LOL it's been crazier than usual around here (not a happy crazy but a depressing crazy) and I may have gone off the deep end, ready for the loony bin, but I crack myself up. It's either that or curl up in a ball. I'd much rather try to lighten the mood and try to keep morale up. Medical issues aside....
I hadn't planned on canning any Applesauce this year. We usually end up getting apples and other fruit and veggies from friends and neighbors who have an over abundance. With the drought I know I didn't plant a veggie garden and I'm sure a lot of others fruit trees are suffering through and not producing as well as before.
Anyway we hadn't received any. Totally understandable.
I was out in the garden one day and saw an apple on the ground. I picked it up and it looked fine. We do have a 3 in one apple tree my parents gave up us but it usually only produces a handful of apples. I looked at this tree and there weren't any apples on it. I thought maybe that was the one for this year and promptly ate it! When it was given to us, we didn't really have the room for it, even though it's a dwarf. I ended up planting it along the walkway behind the pond. Unfortunately the Podocarpus
that is next to it has grown into a beautiful shade tree for that area and pushed out the Apple, probably the reason why it only produces a few apples a year. Anyway, last year I limbed up the Podocarpus and did a good pruning on it so the Apple would be able to get more sun without bending horizontally to reach some light.
Long story short, I kept finding apples on the ground but there were never any on the branches. This was driving me crazy.
I happened to be there when one fell, it sounded like it came out of the Pittosporum that is on the other side of the apple. I started making my way through the Pitt and guess what I found hiding hiding in there. A huge crop of apples!
They had weighed the branches down to
where they were inside the Pittosporum!
Can you see any apples?
Starting to pull them out
I can't remember the 3 kinds of apples that are on this tree but I think these first ones were Granny Smith. Crisp, juicy and sweet
Since then the next type has come in.
They were a softer apple - not as crisp, a lighter green
The last few were also really good and
turned a bit yellow,
so maybe a Golden Delicious?
It doesn't matter, that little tree produced it's heart out. Amazing what happens when you get some sun! Imagine what would happen if I watered it! did I forget to mention I don't water it? Nope, I don't, poor thing. I think I will from now on.
And this year the Podocarpus will be losing a large limb that blocks more sun over the apple tree.
So with all those apples, I canned Applesauce and we will have my homemade Applesauce at Easter!
It's kind of become a tradition and I was already getting flack from my kids about not making any. You can find my recipe here.
Why do they have to have homemade, well, the store bought just doesn't hack it once you've had homemade ♥
So YES there will be homemade Applesauce at Easter this year
