New paintings and regular art updates.
The pears are growing big on the tree and starting to weigh the crown down. Soon they will be ripe. I hope they are ready before their weight snaps the tree! At the moment it’s held up with a block of wood.
Gardening is learning. Finding out how to support plants when they need it. I’ve been told the tree has black spot, but it survives. And is covered in pears.
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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!
🍒
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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We have to put a piece of wood under one bough of the pear tree but in the strong winds last week we had to put step ladders under the other limb. Surprisingly there are lots of pears setting on it. It may be that it’s because it’s more horizontal and fruit does tend to set (develop) on horizontal branches. Thats why some fruit trees are tied onto walls. Is it called espalies?
The cherry tree behind it is also covered in fruit. Looks like it might be a bumper crop! The bush/tree cut in step shapes is an old evergreen we have had for years. It grows slowly and I practice topiary on it. The rest of the garden is very leafy. I’m going to have to get someone in in the autumn or winter, to cut things back slightly and let a bit more light in.
A shout from outside. My hubby had gone outside to feed the stray cat….
There’s a problem, a catastrophe.. The pear tree had blown over in the heavy rain and wind we have been having…
The tree has been gradually leaning more over the last couple of years, and each crop of pears has grown. Till this year we counted over fifty pears. But that of course pulls on the top of the tree.
We had propped it up with some wood, but that had snapped in half. What to do? We tried using an old exercise bike near the roots…
We also tried to pull as many pears off the tree as possible as they were now in reach. My hubby normally shakes the pears down which may be why it’s leaning!
Finally we used the step ladder to prop it up a bit more. I don’t know if it’s salvageable, the trunk is split. It’s a shame if it has to go as the pears are very tasty. They were just starting to ripen, but the weather has been mad. We weighed the good pears (disposed of the split one’s). 11.7 kilos. Not sure what that is in pounds but I think it’s around 24 pounds.
I’m going to share some of the crop with friends….
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I just took this photo, you can photograph anything and get an interesting result. In this case I like the way the cartoon cats surround the block of ice and almost seem to glow.
My tips for photos?
Look first. Even if you are seeing something through a lens look at it to see if you are including things you don’t want.
Don’t be scared to crop your photo. Got a streetlamp sticking up in the sky? Crop it if you don’t want it.
Don’t filter too much if you can help it. Once you start adjusting colours it’s hard to find the right balance. Sometimes you have to, but don’t over do it.
Use your on screen focus if you have it. If you can see something interesting you can us the focus option to just select that area. It also changes the depth of field.
The crop! These are off one scraggy bush in the garden that was surrounded by stinging nettles. There is one red one somewhere in the jug from another bush but that one didn’t fruit well and we only found the one. I’m thinking if making a gooseberry and apple pie or cake. I think I’ve got the ingredients in to make one.
Gooseberries are not that popular and have a distinct taste. I can’t explain it, sour, green and fresh? I don’t know if you can buy them from a shop or supermarket, because they are a bit unusual. If I make something I might post a photo.
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