The grass really IS greener

The hits keep on coming over here on our farm: eight more varieties in bloom since last report and wee fruitlets on the early bloomers. I can't tell you much about all of the apple varieties; with Scott having 100 in trial, I can't keep up! An amazing resource is Liz Copas's Cider Apples: The New Pomona. It is Scott's bible. 

Here's the latest blossom and fruiting report:
April 12: Good fruit set (fingers crossed): Winter Banana, Transcendent Crab
April 12: New blossoms: King David, Le Bret, Sweet Alford, Foxwhelp, Hudson's Golden Gem, Tremlett's Bitter, Waltana
April 15: New blossoms: Rome Beauty

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Easter is tomorrow, and whether you're religious or not, you can't deny that this is the season for celebrating new life and rebirth. It's lush, verdant, fertile, and abundant out here. We've had to mow, weedwhack, and set the sheep out on new pastures because the grasses have grown up to our thighs, something I thought unimaginable back in January. Birds, ladybugs, lacewings, soldier beetles, and butterflies aplenty. All our veggie starts, herbs, and perennials are looking good, and I've been scything cover crop to prepare our kitchen garden. More rain is in the long-range forecast, and there are even murmurings of a strong El Niño developing in the Pacific, which generally means a rainy fall and winter for us. Fingers crossed. 

Happy Easter, peeps!

Hudson's Golden Gem

King David

Le Bret

Rome Beauty

Sweet Alford

Tremlett's Bitter

Waltana

Winter Banana fruitlets

Transcendent Crab fruitlets

Foxwhelp

Moving on to greener pastures