Dwarf Tomato Progress Notes. 6.18.2021

Most of the dwarf tomatoes ar roughly 20 inches tall now. Extreme Bush:

Red Tanunda Dwarf

Alpatieva 905A:

BrandyFred:

Dwarf Champion and Dwarf CC McGee are similar size. Dwarf Johnson Cherry and Clare Valley Pink are only about a foot tall. Alpatieva 905A has the largest tomato set, so far. Extreme Dwarf also has a small tomato. All are blooming profusely.

Rufus Likes his Rawhide Treat. 6.18.2021

Montmorency and NorthStar Pie Cherries Almost Ready. 6.18.2021

It looks like NorthStar might be a little earlier and redder. Both make delicious cherry pies. Montmorency:

NorhStar Cherry:

The scare tale seemd to work very well last year - minimal stealing by the birds. I hope that means the same this year.

Tipping Fig Shoots for Better Production, 6.18.2021

When fig shoots have 4 to 6 leaves, tipping the shoot can stimulate earlier fig producton. It's simple, just be t the tip until it snaps. Removing the growth point stops apical dominance, and baby figs soon appear after the tip is snappeed off. Before:

After:

Today I tipped Brunswick, Adriatic, and Champagne fig trees. I did Celeste a few days ago. Some others are not far enough along yet.

Canning Fruit From the Garden. 6.18.2021

 I did some practice canning to see if I could do it.  First I made grape jelly, using purchased grape juice.  That worked nicely and it tastes very good. 

I eat some jelly every day, so these should be use up during the next few months.

We had some pears from Costco, which I was concerned would spoil before we ate them all. I used those to make some canned pears. They came out delicious.

The n we harvested many pounds of sweet cherries. I mace jam and canned cherries too. Im concerned about the aira e in some so will eat those first. Very delicious. They sealed well, so I think they are ok for a while.

We had some fresh local strawberries and rhubarb from the garden. I made jam.

That came out very good too. Im using lower sugar pectin when possible. SomI think I'll be ready when plums and peaches are ripe. The main question is reliably getting a good seal. Some jars did seal, so I froze them (strawberry jam).