Plums and cherries are ripe in N. Alabama

Everyone needs to start asking around...if you haven't already...to see who may have fruit available in your area!

I went to help a friend clear a wind damaged tree from his mothers property, a couple of miles away.

I returned home with free access to a huge plum tree (I had thought plums came only from bushes) that is dropping ripe plums as I'm now speaking!

And, two large cherry trees that are loaded with bright red cherries...boy, are they tart, though!

And, thickets of blueberries that are still green, but loaded!

I've got to load up on fermentors, and take the plunge on a fruit press, I'm thinking.

The things one can find when stumbling around on other peoples property!

Pogo

EDIT: Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention lots and lots of fig bushes!

Plums make a great melomel, and those tart cherries are the best to ferment with, much more cherry flavour than the sweet cherries. BTW, get a cherry pitter, it'll pay for itself the 1st time you use it. I've been curious as to how figs ferment, and just what sort of flavour profile they would add to a mead/melomel; they always seemed very sweet & low in acid to me. They're kind of hard to come by here in MT, so I doubt I'll be using figs any times soon. Enjoy your good fortune! Regards, GF.

My cherry trees just finished blooming. Plum tree died last year.

But, I have lots of rhubarb.

I have 3 big cherry trees and get about 3 lbs of half ripe fruit after the birds take their share. cherries are good because they ripen so early. I din't know there were any plum trees that would ripen so early.

GF - Thanks, and thanks also for the tip about a cherry pittier, you are a wise man!

david42 - These cherry trees are the first I have ever seen outside of a magazine or TV. I can't believe that there aren't more around these parts.

Like the cherry trees, I've heard of rhubarb, and seen pictures, but I've no idea what it taste's like, or how to use it.

greg - Hmmm, I hope the birds leave me some!

BTW - I went to collect todays fallen plums and was shown an elderberry bush, loaded with still green berries, that they also said I can have all I want.

I had gotten a taste of some local elderberry wine last year that was fantastic, but I had never even seen an elderberry bush, or eaten an elderberry.

At least NOW I know what the bushes look like

The only catch to all of this is that I can't tell my friend's 80 year old mother that I intend to make wine with her fruit. She sees the scriptures as condemning the USE alcohol, where as I see the scriptures condemning the ABUSE of alcohol. <sigh>

I'm starting to cringe a bit as I'm realizing the work I'm facing.

The merits of kit wine is starting to become more appealing!

Pogo

Wow, it's amazing each year (or maybe the amazing part is that each year I'm amazed?) to see how different the times are from one area to another...

We have 92 acres of orchard here, probably not more than 4% is in pears and plums, the rest is in various apple cultivars. We just finished the apple bloom this past week, pears were done about 2 week before that.

Rhubarb is going great guns. Strawberries will be ready in another 10-12 days or so. Blackberries and raspberries aren't even in bloom yet...

I have just planted a ('nother) small vineyard consisting of Cynthianna, Vivant, Traminette, Chardonel, and Chambourcin. Three years more and they'll be producing. I'm looking for some land to plant more. But, if I do that, I probably won't leave the area, lol! I'm no longer fond of 9-month winters, 3-month springs, 3-month autumns and when summer comes pray it's on a Sunday afternoon so we can enjoy it if it's not raining. And I'm only half kidding! I'm very much looking forward to moving to better climes; better for people, and better for grapes.

But, like the vines, I'll grow where I'm planted.

And as for Scripture, the notion of God being against the DRINK is indeed rubbish (no disrespect to your mother or anyone else). Traditions of men, you might say. He is, however, very much against the being drunk, as you are correct in stating. It was He that gave the wine, after all, and He that put the yeast with the grape naturally. Remember that wine was used to preserve the grape harvest from going bad, not to make something whereby we could become inebriated. Beer was used to preserve the grain harvest from spoiling and being eaten by the rats and mice, and hops was added later as a natural preservative. Now, in our days of leisure, we make things to please us rather than simply to preserve in liquid form.

I know that there's no convincing most folks who've got it set that alcohol is bad, and I'm not suggesting that you try. It just is what it is.

Best wishes to you!