Saturday, September 3, 2016

cortland apples



The only fruit tree on our property when we purchased it was a lone mature cortland apple. That first autumn there weren't many apples. We picked a few with our long handled apple picker but my memory of the crop is foggy.
Each year but one since then the tree has produced a bumper crop. Or so we thought until this year. Many of my neighbors are saying that their produce is ripening earlier this year than in most years. That seems to be true of the apples as well. We've had heat and abundant moisture. (Almost too much rain for the sweet corn crop.) Here on our ridge top meadow the apples have been falling, branches hanging so low we duck under them going to the chicken yard. It seems a shame to waste such bounty. We'd given more than 10  5 gallon pails to our neighbors and had given the split or pecked apples to the chickens. We'd eaten a few. We've made some juice. But what we needed was to find a way to share in a big way.
Our Amish friends had taken apples in past years but they had trees of their own. This summer their trees hadn't faired well. I brought them 6  5 gallon pails of apples on Tuesday and invited them to come this week to get more. On Wednesday they arrived… Eli, Lovina and their 3 daughters. (the 5 boys stayed at home to do chores as they often had the opportunity to come out to our place when their dad did chores here and Lovina felt it was the girls' turn.) Picking was slow so I suggested Eli shake the tree. Wahoo, that did it. Here is what they were able to take away after one short morning.

a view into the buggy between front and back seats (there were even pails on the floor of the front seat)

the entire bottom of the buggy is full of apples with bags and boxes perched on top


While we shared a lunch together indoors, Randy and Pearl enjoyed the sweet clover in our eastern meadow.
The weather was perfection and our apple endeavor and shared meal were a gift to us all.

4 comments:

  1. Hello Sharon,

    Oh I am a little envious of your apple tree, we have a few, it gets cold enough here but rather hot in Summer and they probably should get more water. Our mandarin trees have done well this year. How lovely to share your fruit with neighbours. Fresh fruit and veg is just so beautiful.
    Happy days.
    Bev.

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  2. How wonderful to be able to share such a magnificent bounty. The apple is one of my favourite fruits. :)

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  3. Hi Sharon,
    I found your blog by way of your comment over on Bev's blog this morning, and your words were so gentle and well-written that I had to see who had written them. Your blog is just as enjoyable, relaxing and gentle and it was a joy to visit here this morning before my day begins.

    I wish I lived next door to enjoy your beautiful apple crop!

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  4. Such a lovely post. I love that Randy and Pearl had their own special lunch at your place. What delightful neighborliness you enjoy! Vermont enjoyed bumper crops of apples last year, and so this year's is rather spare. I was hoping to make crabapple jelly in my new kitchen, but even those are few. Each growing season brings its' own bounties. Our dry and warm summer has hurried along the squash and pumpkins. We'll have some impressive jack o lanterns! xo

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