Filberts

The bag on the left contains my "bumper crop" of filberts/hazelnuts. Unlike the apples and peaches, I got the filberts started a little late in order to have a decent crop when I retired. I did have another tree but for some reason it died. I'm not sure why. They were planted in fairly close proximity, so same soil type, watered and tended at the same time - who knows? I do have a couple more planted but it will be a few years before they start producing much. When they get a little bigger, the larger tree will probably have better pollination which should make it a little more productive.

The other baggies contain seeds from a couple of magnolia trees. I really don't need too many more ornamental trees around the place but I've got room for a couple and magnolias are my favorites. I've tried to get them started in the past but haven't had any luck. Through the magic of the internet, I think I've found the way to get the seeds to sprout. We'll see.

The days are getting noticeably shorter now. It won't be long and the garden will be done for the year. I picked my first eggplant the other day and made up a ratatouille. I cooked it up in the crock pot and I was quite pleased with both the taste and the fact that I actually cooked something that didn't involve frying, other than sauteing the onions and garlic, that is. I hunted down some tahini so I can make some baba ganoush. I'm trying things out to decide what I want to plant in the garden next year. A couple of eggplants will probably make the cut. I need to talk to my daughter-in-law and see what she's got planned as well. If she's planning on doing some more canning next year, see what she wants in the way of vegetables. I definitely need to get the seedlings planted a little earlier next year. That plus the removal of the tree that was shading the garden should boost the productivity quite a bit.

I'm a long way from being self-sufficient here but I'm putting in just about all the time I care to devote to the operation. Next year I'll expand the garden a little more and that should be about it. I'll have cherries in a couple of years to add to the apples, peaches and persimmons and with the small garden, that'll be plenty to take care of. Seems I still don't have the time to work on the projects like I want so I sure don't need to take on any more. However, with the way things are going in this country, having some fruit trees and a garden is looking smarter all the time.