July 25th – In Rushall, a couple of apple trees have fruit growing well on the boughs right now. Some looks better than others, depending I think on if frost caught the blossom or not.
It’s not the largest harvest I’ve ever seen, but it’s big. It’s going to be a decent year for apples and pears, I think.
July 23rd – Pleased to see again that the walnut tree, appropriately situated in the village of Wall, has a great crop again this year. It’s the only such tree I know of locally, and the only one I’ve ever seen that reliably fruits.
A few more weeks and I might grab a couple of handfuls of the still green nuts to try pickled walnuts. Always fancied giving them a go.
June 23rd – By the new pond at Clayhanger, the pear tree I found last year seems to have a reasonable crop, but it’s under attack from something bruising or otherwise damaging the fruit.
I’ve not seen anything like this before; the pears grown here last year were small, but well formed and without blemishes.
My grandfather used to say that a late frost catching the fruit blossom would ruin a crop. I wonder if this is what that looks like – after all, we did have a late and quite heavy frost this year?
May 9th – Pear blossom lasts but a few days, and you’re lucky to spot it really, but this thick crop of flowers, just going over and scattering like confetti on the strong breeze were profuse on the small pear tree by the new pond in Clayhanger.
Last year the tree fruited well, but with a late frost on the blossom, I’m not sure how well this tree will do this year.
Beautiful while it lasts, though.
April 27th – When I left home just after dawn there was a heavy frost; I left Darlaston later in the morning for Telford in bright sunshine, which really highlighted the blossom on roadside trees. Mainly cherry, but some apple and plum, too. Absolutely beautiful.
Sadly though, this doesn’t bode well for a bumper fruit crop like last year; a frost on the blossom now will damage it and reduce the fruit yield.
With such beautiful blooms, hope the weather and sunshine pick up soon.
December 11th – Also at Telford, by the M54 just n the embankment by the cycleway, a fine crop of crabapples even the birds are not bothering with.
Perhaps they’re too bitter, or hard, but there’s something a bit sad and dramatic about a tree with no leaves, and an unfallen, unwanted crop of fruit.
November 20th – I passed these pine cones on a roadside path on an industrial estate in Great Bridge. They are the largest I’ve ever seen – almost two inches in diameter and seven to eight inches long, they seem untouched by birds and squirrels. They feel quite heave and dense and wonder if they’re ripe or just premature windfalls from the recent storms.
Fascinating fruits that look almost prehistoric.
October 21st – How do you like these apples? They are growing near Telford Station, and seem to be untouched by human hands.Dripping in the insistent rain, they looked beautiful in their glistening, ripe glory.
Gently, so as to not get drenched. I plucked one from the tree and tried it. A little sharp, but not bad at all. And a very good harvest, to boot.
October 1st – Nice to see the cotoneaster going bright orange-red now. This pea-sized berry is unpalatable to humans, but songbirds, particularly blackbirds, love the sugary berries, and having found a bush, the blackbird male will fight off any challengers who would raid his winter larder.
A lovely splash of colour in autumn’s otherwise yellowy palette.
September 20th – The conkers have just started to fall, and I found these beauties in Lichfield. Like any British male, I have the conker acquisition instinct, and can’t pass one of these shiny nuts without popping it in my pocket.
This year I’m collecting them not just for guerrilla planting, but for a special cause. They seem in abundant supply, too, with a bumper crop.
They really bring out the kid in me.
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