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Yet More Late Fruit Harvesting.
After planting some of my Chenpodium seedlings a few weeks ago that I had been growing on in individual, small, square pots, I was delighted to find them fruiting. Indeed the fruits do look a bit like Alpine Strawberries and the plants had quite a few on, but the small, red, berries seemed a little bland to my taste. Very interesting though ! I haven’t tried eating the leaves yet that are said to be yet another Spinach alternative. I will also have to wait until the Spring to see if they go through the Winter O.K. and if they then produce their Asparagus like stalks after blanching. I had far too many seedlings come up, so I gave a little batch of spare plants away and that yielded a free fruit bush from one of the other allotment holders. That was a fruiting Myrtle, Murtus Ugni, which is said to be not particularly hardy, so I will have to give it some protection in the form of a wrap, or something. I still have quite a few seedlings of the Chenopodium left that may yet be swapped for something else interesting later on.
Another “fruit” that I have been impressed with is the outdoor, Blight resistant, Tomato, “Ferline.” The Tomatoes are almost like a Beef Steak tomato, but are extremely tasty when really ripe. I have had no trouble with Blight from them, although the potatoes on the site were hammered this year and the plants have produced an abundance of fruits that are still ripening. The plants also seem to stand up the cold very well, even after having had a few near frosts.
My Tomatilloes have produced an abundance of fruit, but their cousins, the Cape Gooseberries don’t seem to have done very well after all. I don’t think it was any benefit in keeping the old plants over Winter last year and I might just as well have grown them fresh from seed in the Spring.
The Goji Berry plant on the allotment seems to be doing better generally and making a healthier bush, than the one at home. The one at home is growing against a garage wall and is hit hard by Mildew every year, whereas the one on the allotment has the air going through it, is out in the open and probably is also in better soil.
Also on the garage wall at home are a couple of Grapes vines that have fruited earlier than the ones on the allotment, but again the bunches of Grapes don’t look as healthy as they seem a bit mildewy, although it may just be their “Bloom,” and they are not as well developed with odd small ones in the bunches. However, they are much sweeter than those on the allotment that are still quite sour at the moment.
I don’t have a Strawberry Tree, or Arbutus Unedo on the allotment, but do have one at home that has produced lots of growth this year and is looking very good with an abundance of fruit on it. Of course the red, Strawberry like berries will not ripen yet as they take nearly twelve months to fully develop, but are worth the wait as they are quite an unusual texture and quite tasty.
Another fruit that I have both at home and on my plot is a Medlar Tree. The one at home is now getting a little too big for our small garden and will have to be hard pruned at some time, but the one on my allotment is still very small, although I am considering moving it. If I do it will be in the dormant Winter months and before it gets too much bigger. The tree was in fact a bargain tree at only £10 as it was a “Clearance,” line and, although it didn’t look much when I bought it with it’s broken branches and lop sided head, it is shaping up nicely now with one, or two small fruits on it. We still can’t really decide on the best way to eat it’s rotting fruit when it is ready after the first frosts. I tend to skin the fruit and mix the pulp into fruit salads, but we have put some in fruit crumbles as a sweetener and tried freezing the pulp in Ramekins for use later on.
We also bought a Red Banana that had been reduced to clear it out, but although it is the hardiest of the Bananas, I shall be keeping that plant at home and putting it in the greenhouse over Winter – unless Global Warming really starts to take off and then it may get planted on my allotment with my other exotics!
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