Harvest Post

Back when we lived in Herald, there was a huge old Mission Fig tree that produced a nice crop every year.  We picked everything we could reach from the ground, and the birds got the rest.  Fig jam, by the way, is delish.

 

Back in my tomato truck driving days, there was a pomegranate tree that lived out where we were on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, in the most inhospitable spot possible to imagine, and it produced a crop!  Impressed with this, when I got my place in Herald I bought one at the local nursery and planted it.  After about three years, it started to produce, and just got bigger and more productive every year, with no attention whatsoever.  Great tree. 

This picture of one of our harvests is iconic for fall, with all the colorful fall leaves on the ground.

Someone told Mrs. CW that the best way to get the fruit was to float them out, and this is what that looks like.  Success!

There were chickens too in Herald.  If you have small kids, and the room, chickens are great.  I learned that if you have five or ten good layers, you'll be hard pressed to eat all the eggs they produce.

Back in my bread making days, my favorite was shepherd's bread made in a dutch oven.  The smell alone was worth the effort.  Strawberry jam in the background.

More recently, this year's accidental potato harvest.  So much fun, we'll be dedicating a lot more garden space to this next year.

A sampling of Lemon Drop and Striped Sugar Rush peppers.  Third year for the Lemon Drops, first but not last for the Sugar Rush.

Out of all that, a big jug of home made hot sauce. Believe it, I've used all that up already!

Finally, a big brown trout from the Mokelumne River.  Baked wild trout is a heavenly feast.