http://www.tallcloverfarm.com Homeward bound on Puget Sound. Putting in a good day on Vashon Island time. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:31:55 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4539/avalon-pride-sweet-peach-with-a-nice-nose http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4539/avalon-pride-sweet-peach-with-a-nice-nose#comments Wed, 17 Aug 2011 20:48:06 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4539 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Peach fuzz and big noses: comparative profile analysis. Peach harvest was a bust this year; of seven varieties of leaf curl resistant peach trees only one bore fruit, and for that one tree, one fruit was its maximum output. Yes, I picked one peach for my year’s worth of peach tree pampering. (Good thing I [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4539/avalon-pride-sweet-peach-with-a-nice-nose/feed 13 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4419/every-time-you-bruise-a-peach-a-farmer-cries http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4419/every-time-you-bruise-a-peach-a-farmer-cries#comments Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:37:20 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4419 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } A quick press can leave a lasting and unpalatable impression It’s no secret I love peaches–their rich flavor, succulent juice and heady perfume. I’m even starstruck (and foolish) enough to try to grow them in the maritime Pacific Northwest.  This year my eleven Peach Leaf Curl Resistant trees remain basically fruitless. I have a very [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4419/every-time-you-bruise-a-peach-a-farmer-cries/feed 42 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3230/one-green-world-nursery-delivers-the-goods http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3230/one-green-world-nursery-delivers-the-goods#comments Sat, 19 Feb 2011 20:58:51 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=3230 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } I read seed and nursery catalogs like dime-store novels. Will the characters within the dog-eared pages deliver on their promises. Will their potential be realized, or will some find their end in a wheelbarrow ride to the compost heap? Will their shortcomings haunt me every time I come across a wilted leaf or withered branch? [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3230/one-green-world-nursery-delivers-the-goods/feed 20 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/2500/peach-tree-report-2010-neither-peachy-nor-keen http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/2500/peach-tree-report-2010-neither-peachy-nor-keen#comments Wed, 13 Oct 2010 19:41:07 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=2500 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Growing Puget Sound Peaches:  The Good, the Bad and the Ugly After trying to grow peaches this year, I think I may turn to something easier, like rearing silkworms or raising sea monkeys. My optimistic nature suffered as an unusually long, wet spring  hindered pollination, and cooler-than-average summer temperatures thwarted vigorous tree growth and fruit [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/2500/peach-tree-report-2010-neither-peachy-nor-keen/feed 26 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/525/two-peaches-are-better-than-one http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/525/two-peaches-are-better-than-one#comments Sat, 17 Oct 2009 03:20:38 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=525 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Indian Free Peach Harvest: One for Each Hand   In a month where plump pumpkins take center stage, green tomatoes consume counter space faster than we consume them, and wet leaves hitch a ride on unsuspecting soles, I awaited the finale of one of summer’s finest players, my Indian Free peach tree.   Between spring rains, high winds, lowly squirrels, [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/525/two-peaches-are-better-than-one/feed 10 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/371/peach-tree-report-2009update-on-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/371/peach-tree-report-2009update-on-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties#comments Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:28:08 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=371 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } White-flesh Charlotte peach, this year’s star performer Greetings fellow peach aficionados. Unfortunately, 2009 was not a bumper year for peaches here at tall clover farm  (a pronouncement duly noted by the case of Yakima peaches resting at my feet). Our unusually hot, dry summer would have ushered in a nice crop if only spring felt obliged to share the same temperament. [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/371/peach-tree-report-2009update-on-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties/feed 22 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/147/gem-of-a-jama-recipe-for-preserving-summer http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/147/gem-of-a-jama-recipe-for-preserving-summer#comments Fri, 24 Oct 2008 02:53:07 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=147 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Peach preserve that looks more like raspberry jam. While the garnet color of my Indian Free peaches still fascinates me, it’s their flavor that leaves my tastebuds at odds. There’s the lingering aftertaste of peach, but only after the tastebuds take a one-two punch of cherry and blackberry, respectively. It’s crazy; but more importantly it’s delicious. To prolong this gift [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/147/gem-of-a-jama-recipe-for-preserving-summer/feed 11 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/144/peach-of-a-peachindian-free-unique-on-all-levels http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/144/peach-of-a-peachindian-free-unique-on-all-levels#comments Mon, 20 Oct 2008 00:12:24 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=144 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Eye of prize: for me, peaches; for Boz, a cheeky little squirrel Here’s a peach that pushes the envelope on being a peach. 1. Thrives in cool clime of of coastal Pacific Northwest 2. Scoffs at peach leaf curl. (Ha! take that  Taphrina deformans!) 3. Sports a thick fuzzy Mahogany brown skin 4. Enjoys freestone status and very firm [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/144/peach-of-a-peachindian-free-unique-on-all-levels/feed 19 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/114/peach-trees-peach-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/114/peach-trees-peach-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties#comments Sat, 06 Sep 2008 01:18:57 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=114 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Mt homegrown peaches: mystery peach on the left, apricot-size Oregon Curl Free to the right.    Indian Free Peach; most unusual and very late season Growing peach trees organically can be a real challenge in the Pacific Northwest, but with the renewed interest and recent introduction of varieties that are resistant to the dreaded peach leaf curl, the [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/114/peach-trees-peach-leaf-curl-resistant-varieties/feed 30 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/74/the-best-way-to-ripen-peaches http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/74/the-best-way-to-ripen-peaches#comments Sat, 05 Jul 2008 01:04:21 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=74 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } It took four days for this peach to ripen, note the dripping juice. A Ripe Peach Is Worth the Wait I love peaches too much to eat them as the rock hard flavorless orbs we’ve come to expect from the local grocer.  It’s worth every penny to buy from local growers or grow peaches yourself as it [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/74/the-best-way-to-ripen-peaches/feed 154 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/25/how-to-plant-a-bareroot-fruit-tree http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/25/how-to-plant-a-bareroot-fruit-tree#comments Wed, 09 Apr 2008 04:36:52 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=25 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; }  My Avalon Pride peach tree takes root and sprouts some shoots one year after planting. I wanted to add some peach trees to my orchard and thanks to One Green World nursery and UPS, three peach leaf curl resistant varieties showed up on my doorstep in no time at all. I chose Avalon Pride Peach, Oregon [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/25/how-to-plant-a-bareroot-fruit-tree/feed 10 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/20/hes-a-smooth-pollinator http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/20/hes-a-smooth-pollinator#comments Fri, 04 Apr 2008 03:33:26 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=20 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; }   Let me just say peach trees are worth the effort, and in the Pacific Northwest that’s some effort. Our rainy cool climate tricks the peach into blooming early–early enough that no bee worth his knees is going to be foraging for pollen or nectar. Even the heavy hitter pollinator of the hood, the orchard mason bee, [...]

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