Wordless Wednesday: Peeled and Ready to Cook

Happy Halloween, Fruit, Food & Community Garden

Hey everyone, happy Halloween! I've been missing in action but I'm still alive. ;)

Today was the November work party for Cottonwood Community Gardens. I've been assigned kiwi duty so I spent most of my time there. The pruning has been finished for the most part so we've constructed as woodchip path through the area beneath the kiwi arbour and added some compost to fertilize for next year.

I also tried three new fruit today. The first one is called a Fuyu Persimmon. I've noticed dozens of these mid-sized trees across the city which appear to have mini pumpkins dangling from them (the one in the picture has less pronounced ridges than most). These are in fact a hardy variety of persimmon which is only ripe when it has a soft, mushy texture. It tastes like a cross between a pumpkin/squash and a mango. Not too sweet or fibrous, basically just right.

I also tried some tomatillos both raw and fried with butter. Very interesting. Sort of like a sweeter unripe tomato with a lemon twist. These were followed by some small 'grape kiwi' that were about the size of cherry tomatoes. They were delicious and taste just like the larger kiwi but don't have a hairy covering so you can eat them right off the vine. I had both a male and female plant back in Ontario but never ended up getting any fruit.

To finish off the day I'll be making some banana bread. I didn't have baking powder/soda so I'm trying to use yeast and I'll just let it sit for an hour or so. Hopefully it works and I don't end up with some banana brick! I'll upload the recipe and a picture if it turns out.

BTW Does anyone know what this fruit is? EDIT: Barry Parker has determined it's a Common Medlar (Mespilus germanica). Apparently they're one of the few fruits to ripen in winter. It is related to the Loquat which is also hardy in Vancouver.

Also what variety of Ficus is this? I'm thinking a Ficus carica hybrid. I've seen both green and brown figs in Vancouver but nothing with leaves like these. EDIT: Identified by College Gardener as Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera).

Spring in the Air

It's starting to warm up and it feels like spring may be close.  Next week we're suppose to have several days up around 4C (40F) so the remaining snow should be gone.  I took a few pictures just to show you what it looks like this time of year in London.  We're getting a lot of sun which is a welcome change from the dreary winter.

Over the last few days the snow has started to melt.  Seeing grass again really puts a smile on my face and the cloudless sky doesn't hurt either.

Here you can see the Canada Geese taking advantage of the newly exposed grass.  I don't know if they still migrate from further north, but here the majority just stay around all winter.  You see some flocks in the fall but there don't seem to be any less geese on the ground.  They've started to spend more time in pairs, getting ready for spring nesting.

Spring Salad!  This really has nothing to do with anything but I made this salad for lunch today and it was really good.  It has spinach, iceberg lettuce, broccoli, apple, celery, cherry tomatoes, spanish onion, cheddar cheese, ranch dressing, a dash or parmesan cheese, and some dried cranberries.  Yum!  I've never put dried cranberries in a salad before and highly recommend it.