What are you harvesting today? 2009 & 2010

[Gwen in L.A.]

make that earlier post 'umeboshi plum" type pickles.

[Applenut]

Blueberries! I had "blueberry envy" watching Ed Laivo's video of his backyard and bags and bags of blueberries sitting on the patio table, but I opened the freezer today to see bags and bags of blueberries sitting in there. Top producers are Misty and Sharpblue, but we have a half-dozen other assorted varieties (that the tags faded on) mixed in.

As with most home-grown fruit, they blow away the ones we get from the store, and amaze my co-workers from back east who had no idea we can grow them out here in California.

[sautesmom]

I just joined today, August 2, and today I have been munching on my Morus Nigra Noir de Spain mulberries (have been for two months, and continuing, yum!), a supposed-to-be-Babcock-but-I-don't-think-it-is peach, a Ya Li asian pear, a Sugar prune (not quite ripe) and, oddly enough, a Queen Cox apple that decided to jump from the tree, even though the rest of them are still green, and this one was clearly ripe. Oh, and a Nagami kumquat.

[Applenut]

Gala Apples. Wonderful sweet, juicy, crisp, flavorful early apple. I still don't thin enough and so they were on the small side, and the color isn't anything you'd see in the supermarket. But oh, the taste!

Gala is one of those varieties that does well no matter where its grown, but is a fireblight magnet. You'll have an easier time in areas that gets some early heat over 100 degrees, say by April or so (fireblight cannot live in temps over 94 degrees, and so this helps knock it out for the rest of the season).

[Home_Grower]

My four year old Anna did really well this year. I did some thinning but that poor little tree kept blooming until I gave in. I have about 50 apples from medium to full size with most of them off the tree now. I noticed yesterday it has a few new blooms.

I prefer the Granny Smith apple and I had one follow me home a couple weeks ago. I planted 8 fruit trees in my yard this year (3 cherry, 1 apple, 1 apricot, 1 lemon, 1 orange and a banana). I also started a garden with a little bit of everything. The largest is the tomatoes and peppers. I have had so many romas and cherry tomatoes we couldn't eat them all. we gave away bags to family, friends and co-workers. They are both still ripening daily.

Yea, I got the bug.

[grapenut]

Well, before the heat wave hit, my Blueberries were just starting to go into high gear, most of the new growth burnt in the prolonged heat and fruit quality went into the toilet, it didn't help that my back went out on me so I couldn't salvage anything I also lost most of my black currant fruit and blackberries, I am getting some plums starting now, a few Peaches , Arona, Goji and Raspberries.

[aceofspades]

I am pickin Korean Giant pears for the last two weeks and as they are browning up they taste even better.

[telos]

It's too early for my trees, but my poor little raspberry canes are trying hard. One or two fruit surprise me as I go out to take care of the rest of the yard. It's like a bit of sweet-tart encouragement to keep at it to find those. Something keeps getting to the canes to turn them brown instead of a nice green, but it is still nice that they do produce despite everything.

[fruitnut]

Apricots are ripening in my greenhouse. Harvested Tasty Rich, Honey Rich, and Tomcot today. All three have been 16 to 21 brix and very good flavor. Probably the best by a small margin are the Tomcot but Honey Rich has been much better than in past years. It is firm and flavorful.

With apricots I find that sunlight exposure is as important as variety in determining fruit quality. The fruits receiving direct sun exposure are more tasty than shaded fruit. This isn't the case nearly as much with nectarines and pluot. They can be very good even hanging under the canopy.

Tasty Rich is my earliest apricot/aprium. It has very good size, no blush, a pronounced suture, and full apricot flavor. It's lower in acid than some but still tastes good.

Honey Rich is a big blocky fruit with a pretty blush in the sun. It has very good flavor, especially when sun exposed.

Tomcot is medium size and a good dependable fruit.

I have fruit on Robada, Cot-N-Candy, Moorpark, Canadian White Blenhiem, Earli Autumn, Autumn Glo, and Hunza.

Last year Cot-N-Candy may have been my favorite. It sets very heavy crops. The fruit is kinda small but so very sweet and a flavor unlike the yellow fruit, truly outstanding. I think Cot-N-Candy was great even from shaded portions of the canopy last year.

My best ever apricot is Robada but only if grown just right. That means lots of sun exposure on the fruit. It is large and has a very pretty blush if grown in the sun.

Also have several blueberries getting ripe. They are good but wish they'd ripen before the apricots start. At 11 to 14 brix they aren't quite up to the cots.

[rasputinj]

I have O'Neal Blueberries right now, and a few Prime Jim Blackberries. I will not have peaches Desert Gold or nectarines Desert Delight for a few weeks. Lapins are next even thought I only have a handful of cherries.