Monday Garden Update

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Earlier this spring, I bought a baby English Morello cherry tree.  Robb and I have been working around it, trying not to damage it, as we cut down the pitosporum tree and worked on repainting the neighbor's garage.  The tree produced two small cherries this year.  I suspect our fruit-crazed hen Isabella ate the one that was closer to the ground.  To save the remaining cherry, Robb built a little protective cage.  Yesterday, he and I sampled this one special fruit.  It was delicious, and we have great hopes for this tree in the future.

California is in the midst of a serious drought, and Robb and I are making an effort to conserve water.  Our clothes washer is hooked up to a grey-water sistern, which we use to water the lawn.  All dishwater gets tossed out the window onto the fig trees.  Our neighbors must think we're completely insane. 

Our plum tree hardly flowered at all this spring.  It was strange to have virtually no blossoms on tree.  As a result, we've had a very meager plum harvest. For a while a Western Scrub Jay family was sitting on a nest in the plum tree, but they seem to have decamped.  The jays had been defending the yard against interlopers, but since they've moved on we've been seeing a lot of finches (grabbing strings for their own nests), bushtits, wrens and woodpeckers.

The pluot tree is full of fruit, as is the persimmon.  The figs are growing a few fruits, which is exciting, considering what young plants they are.  I'm looking forward to getting the pomegranates moved to in front of the garage when the fall rains return.

We've been harvesting loads of beans and greens.  We planted scarlet runner beans to hide the Word's Ugliest Fence, and have been getting a nice crop.  We also have been enjoying the yellow "green" beans.  The purple ones seem to be falling victim to the slugs and snails.  (And the damn hens insist on eating all the snail pellets.)

Otherwise, we're enjoying strawberries from the garden, but we never get any photos before we eat them.  These are getting attacked my snails and slugs as well, and we're forced to cut around the damage.  Sad.

If you're interested in seeing what other gardeners are up to, be sure to check out Daphne's garden round-up.  And please leave a message to tell me what you're growing these days.