Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Cherries!


I managed to snag a few cherries from our tree the other day. Yum! Finally after a month later than usual.

We have what look like Rainier cherries, but I have heard that most cherry trees of this type in Seattle are techincally the Queen Anne variety. And it's an old tree. This year was supposed to be a heavy-yielding crop. Not so for some reason, and what a disappointment after having to wait for so long! I have tried to figure out why my tree is so stingy this year.

The blossoms were quite prolific this spring I thought for sure I was going to have a bumper crop. But, as the fruits started to develop, I had a ton of "drop." Spent flowers with barely a hint of a cherry fell all over the ground. Maybe it was the weather? Too much wet and cold to get things going?

My other theory is that a major add-on happened next door. My cherry tree is quite close to the fence. And to my horror, the contractors took the liberty in "pruning" the branch that hung over the fence. I wish someone had told me it was in the way. I would have gladly done the job myself. Now, I don't think the pruning of the branch is the cause of low yield. I do wonder if all the heavy equipment and the new foundation pour lead to stress. I have quite a bit of suckering in my garden that makes me lean towards this theory.

Anyway, enough of that. I savored these wonderful cherries in the little sun we've had lately. I just need a taller ladder to reach the rest of them before they all fall to the ground!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Bridget,

I love reading your blog. You have such a passion for gardening. any tips you would give on a plant to choose? I have a planter, up again the house that faces west but also gets a good amount of shade due to a tree. I'm looking for a climber foremost, maybe ever green, and a bloomer. Thoughts?

Wendi

Bridget Lamp said...

Hey, there Wendi!

Thank you for the post and question.

Although not evergreen, I think you should give hop vine a try since it is an edible. These can be quite vigorous, but if you choose an 'Aureus' variety... meaning of the golden type, it should remain in check. It will die back to the ground in winter, but should come back once it warms up again.

Cheers!