Those of you who have been with Skipping Dessert for the long-haul might remember that last Spring Sprightly Daughter Number Two and I planted a peach tree in the backyard (“The Orchard”). Over the course of the long, hot summer, no matter how assiduously we followed the backyard-ag advice, the orchard, it failed us.
Our poor peach tree, by Autumn, was to all outward appearances, a stick.
And then, one fine, unseasonably warm Saturday morning in January there were peach blossoms. All over the orchard. Covering the peach tree.
Sprightly 2 and I have since pinched off all the buds left behind by the blossoms – tree’s too small to support good fruit this year – but it was a perfect reminder that when you give nature a good start and the proper boost, good things happen. Peaches happen when you least expect them.
While Skipping Dessert was on hiatus this past Fall, I also experienced my greatest agricultural achievement: The tangerine tree in our front yard (yes, “The Grove”) gave us more than 60 perfectly sweet, perfectly orange tangerines.
And last summer? Those tomatoes Sprightly 2 and I planted (as referenced above) produced some of the juiciest, tastiest tomatoes I’ve ever sliced for a sandwich.
My point? I can now say, conclusively, that actual food comes out of the ground. Seriously. Yes, on the scale my suburban grove, orchard and garden produce, it’s cheaper to just go to the Co-op, but the act of growing and harvesting your own food for your own table, I gotta tell you, it does not suck.
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Skipping Dessert 