Our medlar trees are blooming profusely!
The weather really kicked us last week. 4 days of frost and a 29 degree frost, meaning we lost about 50 pounds of asparagus harvest. Sigh. Also, our almond trees, tree cherries (but not bush cherries), peaches, and nectarines all failed to bloom this year!
On the other hand, our medlar trees are blooming like crazy! Medlars are a fruit that was very popular during the medieval era. Similar to persimmons, they are left on the tree to ripen and soften (actually, bletted – over-ripened and softened. They are inedible until this occurs), giving fruit at a time of year it often is not available locally. I actually don’t know if we like medlars or not. Our trees are new, and we had one set last year. We waited until it was ready to eat, but something else ate it before we had the chance… Rare fruit can be a challenge. Our hazelnuts are also blooming!
Getting this thing off, rolled up hill, and into the truck by myself nearly killed me. In addition to the rim, hub, tire, and tube, the thing was filled with about 380 pounds of water and calcium chloride for ballast!
This week will be an enormous challenge. It’s crazy busy at work, with alumni reunion weekend taking top billing in the mind of band directors. Lots of ceremonies and performances from Thursday all the way through Sunday. We’re also crazy busy in the garden – way behind planting and transplanting due to the weather, my illness, and having a flat tractor tire last week at a horribly inopportune moment (is there ever a good time to have a tractor problem?). Also, I’m going to need to set up irrigation – despite the flooding of the past couple of weeks, our sand is already dry, and it’s not supposed to rain again for at least a week. Can’t transplant seedlings into a desert and expect them to take hold!
This menu is ambitious given the schedule, but I think I stand a chance of making it happen…
| Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | Notes/Prep | |
| Mon | Zucchini Bread | Leftovers | Chicken Curry Jasmine Rice Dal Maknni | Lancer Band Cover veggies ahead of hard freeze |
| Tues | Zucchini Bread | Chicken Curry Rice Dal Makhni | Jerkish Chicken Grilled Asparagus Rosemary Roast Potatoes | Lancer Band Comment Sheets due tomorrow! |
| Wed | Zucchini Bread | Jerkish Chicken Rosemary Roast Potatoes | Cheesey Rigatoni Bake (from freezer) | Lancer Band |
| Thur | Amaretto Nut Bread | Cheesey Rigatoni Bake | Dining Hall | Retreat & Late Lessons |
| Fri | Amaretto Nut Bread | Dining Hall | Dining Hall if I’m lucky | No Classes Alumni Reunion Weekend- abandon all hope Honors Presentations & Recital Person of the Year Ceremony Iron Gate Ceremony |
| Sat | Amaretto Nut Bread | Munchies at the Market | Pizza w/ Corps of Drums | Farmers’ Market Alumni Open Shoot w/ rifle team Alumni Parade Corps of Drums @ Class of 1992 dinner |
| Sun | Biscuits & Sausage Gravy | Dining Hall | Biscuits & Sausage Gravy | Honor Orgs performances |
New from the farm: The asparagus is starting to make a comeback. Rhubarb is being harvested, as are radishes. Fresh herbs are starting to come in as well, adding a great boost to flavors. Normally we’d be awash in salad greens, but they’re still at least a week from harvest.
Groceries: Kroger –