Harvesting time

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Charithea

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Harvesting time
« on: June 22, 2016, 04:15:38 PM »
Gardening in June in our hot garden is hard work but there are rewards such as fruit and seed collecting.
« Last Edit: June 23, 2016, 04:38:17 AM by Charithea »
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

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Charithea

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #1 on: December 07, 2016, 02:46:01 PM »
Last crop of the year. Our enormous avocado tree has produced some fruit of which two of them matured. though different in size, both were very tasty. The other crop of course were our olives. When I was a school girl I used to complain incessantly about having to pick up olives every afternoon. It used to take us two weeks to collect them and then wait at the mill sometimes after midnight for our 'turn'.  ONE year I loudly begged God not to allow the trees to produce many olives.  My very religious mother was upset. Years later with the damming of the Kouris river the enormous trees slowly became smaller as the branches broke in winter storms leaving us with smaller and less productive trees. This year I came to regret my childish wish because for the first time in my memory I did not stay at the mill to get any fresh oil.  I had to trade my hand picked olives for 2 and half litres of old oil.   
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

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Charithea

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #2 on: November 11, 2017, 01:59:06 PM »
I am posting a few photos of our 'crops' . The boxes of olives ready for the mill and the subsequent oil from them. Not a lot but the oil is 'tasty' according to friends who tried it on toasted bread.  The olives were ripe and hence the good quality of oil.  The other photo is my pomegranate jelly.  I followed Jorun's recipe.
« Last Edit: November 11, 2017, 03:44:57 PM by Charithea »
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

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JTh

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #3 on: November 12, 2017, 12:05:30 PM »
I hope your  pomegranate jelly turned out all right, Charithea. I didn't have time to make any jelly myself in Greece this autumn, but at least we finished the olive harvest before going back to Norway. The result was very good, but does not look as nice as your photo. We sent 80 kg as  parcel post to Norway, all of it arrived safely, ELTA did a good job! Our olives were harvested earlier, so the taste is still quite 'green' and spicy, but it will soon mellow; the quality is very good. 

This is a little less than half of our harvest

_A139849.jpg Olive harvest time
by Jorun Tharaldsen, on Flickr

It is always exciting to see your own oil

_A149892.jpg Green oil
by Jorun Tharaldsen, on Flickr


_A149894.jpg Net result
by Jorun Tharaldsen, on Flickr

« Last Edit: November 12, 2017, 10:29:53 PM by JTh »
Retired veterinary surgeon by training with a PhD in parasitology,  but worked as a virologist since 1992.
Member of the MGS  since 2004. Gardening in Oslo and to a limited extent in Halkidiki, Greece.

Umbrian

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #4 on: November 15, 2017, 12:08:46 PM »
The blackbirds are busy 'harvesting ' the fruit from my Diospyros ( Persimmon). I was pleased to inherit this tree when we moved having longed admired the sight of the them in winter but refraining from planting one as my husband did not share my appreciation.
The sight of the fruits hanging on bare branches always reminds me of the closing lines of a poem by my favourite poet, R. S. Thomas - "In a Country Church"
" ...........and a winter tree
Golden with the fruit of a man's body"
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.

Umbrian

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #5 on: November 15, 2017, 12:11:24 PM »
Meant to include a 'photo but forgot and so will try now although I am having trouble reducing them as my Photogene App seems to have changed.......
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.

Umbrian

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #6 on: November 15, 2017, 12:14:18 PM »
A surprise success.......although the tree will look better when the surrounding planting dies down.
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.

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Alisdair

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #7 on: December 05, 2017, 04:35:41 PM »
Lovely to see your rich harvest, Jorun! And your glowing persimmons, Carole!
Alisdair Aird
Gardens in SE England (Sussex); also coastal Southern Greece, and (in a very small way) South West France; MGS member (and former president); vice chairman RHS Lily Group, past chairman Cyclamen Society

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Charithea

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #8 on: October 17, 2018, 03:38:15 PM »
I thought of posting a few photos of our avocados. They are small due to lack of rain but plentiful,  Approximately around a hundred. They have not seed because of their size but it takes a lot of  peeling just to get enough to make a dip. On the plus side they are very tasty. I am also posting photos of myrtles picked from the church garden to make mirto. I felt I have earned them as I am the one who takes care of the garden and does all the weeding and replanting ...  I shall offer the priest a small bottle when is ready. 
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

Umbrian

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #9 on: October 18, 2018, 08:29:21 AM »
Very interesting Charithea - I did not know that white Myrtles existed having only ever seen the deep purplely blue ones that I buy to add to our breakfast cereal. I did have a bush in my former garden but the fruits never matured. The bush you collect from must be very old I would think? Perhaps the dark fruited ones predominate ( commercially) as they look more attractive....or better flavour....? Anyway, thanks for this new piece of knowledge.
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.

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Charithea

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #10 on: October 19, 2018, 03:09:44 PM »
Carole, I am posting a photo of white myrtle trees grown in Kouklia village. Their branches were so heavy with fruit when we visited the garden. They were tasty as we were all asked to help ourselves.  There is no tradition of  'mirto' making here.  There are dark fruit bearing bushes but the fruit is small. In fact they grow wild on the hills in Cyprus.  One traditional use is to cut up the branches and strew them on the road that leads to the church door  around Easter time.  There is always a wonderful perfume when the faithful tread on them. My earliest memories of white myrtle fruit were of the man coming round the village selling the fruit.  One small coffee cup for 2 pennies.
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

David Dickinson

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #11 on: October 20, 2018, 01:08:18 AM »
I had always understood, incorrectly it now seems, that mirto bianco (white mirto) was made from the leaves or the roots of myrtle. It seems not. This article, in Italian I'm afraid, gives recipes for both the white and the red versions made from the different colour berries and refers to their different tastes. I can say that the two do indeed have quite different tastes. https://guidecucina.pianetadonna.it/come-preparare-il-liquore-di-mirto-bianco-358415.html#steps_0
I have a small garden in Rome, Italy. Some open soil, some concrete, some paved. Temperatures in winter occasionally down to 0°C. Summer temperatures up to 40°C in the shade. There are never watering restrictions but, of course, there is little natural water for much of June, July and August.

David Dickinson

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #12 on: October 20, 2018, 01:13:53 AM »
Having read the article I refer to in my last posting a little further (it is spaced out over several pages) it appears that you can use either the leaves or the fruit to make white mirto.
I have a small garden in Rome, Italy. Some open soil, some concrete, some paved. Temperatures in winter occasionally down to 0°C. Summer temperatures up to 40°C in the shade. There are never watering restrictions but, of course, there is little natural water for much of June, July and August.

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Charithea

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #13 on: August 08, 2020, 03:45:43 PM »
It is the right time to post a photo of our fresh produce. The yellowish plums are Very tasty.  I am also posting a photo of the plum tree.  It has been in our garden for several years but has not grown much but it faithfully produces fruit unaffected by any insects every year.  The physalis peruviana has been producing fruit for a long while now but the most disappointing things are the tomatoes and courgettes..  Only one tomato for all that effort. If it is too hot the flowers don't set fruit, if they don't get enough water they don't swell and they are hard, if, if.. It is pot luck with courgettes too. However, the onions , garlic and parsley made up for the disappointment.
I garden in Cyprus, in a flat old farming field, alt. approx. 30 m asl.

Umbrian

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Re: Harvesting time
« Reply #14 on: August 09, 2020, 08:09:18 AM »
Very disappointing year for tomatoes here too Charithea. Firstly, decent plants were difficult to find during, and after,  the lockdown period and then strange weather with great fluctuations in temperatures did little to help progress. Finally when some fruit did set and some decent tomatoes developed, the numerous Blackbirds that frequent our garden began to eat them before they were fully ready to harvest. This is the first year they have attacked them - difficult to know why???? Might stick to flowers next year but we do miss the unbeatable flavour of sun warm tomatoes for lunch.
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.