Late Bloom - wind and rain

Over the weekend, yesterday and the day before, we had moderately high wind, then rain. Just in time to compromise the bloom and fruit set on Canadian White Blenheim apricot, Blenheim (just finished bloom, susceptible to blossom rot), Chinese apricot, Golden Amber apricot, possiblly the Sugar prune and Emerald Beaut plum (just finishing bloom). Don't know if it will affect the peaches and nectarines. But I wouldn't be surprised if it affected at least the nectarines.

Earlier rain probably reduced fruit set on Royal Rosa apricot, Blenheim, Royalty and to some extent on Harcot. All had damaged fruits. Dapple Dandy and Flavor Queen Pluots. Haven't checked Flavor Supreme. It never sets a lot of fruit, and tiny fruitlets are hard to spot in the big tree.

Flavor Delight Aprium set a lot of fruit in spite of the weather, as usual, and most of it looks healthy. Time to get serious about thinning. This fruit may be the best choice for an "apricot" here for gardeners who don't want to bother with things like spraying copper in winter or other fungicides in spring.

Friday, the high temperature was 79 degrees - 10 degrees lower than the record for the same date. Last night's forecast was for 35 degrees - the kind of temperatures we would like in the middle of winter to chill the stone fruit buds. We're past the typical "frost watch" date here - about March 15. Time to plant some veggies.

Low-acid Peaches and Nectarines

There are thousands of varieties of peaches in the world, and quite a few varieties of nectarines. Our Central Valley is one of the few places where nectarines can be grown successfully on a commercial basis, and it's also a great peach climate. Many varieties developed here also grow best here. Some have wider climate adaptability.

Floyd Zaiger is a fruit breeder who risked his financial future to "go independent", and in his case, it paid off to a modest extent. He has developed some great fruits. Early on, he developed some important hybrid rootstocks for trees. Over the years, he has developed very distinctive Plums, Pluots, Apricots, Apriums, Nectarines, Peaches, Nectaplums, Plumcots and plum/peach hybrids. Which is not to say that all of his varieties are great. There are some knock-off Pluots which are frankly described even in commercial wholesale catalogs as having flavor inferior to the Pluots they resemble.

One of Zaiger's developments has been low acid/high sugar peaches and nectarines. These are attractive for commercial growers because they taste good even before they are fully ripe. Even when they're crispy. They are easy to ship because they can be picked while still very firm. They get even sweeter when tree-ripened until juicy. The first low acid/high sugar peaches and nectarines were white-fleshed. There have long been low-acid/normal sugar white varieties like Babcock, but they don't taste good until they are ripe.

Several of the new low acid/high sugar varieties have become available to home growers. Some of them have commercial drawbacks, but excellent characteristics for home growers. Other breeders are now entering the "low acid/high sugar" field, too. Their varieties are also likely to be available first for commercial market. Some will eventually be available to home growers.

Many home growers prefer the old-fashioned peaches and nectarines which develop a nice acid/sugar balance and complex flavors when perfectly ripe and juicy. The most luscious to many fruit fans are described as having "melting" flesh. But most people seldom taste a peach or nectarine like this. They don't ship well. Zaiger has also developed some "balanced" high-sugar varieties. These tend to get high ratings from fruit tasters, but are less attractive commercially because they are more acid before they are fully ripe.

One of the frequent contributors to the Fruit and Orchards forum at Gardenweb goes by the nom de blog "Fruitnut". The name describes him well. As I have noted earlier, he moved from the Central Valley to the mountains of Texas because of allergies, but build a big greenhouse so he could bring his favorite fruit varieties with him. Not long ago he described the low-acid white nectarine "Arctic Star" as his favorite early fruit. I bought a tree on his recommendation, and have been more successful with it than with other nectarines.

Last night, I read a thread in which Fruitnut gave me some clues as to why I do better with such an early variety: peaches and nectarines require just the right amount of water to produce the best fruit. Too little water and nectarines will be rough, misshapen and will develop "off" flavors. This is my typical experience. Too much water, and they will lack flavor, but will look perfect. Just the right amount of water and they will have a touch of russeting at the tip. My early Arctic Star doubtless suffers less from our inconsistent watering than do later varieties.

Fruit Nut now recommends Zaiger's low-acid yellow nectarines and peaches as 'the best fruit in the world". These include Honey Kist and Honey Blaze nectarines, which ripen at about the same time, and Honey Royale, which ripens later. Others include early Honey May and late Honey Diva. Another contributor noted that Honey Blaze needs high heat in summer, while Honey Kist has a wider climate adaptability. Honey May is a low-chill variety which would bloom too early in many climates. Only Honey Kist is listed by Dave Wilson Nursery for its retail nursery clientele.

The low-acid yellow peach recommended by Fruit Nut is Valley Sweet. You apparently have to "have connections" to get one if you're not a commercial grower. More fruits for my "dream orchard".

In our climate, Japanese plums and Pluots and even apricots are more forgiving than peaches and nectarines. Apricot yield may suffer due to the rain we are currently having during bloom season. This year, our Plum/Pluot bloom is more concentrated than usual. The early bloomers are also closer to the peaches and nectarines in their bloom time. In the past, our earliest varieties of apricot/Aprium and Pluot have sometimes started blooming in January. This year, Flavor Supreme Pluot on the early end has overlapped nicely in bloom with Burgundy, Santa Rosa and Catalina plums and most of the Pluots in the other yard. Emerald Beaut on the late end will overlap by at least a third of its blossoms with Casselman and even to some extent with Flavor King. We may have had more winter chill than usual, or the chill may have come at just the right time to concentrate the bloom.

Apple and Cottage Cheese Salad

I used to eat this salad at work in winter. It reminds me of Waldorf Salad.

APPLE AND COTTAGE CHEESE SALAD

Core and chop an apple and add up to a cup of cottage cheese. Add two or three chopped dates. Add some chopped celery if you like. Mix and eat.

Allergy information: Check cottage cheese carton for corn products.

Waldorf Salad

According to the 1997 edition of the Joy of Cooking, the original Waldorf salad, invented in the 1890s by a chef at the Walforf-Astoria Hotel in New York, contained only equal parts of chopped celery and apples, dressed with mayonnaise. Later, walnuts and seeded grape halves were added later.

WALDORF SALAD

1 cup chopped firm apples
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup halved seedless or seeded (seeds removed) red grapes (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/2 to 3/4 cup mayonnaise

Mix all ingredients. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Allergy information: Mayonnaise contains eggs. Nuts can be a serious problem for some people.

Barbara's Strawberry Flowers

When the big, local strawberries are on, it's time to make these for a party.

BARBARA'S STRAWBERRY FLOWERS

Large, fresh strawberries, washed and hulled

Place hulled strawberries on a plate with the large side down. Cut partway through berries from the top to form 4 to 6 "petals". Place cream cheese filling in a piping bag, place piping tip into each berry where cuts intersect and fill each berry, being careful not to break it. The cut sections of the berries will separate into "petals". Don't fill the berries too far in advance of serving.

CREAM CHEESE GARNISH OR FILLING

Cream cheese or reduced fat cream cheese
lemon juice and powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese with a little lemon juice and with powdered sugar to taste (should be sweeter if filling tart berries).

Allergy information: Cream cheese garnish contains fermented milk products and cornstarch from the powdered sugar.

Early Bloom Observations, Early Fruit Hopes

Today, blossoms are dropping from the Royal Rosa apricot and Flavor Delight Aprium is just past mid-bloom. Both have bloomed during rainy weather and many blossoms are dropping without setting fruit. But there are some fruits here and there. There is scattered bloom on Royalty now. Harcot is starting to bloom. The Plumcot isn't blooming as heavily as normal. Maybe just an "off" year.

The little Geo Pride Pluot is in full bloom. Looks like a good companion for Flavor Supreme. The fruit gets great reviews from Fruitnut and others on the fruit forum at GardenWeb. I saw a bee in its flowers. Flavor Grenade is just starting to bloom. Burgundy plum is also blooming well. Bees like its bigger blossoms. It is the preferred pollenizer for Flavor Queen Pluot. Dapple Dandy is also blooming. The little Catalina plum tree (on Citation rootstock, like the Flavor Grenade and Geo Pride) is in full bloom. I think we killed the second Dapple Dandy tree, on the north side of the house. I planted these two as pollenizers for the Flavor Supreme.

Bees don't seem to like Flavor Supreme's blossoms much. Naturally, since it is such a wonderful early fruit. I put a big jar of Santa Rosa branchlets (blooming earlier than usual this year) and other varieties in the Flavor Supreme tree. It has attracted a few hover flies and house flies. (Trivia: Commercially-bred house flies are used to pollinate hybrid carrots). I also placed some vases of Burgundy blossoms and yellow-flowered weeds on the cross-post of the fence behind the tree. Hope to get a little more fruit set than last year. Last year, the rosemary started blooming before the fruit trees. This year, the rosemary is just starting to bloom now.

Arctic Star white nectarine is blooming, with the large, showy flowers typical of newer varieties of peaches and nectarines. This nectarine is the favorite early variety of stone fruit for Fruit Nut (nom de blog on Garden Web). He's a guy who moved from the Central Valley to the mountains of West Texas because of allergies. He built a big greenhouse to grow his favorite Valley fruits. He prefers very sweet, low acid, firm fruit as a general rule. Arctic Star was my most successful nectarine last year.

I also loved my old yellow variety "Independence", named for a gold mine like many nectarines and peaches developed at about the same time. Some other peaches and nectarines are showing a few blossoms, too. Yesterday, I saw a Panamint nectarine tree at Home Depot (named for the Panamint Mine). It may also be an early bloomer, as it has a low chill requirement. Don't know where to put another nectarine tree. Don't know what rootstock it's on. Same story for their Mariposa plum. I've tried planting Mariposa trees two times and they have failed. Probably the wrong rootstock for the sandy location.

Rice Pilaf for a Crowd (corn-free)

Whether or not you are allergic to corn, this original Near East rice pilaf is a good choice for feeding a crowd. While it is one of the few prepared foods that doesn't contain corn products, it does contain wheat (pasta).

People love it - even KIDS. They served it for breakfast at our stake's girl's camp one year. But get the restaurant-size box from Smart & Final, Sam's Club or Costco. Makes 18 one-cup servings. The small boxes are much more expensive per serving.

Uses a cube (1/2 cup) of butter (more than a teaspoon per serving). That's one thing that makes it good. Add one large or two small grated carrots, some finely diced scallion tops and/or parsley partway through cooking if you want to add some color. Throw on top of rice mixture and stir in when fluffing rice after cooking. Some diced fresh or dried bell pepper will give a different flavor - nice with diced chicken or ham added.

To enhance the flavor further, brown the butter slightly in your heavy kettle before adding the water. To use oil instead of butter, consider caramelizing a big diced onion in the oil or in a mixture of oil and butter. Or sautee some mushrooms in part of the oil. Veggies should be added on top of the rice while cooking. Or lightly mix some diced, cooked meat into the prepared pilaf for a main dish, maybe with some cooked, frozen peas.

To make a substitute for HOLIDAY DRESSING, saute 2 or 3 big diced onions in oil or oil and butter until translucent, adding a generous amount of diced celery part way through cooking. Add minced celery leaves, parsley and a little minced fresh sage, dried sage or poultry seasoning. Season with fresh-ground black pepper. Use chicken or vegetable broth in place of part of the water (watch that you don't get your mixture too salty - the pilaf mix contains plenty of salt). Some of the new boxed "natural" brands of broth contain no corn products and come in reduced-sodium versions. Pile veggies on top of rice while cooking so they don't burn, like they might if they touched the bottom of the pan.

If you're serving more than 18 people, you can stretch the mix by adding 2 cups of "converted" (parboiled) rice. Add an extra 4 cups water and celery salt/salt to taste or add 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth. Add converted rice to the boiling water/broth when you add the contents of the box. Or, cook brown rice separately according to package directions (it takes longer than white rice) and mix in when you fluff the pilaf. Add some veggies or caramelized onion as above.

For a FRIED RICE facsimile for a crowd, add 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce OR 1/3 cup shredded, peeled minced fresh ginger to water for the pilaf. Omit butter and add 1/4 cup oil. Stir-fry vegetables such as diced onion, carrot, celery, squash mushrooms, julienne water chestnuts or jicama and frozen peas in 1/4 cup oil. Add diced cooked chicken or ham if desired. When rice is cooked, lightly mix in stir-fried veggies and meat plus two or three bunches of finely sliced raw scallions and, if desired, egg scrambled, seasoned and cooked in a thin layer, then shredded. To stretch recipe, add parboiled or brown rice as above, using part soy sauce or chicken broth in place of part of the added water.