New paintings and regular art updates.
My brain is numb
I want to do things
Stuck inside
Tied down by boredom
And an injured leg
The world turns
And changes
First leaves
Yellow on the Cherry tree
They will wilt and fall.
Bored at home
Will I be out
Before the leaves are all gone?
Swallows will fly
Night returns as days shorten.
Looking out of a window
Limited views
Meanwhile
Keep my legs raised
To reduce the swelling.
Bored
What foods would you like to make?
The answer would be cherry pie!
I’m a reasonable cook and food is fun to make. I can make a good trifle, roast chicken dinner, pizza, curry, paella, and many other things including cakes and bread. But I’ve never made a homemade cherry pie.
I could probably make the pastry, I’ve made apple pies and tarts before. But I don’t know what to do with the cherries? Do you de-stone them then put them in raw? Or do you cook them first with sweetner and a dash of alcohol like cherry brandy?
We only got a few cherries this year as the majority blew off our tree in a gale. They were pecked by the birds so I left them on the ground for our hedgehogs too.
So does anyone have a recipe they can share please? I will have to get fresh cherries from the shop. I don’t want to use a tin of pie filling which would be full of sugar. So if you can help I would appreciate it. Thanks x
Three years ago our cherry crop was already picked. The tree came from the old Woolworths shop in Stoke about twenty five years ago. It must have been happy because now it’s about thirty feet high.
The cherries are starting to ripen, but they are not ready yet. Maybe next week we can reach the lower ones. The rest we donate to the birds. One thing I need to do is buy a big umbrella, it really helps to stop the cherries we pick from rolling off into the undergrowth!
It’s been a while since I painted this. It’s a cherry tree in blossom in the snow. I like turning trees into faces. When it happens that you can see faces in objects or photos it’s called Pareidolia. But if I create the pattern myself is it something else?
I may do some similar art soon. I will see if the idea appeals to me.
Hubby went up the step ladder this afternoon and got some more delicious ripe cherries off the lower branches of the tree. The really bright red and dark red ones are too high up. A lot of the ones he got had peck marks in them and splits where they had started to burst their skins. I put about twenty or so on the bird table and then more bad ones in the bin when we came in. But it’s still a good haul. I’m thinking of doing another trifle…. Yum.
Now they are safe and washed and in the fridge, but they won’t last long…
With such a large crop,
bowls full to the top,
I tried-
To decide-
what to do with them?
Each cherry on a stem!
Salad with cherries
fills my belly.
Coleslaw with cabbage
with cherries added.
Now I’ll make jelly
with added cherry,
summer fruit,
so much loot.
Birds are merry
They have cheery
Cherries too!
🍒
Used a hoe to pull the branches down and caught all these cherries in a brolly today. It was sunny for a couple of hours and the wind had dropped so we took the chance and dodged the rain showers. Picked loads, but there are loads left on the tree.
Now I’ve got to decide what to do with them. I might add them to some gin. Or I could make cherry pancakes.
This is a glut of cherries. If we were not in lockdown I would be sharing them with friends. It’s the biggest crop we have ever had from the cherry tree. If I could freeze them I would but I think they would spoil.
X
Got to try and harvest some more cherries between the thunderstorms.
We got a lot off the lower branches. We need a rake or something to grab some of the other branches. We have almost eaten the other ones we picked. I’m jealous of the birds that can get at the ones on the top branches. It’s great to have fresh fruit grown in your own garden. My friend bought a cherry tree but hers was a sour type. Ours is sweet. It’s worth checking and this tree is self fertile which means it sets fruit without the need of a companion tree.
Happy gardening.
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Six months after this image was taken, and the garden is in full growth. The cherries on the tree are swelling and lichen is growing on the tree.
Life runs in cycles. Soon the height of summer will be with with us. I hope it isn’t too hot. I don’t do heat. Maybe lockdown will end. Hopefully the virus will be bought under control. Only a small percentage of people have died out of earth’s massive population, but that doesn’t make the pandemic any less devastating. Maybe it’s time to think back and remember all those people who have died. Stay safe.
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Black and white and then coloured in sketch. View from my kitchen window out over the cherry tree in the garden. A few cherries are starting to ripen, but most are still green. The plants on the windowsill have grown up so they seem to merge into the garden. I’ve limited the palette of the pots and ornaments so that it is not overpowering the bottom of the drawing. My sanctuary away from the rain…
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Mallaband-Brown