Look at This! Surprise 🌝

This year has been an exceptionally blessed year for rain, here in the Holy Land. And in addition I had taken a neighbor's advice and watered the two barren citrus trees in our garden.

One tree is a lemon tree I had bought well over twenty years ago, and the other is from a sapling one of our sons brought back from a hike a few years after we had planted the lemon tree. We'll refer to the second one as "the mystery tree."

Over a decade ago, I remember seeing some small orange fruit on the mystery tree but don't remeber even trying to eat them. They were terribly small and hard.

For the past few months I've been noticing a number of orange-colored fruit growing on the mystery tree. At first they seemed to high to be picked, but yesterday when I walked by, I could see that there were quite a few of these fruit low enough, even for me. So, today, after my morning walk, I went over to the tree and decided to take a better look.

I picked one fruit from the tree, smelled it decided to take a bite. What could be wrong? They hadn't even sprayed with poisons. Yes, they're organic, completely organic.

One of my guesses, due to size, was that they were some sort of clementina, which is a small tangerine, an easy to peel citrus fruit. Here in Israel the clementina is the first of the winter citrus fruit offered for sale, late summer, early winter. The clementina has a very thin skin/peel, thinner than any orange I'm familiar with.

Test #1 This mystery fruit has a relatively thick skin for its size, but as you can see in the pictures, it's a tiny fruit. Now, I don't know if the mystery fruit is supposed to be small, or if the difficult dry and cold climate here has damaged/stunted it.

Test #2 was the taste test. The mystery fruit tastes something like an orange. I'll leave them on the tree a bit longer and taste them periodically, to see if they get sweeter with time. Of course the challenge is to pick them before they rot on the tree.

I'd be grateful for advice, thanks.

Ripening Grapes, Delish!

It takes patience, but it's worth it. We have the most delicious grapes growing in our little arbor/trellis/pergola outside. The only problem is that they are all, all three types, ripen very late in the season/summer.

Just now,  at the end of July (and the Jewish Month of Tammuz,) are the grapes beginning to be edible. It doesn't pay to pick them early, because they just don't taste good and will not ripen off of the vine.

Our grapes are totally organic, and the only water they get is rain. (The first few years after planting we had watering system, but after it deteriorated, the rain sufficed.) That makes them extra sweet. A neighbor who once picked a nice quantity from them to make wine for both our families, is thinking of bringing a net to cover them from the birds and wasps. Then he'll try making wine from them, again.

I don't know the technical wine mavin term, but a sign of ripeness for green grapes is when the grapes look rather translucent, rather than waxy. The red/dark grapes must be dark to be ripe and sweet.

Edible?

After a few rains, I just noticed something on my citrus tree outside.

This past spring, for the first time in quite a while there had been some flowers.  Then the flowers were blown away, and I pretty much gave up all hope.

Many years ago I bought a lemon tree from a proper nursery and planted it.  To say "It was a lemon" is a rather sick joke, since we never got any lemons from it.  About sixteen years ago my elder son brought home a small seedling that may be an orange tree.  He planted it near the lemon tree.  I can't remember which is which, since we never get fruit from them.  Maybe this is from his tree.

It's still a bit early in the season.  I wonder if they are edible.

Last Sweet Taste of Summer

Well over twenty years ago a neighbor (actually neighbors) helped us plant our little vineyard by the entrance to our storage room. One neighbor did the shopping and choosing the grape vines, and another helped or did most of the actual planting.  During the first few years they were watered, and since then besides periodic, less an annual trimming/pruning, all do is enjoy G-d's generosity, the most delicious grapes imaginable.  Of course, being that I don't treat them with any sort of chemicals they are 100% totally organic.  And since they aren't irrigated besides the rain, they have an enviable concentrated sweetness.

Our grapes ripen pretty late in the summer, so we must be patient before eating, noshing and harvesting.  There aren't enough left to really harvest and feast off of, but if you look carefully, you'll find these natural, gift from G-d candies.

Thanks to G-d for His generosity and blessings.

Have a wonderful, fulfilling, inspiring and healthy week.