Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Apples and Dahlias and Tiger in the Garden
Today I took a stroll through my garden and this is what I saw.
The Apple
One would think it’s easy to grow apples in Washington State, a major exporter of the delicious crop. One would be wrong (unless one lives in Wenatchee which calls itself the Apple Capital of the World.)
I planted a semi dwarf apple tree two years ago in my garden, and added another pollinator tree this year. I was encouraged to see several promising apples earlier in the spring. See picture below for the only healthy apple that remains on my tree. I’m hoping it will not go the way of the others, scabby and dropping prematurely to the earth. I will give it a few more days before I harvest it. I plan to savor every bite.
The Dahlias
The dahlias on the other hand, are at their best this month, faithful and eager to please.
I cannot take credit for them. These came from my mom’s garden a few years ago and she even planted them. The (expensive) ones I planted next to them earlier this spring did not come up; maybe they were waterlogged from the record rainfall this year.
Tiger
This is Tiger with the lone healthy apple.
Here he is again in the barren spot which had been allotted to the aforementioned dahlias that failed to appear this year.
And that is all from today’s walk through the garden.
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 
Our apples are scrawny too, but our plums are terrific, and we have a very nice pear ripening in our kitchen window. Our grapes have been prodigious–we’ve harvested over 30 lbs. and have more to pick. Evidently fruit thrives on smoke out here!
Ok that’s encouraging! I guess I’ll be thankful for whatever I get. 😊
Ah, I have a correction to make: Vic just brought in two classically large Honeycrisps! One had a little split (no one was in it) and we ate half the apple, which was delicious! But we’re a lot closer than you are to Wenatchee and apple country.
There’s nothing better than apples fresh off a tree. I’m hoping to enjoy ours soon. Then it looks like I need to pay more attention to the tree next year with fertilizer or whatever else you’re supposed to do to get good apples! 🙂
The flowers look lovely, but make sure you eat that apple before it falls! 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
Yes I’m on it! ☺
I love the photo with Tiger and the apple. The perspective is so cool! Your flowers are doing great too!
Thank you! 😊
I feel your disappointment. I know from experience that losing some of the few apples you have can be a bit demoralising. However, it’s a young tree and apple trees do take a few years to get going. Assuming the weather cooperates, it will probably do better next year. Certainly, mine did in its third or fourth year. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot you can do about the moths and their hungry maggots making the apples drop early, except picking the apples before they drop (look for the ones with holes in) and cooking them up.
Thanks for your comment.😊 I haven’t examined them closely to understand all their afflictions but I will; I’ll enjoy what I can this year and hope for the best in years to come!