This is what they look like now and as they appear on my kitchen table; what a bountiful harvest to take off the trees!
Weather reports warning of an impending freeze prompted my Sweetie to gather all the citrus fruit growing in our trees. I rather liked seeing them on the trees. They were always a visual treat for the eyes. He did have to leave a few on the tree which were out of his reach; hopefully they'll make it through the cold.
I find the different colors, textures and sizes of our citrus fruit fascinating! From the large pomelo grapefruits to the smaller Mexican limes, they're all so beautiful in my eyes! For comparision, here is a tangerine next to the pomelos:
Love, love all the colors!
And then there are these which are an interesting variety of lemon. They taste like a Sunkist lemon, but are just a bit different color wise. I'm sure given enough time they too will turn yellow like the smaller Mexican limes next to them:
The tangerines didn't produce as much as last year and the guavas didn't produce at all, except for two which very recently were found on the ground. I usually harvest our guavas in September, so that was rather weird. One of the orange trees produced a few, the other tree is too small. Our softshell pecan tree- zero. Now with the koi pond a thing of the past, maybe we can take better care of it. We could never spray it for bugs before because of the koi. So, yes, we're hoping for a better harvest next year, Lord willing. For me though, the crowning jewel this year was the pomelo grapefruit. First time it ever produced! So, yes, we are happy with our trees! At times like this I'm really glad we live in a tropical climate. During the Summer though, I am always wishing I lived elsewhere. I guess I'm just really trying to accentuate the positive here by journaling our fruit harvest.
As I enjoyed a few tangerine segments, I commented to my Sweetie how nice it was that we didn't have to go to the store to buy this wonderful fruit. We agreed it was nice that we could just take them fresh off the tree, unlike the fruits at the store which may travel thousands of miles and may have been harvested before they're ripe. Freshness is a very important factor- that and prices! A few days ago I was in San Antonio and stopped to buy some seedless grapes. I grabbed a bag and took it to the cashier and the tally was $17! Can you imagine paying that much for grapes?! The grapes were labeled as grown in the USA too! The ones labeled as coming from Peru were just as expensive. I had to rebag and take a smaller bag, which cost me a much lower price of $12.....still a lot, in my opinion. I am going to have to seriously think about taking better care of our grape vine! Yes, times are getting harder and the first place you feel it is at the food market. I am so thankful to my Lord for providing so much for us in the face of these difficult times.
Until next time,
Love,
9 comments:
How I wish our weather was compatible with citrus fruit. My little brother sent us these beautiful lemons from his tree. I've never seen lemons that big. Anyway, looks like you'll be having lots of fresh orange, lemon and lime juice for a while!
xxoo,
Georgina
Hold off on spraying your pecan tree - I have not forgotten about your earlier comment. Since you have those 2 cuties running around let me see if I can find you something more organic.
The citrus is beautiful. Sometimes it is a bit sweeter when it has gone through some cold. If they make it through the next few days, the ones on the tree may taste great.
Stay warm. (Can you believe I am saying that to you? LOL)
Your citrus is beautiful! I loved the picture of the pamelo against the tangerine. What a blessing to grow and harvest your own food!
Georginna, I had assumed your weather is identical to ours! Your city is near the desert, I figured it was just as hot as here. Try growing a couple of citrus tree, just protect them while they're young. Once full grown I'm sure they'll do fine.
Thanks, Cindy! We'll probably start the spraying until late February, early March. I'll wait to hear back from you. And yes, it did get very cold here too!
Renee, thank you! It's very nice having fresh fruit, but the heat here is unbelievable.
We must be on the same wave length because I took pictures of my huge grapefruits and of the tangerines as well for this evenings post. How funny huh? Those fruits look awesome. We have picked our oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes, and grapefruits too. It's so great having one's own food isn't it. Have a great week.
Gloria, I know, LOL! If it hadn't been for the hard freeze, we would've left them on the trees at least another couple of weeks. But it's all good. I was able to send some for my boys and share with neighbors as well.
Yaya that fruit is beautiful. I am going grocery shopping tomorrow and have added some good fruit to the list, although I don't think I'll find ones as nice as yours. Will you know what to do with "freezing temps?"
Love,
Amy
oh, you are so lucky to be able to pick fresh citrus! Only thing I can pick right now off my trees are icicles!
* Your pretty harvest is like sunshine scattered on a table top! Very pretty! :D
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