegetables. Marcia found a group of local gardeners who swap their extra produce and we've been able to trade for grapefruit and other fruits we don't grow. The group was profiled in an LA Times piece last week.