Of Bees and Blossom.

We currently have 3 bee hives in our avocado block. Also in our area just across the road a bee keeper stores hives and some of those bees fly over and visit our trees.
 I took some photos of bees working for us. I was most interested in the flowers or blossoms that were going to produce fruit or nuts for us.

 Perhaps the most attractive flowers were on the feijoas which are just starting to bloom.

( feijoas are related to NZ pohutukawa or Christmas tree )

 No bees there but if fruit is set it will be pickable next April or May.

 Near by the apple tree was attracting some bees.

 It has quite a covering of blossom and it too might have apples ready next Autumn.

Rivalling the feijoa for attractiveness ( in my eyes ) are the Macadamia nuts.

I have enlarged that photo so the bees visiting it are  easier to see.

 Any nuts set will be harvest able next August or later.

 Avocado are one of our commercial ( exportable )  crops and that is why we pay to have bee hives on site for them.

This is the best flowering tree in the top block facing North and getting lots of sun.

 Avocado flowers are tiny but there are millions of them - only a few will survive to become fruit .

There is a bee flying into this cluster of flowers many of which are still buds.

That pic shows the bee about real size so you see how very tiny the flowers are. Any avocados set by pollination now will not be picked till November/ December or even later next year ( 2018 ) so a very long time.( a year or slightly more )  I suspect such a tiny flower takes that long to become such a nutritious fruit.

*******

 The plum tree has already flowered and set a few fruit. My broad beans are producing some yummy beans . The blue glass really sets the lime green colour off a treat. The top of the plants are still being visited by bees so beans for a while yet.

 Probably the most visited flowers on the property at the moment are the 2 huge oak trees. I can stand under them and hear the Hummmmmmm.

 They of course only produce acorns .

Do You Eat Avocados?

  Nothing happened with the avocado picking Monday as the hydralada drivers were still finishing the previous orchard. ( we understand that, as picking time is hard to judge. ) Yesterday (Tuesday) was a fabulous hot clear day and our 2 drivers arrived early. They picked to finish the job at 8.20pm last evening. Phew...it was cool by then and  quite a relief from the heat. The bins were taken away to the packhouse in the dark and even later at 11.15pm the truck to take the hydraladas to the next orchard arrived. R had to take light down to them for loading. But they finished the job and the fruit is beatuiful. What price will it bring?  Not very much at the moment I'm afraid. Austalian markets have been flooded by unscrupulous traders who don't understand that the fruit needs to be feed to the market at a sensible pace,  continously so the supply is even. ( they dump huge quantities. )The NZ market has also got lots at the moment.A few spoiling it for everyone. ( we may get paid as little as a third or half what we sometimes get. )( the rep from the packhouse called in and told us the market price had risen yesterday so that is encouraging. )
      We decide not to ground pick like we usually do but to leave those fruit in ready access for our own use later. ( there weren't many low down as we had ground picked in during our first pick which was the last week in September. The fruit being picked at the moment has had all that time since then to size up and it really has.

Early morning the first bins full.

Then later a few more full.

    Here is what I spent the day doing. R transported the full bins from the avo blocks back to the house area where they were stored in the shade in the shed ( usually  this is the the tractor shed ) He brought back one partly filled bin so I could move the fruit around. Wearing gloves I pullled out all the leaves and twigs and inspected a lot of the fruit, to take out obvious rejects. ( just like fruit thinning in the kiwifruit really only these have got to picking stage cause I don't climb avo trees to thin them! ) The size the pickers were told to pick to was to weigh 220 grams ( 25 to a packed tray ). We usually pick way smaller than that.

 Here in my bin you can see rejects for colour; marks ;shape; possum bites and blemish caused by thrips; as well as smalls. So we have lots of reject fruit to share with friends and family. We try to have ripe avocados in the house at all times. Sometimes we run out if we have given too many away but we like to eat them  on a daily basis. They are so very good for us.( now recommended as a first food for babies. ) A little fattening if you pig out but so are lots of things.

There are not too many folk we know now who do not like avocados, but there still are some need converting. They are wonderful on vogel bread toast with a smear of vegemite and avo sliced or mashed on top. ( my breakfast most mornings ) They are wonderful in salads, as guacamole dip; nice with shrimp or other cold seafood. They can even be made into ice cream.

 Another good way is cut the avo in half, take a teaspoon and tuck in.

Avocados used to be called poor man's butter in Mexico where they were grown. A Spainish soldier Herando Cortez found them growing in Mexico in 1519. The Aztecs called them Ahuactl.  Today they are grown in many places with a temperate climate. NZ; California: Australia: Israel; Spain.

 The Hass variety ( that we grow and the only variety exported from New Zealand ) was discovered by a postman Rudolph Hass as a good seedling which he patented in 1935. This is  a good Summer variety. Other varieties are ready earlier and later.The avocado tree is related to the laurel tree - the genus persea. In Spainish  they  are called Abogado; in French Avocat.

*****

 Some tips if you are buying avocados. Buy them when they are still firm and green, that way nobody else has squeezed them and bruised them. Take them home and put on your fruit bowl till just slightly soft. If you wish to hasten their ripening place them in a paper bag, with a ripening banana which gives off lots of ethylene, and secure the top to keep the gas in. Craddle them in your hand and if there is slight give they are ready. Once ready keep in the fridge for a couple of days if not eating them straight away. ( If unsure if they are ready rub the stalk out and if a tooth pick or needle will slide into the flesh  easily they are ready. ) Do not squeeze or pummel.

 Back to garden and kiwfruit work today. Everything here is now dry again and watering is necessary for the veges. It is another beautiful clear Summer day so other growers will be getting their avos picked too.

 Leanne has been showing all the lovely veges they are harvesting / growing. I agree it is so rewarding to pick things and be eating them within the hour. Last night our salad was made up entirely with lettuce, radish tomatoes ,chives and avocado we grew. Eaten with our  new potatoes and green beans.( The cold lamb was bought.)

 No sewing but I did tidy my sewing cupboard and iron some finished half square triangles....so a glimmer of hope there.

( Blogger is doing some very strange things at the moment ! )

Quilts . ( Part 2 )

Thanks for commenting Jennifer and Isabelle.  I think our group does work of quite a high standard from what I see elsewhere. ( overseas even )

I wonder if you are like me ? When I see a fabric display like the batiks ( that tell you Milton Wright is here )in all the colours of the rainbow I get a real buzz just standing and drinking in the wonderful colours and how they look along side their neighbours. ( Displays of cottons; wools; coloured pencils or pens all do it for me. ) Luckily Milton always lets us stare for ages (with or without buying ).

Maybe like J you prefer a more muted palette of colours? She is a very talented needlewoman ( who also makes exquiste small bags )and almost always works in thses colours.

Detail of the cyclamen from J's quilt.

And the fantail on a branch. I love her work but the colours don't excite me. These ones below do.

 Over the last few years I have seen at various shows this same quilt made in so many different colourways.

Denise made this for a friend's birthday...lucky friend.

Some of our group made this quilt during the year as a mystery block. So there were several the same - but all different. L likes greens.

The colours in Pat's quilt were muted but went perfectly together.

Do you prefer simple tried and true designs...they still work well.

***********

 The avocado picking got finished with another 4.5 bins yesterday.

So now the trees have only about half the number of fruit left on them to size up. The hydralada hire cost will be high as they were slow doing select picking but we are still hoping for a good price. Watch out in Australia there are some lovely avocados making there way across the ditch to you!                                                    ***********
 I have been out closely inspecting the new grass patch but can't see anything yet.
                                                       *************
 I am trying to decide which quilting project to start on next ?????