Seasons Fruit.

[Eugene]

Blackberries. Finished seasons harvest today, then sprayed for insects. Was getting as many insects as berries last couple of pickings. Not sure, perhaps 3 to 5 gallons of berries in the freezer.

Wild plums. So far picked 2 gallons of fruit from neighbor across the street's tree. Will continue picking for perhaps another week or two.

Apples. Apples on neighbor's tree is almost fully ripe and sweet. Problem is that it's an old tree and most of the fruit is well above the reach of my pole and picking basket. It will be another month or so before the apples on my trees are ripe.

Another topic. When I purchased my apple trees they were tagged as dwarf red delicious. They are not. They are apple trees, type unknown. Hard telling.

I have purchased quite a number of fruit and nut trees from seed catalogs - only to be disappointed. Takes several years to find out that the trees were not as advertised.

[Stanton]

We only have one row of blackberries, approximately 25' long. Think we picked close to 2 gallons off of it before the Wood Thrush and Mockingbirds moved in. I normally thin the herd on M'birds earlier in the Spring, just to establish a void in the their territory around my blackberries. Robyn made a dozen pints of blackberry jelly--it's the best! Will need to cut away the 2-year-old canes soon, but will wait 'til the weather's not so hot. Am thinking of starting another row.

Garden wasn't too bad this year. Red potatoes, white onions, green beans and sweet corn.

Have peaches that won't be ready 'til mid-September. Like you, Eugene, we didn't know what variety of peach tree we had until years later. I'd prefer the mid-summer peach variety.

[ScottyD'sdad]

Strawberries, did amazing. well over 100 quarts! raspberries produced well, blackberries are just starting. Veggies coming in. I don't do apples. One peach tree, but the late cold snap, wiped out the blooms, before they opened.
ED

[Eugene]

Finally finished apple picking. Guessing 40 to 50 gallons of apples harvested, most given away. Had to beg neighbors to come and take them. Finally packaged a gallon or two of apples in plastic bags and went around business locations giving them away.

Muskmelon season is over. Gave most of the melons away.

Watermelon, refrigerator size are about ready for harvest.

Volunteer acorn squash doing extremely well. Wife loves acorn squash. Can start harvesting any time wife wants a squash.

Black walnut hulling season begins 1 Oct.. Record price, 15 cents per hulled pound. Have one tree with some walnuts. Rest of the trees, including the pecans, are barren or have only one or two nuts. Won't have enough nuts to crack out meats for personal use.

[Stanton]

Sorry to hear about your nut harvest. I know those trees can/do cycle through productivity.

Neighbors down the road invited us to pick apples. Robyn made 3 batches of apple butter, a pie, a tart, apple cookies and still had a dozen apples left over. Last Sunday, some a friend at church leaned over and asked Robyn, "Could you all use some apples? Our trees are loaded." We just laughed (then explained our apple situation. Looks like everyone around our part of Missouri is having a good apple harvest.

Mother-in-law's visiting in Texas; we're taking care of their place. Their acorn and butternut squash production is also above and beyond.

[Eugene]

Must be a pretty good apple production year in Missouri.

Was asking folks if they wanted apples. One couple declined stating that they had spent the previous day picking apples. Those that accepted the apples later commented on their quality and related the dishes cooked up.

Farmers market seller said that he would have apples for sale in a week or so. His trees are loaded.

Black walnuts. Last year was a low production year. Expected this year to be much better. While black walnuts are cyclical in nut production, yearly some trees produce nuts and some don't. Not sure what happened, weather, couple of off years, unknown.

[ctltmp]

You guys are lucky! I have hardly any apples at all this year. No idea why. Oh well, I won't have to worry about the deer so much. Last year the trees were loaded and the deer would just come in and feed in the evening, bed down right there and much on apple all night. I have 2 apple trees right outside the bedroom windows. Darn deer would keep me up at night they made such a clatter.

[daddydip]

hey Eugene how are ya, peach trees are bent over to the ground, mom sis and the wife cooked me peach cobbler yesterday and I was the judge, everyone won, my pears are looking good except the sickle pears are ringed with a crack and all of the leaves are gone, the other two pears are so so sweet, i think that it's time I start treating them a bit better so this fall i will be spraying with dormant oil and i will do again in the spring, then follow with the bacterium spray for the tent catapillar's as i won't use any of the chemicals, threw away the imodan and the rest of the chemicals, I just don't trust all that anymore, my early yellow apples were delicious and the Granny Smiths look good for not have been sprayed, next plan to build for my berries, nice reading your post

[Eugene]

Doing well.

Blackberries and strawberries did well this year. Apple tree, only harvested about 3 gallons of apples.

Daughter called and asked if I would get her more wild plums. She made up 50 each 1/2 pints of mixed fruit jelly and really liked the plums. No wild plums this year.

Coming up season is black walnuts. Gonna be a bumper crop. Need to start getting things lined up. Hopefully I can hull, season, crack, and wind up with a couple gallon of black walnut meat.

Game plan. Son has a nice area for a garden, north slope, but shaded most of the day by a huge oak tree. Plan is to cut down the tree this fall and unshade the garden area.

Also going to reduce the blackberries brambles by about 50 percent. Use some for cobbler, give daughter gallons of blackberries, then go around the neighborhood giving the away. I dislike having fruits and vegetables got to waste/rot, so I give it away. Going to try and eliminate the excess that I have to give away.

I planted wild plum and hazel nut seedlings this spring on the acreage. Don't think any survived, will try again next spring. Also planted elderberry, some may have survived.

Elderberries. Every fall mom would load up us kid and go elderberry picking. Mom would make elderberry syrup and jelly. Got to the point that I don't like elderberry. Son is the one who wanted elderberry, tried to talk him out of it.

[pickerandsinger]

Had a bumper crop of blackberries ( got the 40 plants from (ED ScottyD'sdad ) two years ago in the mail....Strawberries did really well ( have about 300 plants) ...Peach trees were loaded but we only harvested a few...I think the coons wiped them out within (2 days three trees), some were drug all over the back field, I don't think squirrels were the culprit as they were broken branches and the corn got knocked down also, but it could have been both...The pears are nearly ripe, I may pick them before long as the deer like them as much as I....Apples were OK for not being sprayed...Neighbor has 600 acres of them so we have plenty should we desire (barter system)...Cherries split due to rain....Just put in 2 60 foot rows of raspberries so no raspberries this year...Vegetables were more than we could handle...Excellent year here in Western NY. freezer full..... Dave

[Don McCombs]

Peach trees were loaded but we only harvested a few...I think the coons wiped them out within (2 days three trees), some were drug all over the back field, I don't think squirrels were the culprit as they were broken branches and the corn got knocked down also, but it could have been both...

Sounds like a bear, to me.

[pickerandsinger]

Peach trees were loaded but we only harvested a few...I think the coons wiped them out within (2 days three trees), some were drug all over the back field, I don't think squirrels were the culprit as they were broken branches and the corn got knocked down also, but it could have been both...

Sounds like a bear, to me.

....Not many bears out here Don...Maybe a handful spread over several counties..I need an excuse to get a couple of game cameras...I could try them out in the woods by my tree stand... I once got a 436 pound bear up in the Adirondacks with one shot....( A 1973 Cadillac actually but I only hit her once..) ....Point of fact , it was 4AM, and I was coming from " The Black Bear " bar and restaurant in Pottersville where I had been playing with the band.... ...Sorry for the babble..

[Stanton]

Had another good year with the blackberries. Putting in another 30' row. I'm the recipient of a volunteer blackberry bed growing up outside my dining room window. When they get to the point I can't get to the hose bibb w/o getting barbed, then it's time to transplant. Have cut them back to 12"-18" in height and waiting for cooler temps. Will transplant about 2 dozen canes and have 2 rows about 30' long when done.

Eugene--glad to hear of your success in the walnut department.

[ScottyD'sdad]

Had another good year with the blackberries. Putting in another 30' row. I'm the recipient of a volunteer blackberry bed growing up outside my dining room window. When they get to the point I can't get to the hose bibb w/o getting barbed, then it's time to transplant. Have cut them back to 12"-18" in height and waiting for cooler temps. Will transplant about 2 dozen canes and have 2 rows about 30' long when done.

Eugene--glad to hear of your success in the walnut department.

I grow thornless blackberries. Too many years of giving a pint of blood, for a pint of berries!
Ed

[Eugene]

Hazelnuts. My daughter, west central Iowa, sent me about 4 or 5 lbs of native hazelnuts, still in husks.

Going to spread the hazelnuts out on the ground in several locations on the acreage. Let the squirrels plant them.

I was going to plant them by hand, then had the squirrel thought when I saw the quantity.

The native hazelnuts are small compared to the commercial nuts in the grocery store. Taste good but not worth the effort to crack. The hazelnuts are for wildlife.