It's Peach Season!

My peach tree is loaded with peaches!  So much so that the added weight have some of the branches drooping close to the ground, even though I pruned the tree to be able to walk and mow beneath said limbs without any issues.

Unfortunately, the tree has some sort of fungus, which it has had for years now and it also affects the fruit too.  Many rot and mold up on the tree, some have spot damage, etc.  However, that being said, the peaches are still delicious!

As you might imagine the local critters do not care about a blemish or bruise or mold, nope.  They are still drawn to and seem to come out of the woodwork to feast on the fruit that falls.

The deer, however, have no problems eating both the peaches while still on the tree and the tender ends of the tree limbs, see pic below, as they're the perfect height -

At the same time as the peaches are ripening, areas of my lawn and veggie gardens show signs of a skunk.  Plus I've seen it out there when I let Trixie out at night to do her business.  It takes off running when the light comes on and I step out on the back deck.

It's out there digging for grubs, so I welcome it's presence and the removal of as many grubs as it can gorge on.  However, what I do NOT like is when it digs for said grubs in my lawn because it destroys the lawn and makes a mess -

And not to mention that the darn skunk is pooping EVERYWHERE, gross -

Also, I've been watching a woodchuck sneak over from the neighbors yard, through my fence, to grab a peach and dart back over to and under the shed.  I've come to learn that peaches are a woodchucks kryptonite, so it's time to take advantage of this fact and set my traps!

Tuesday evening I bait and set my trap but instead of waking up on Wednesday morning to a trapped woodchuck, I instead woke to a trapped skunk, alas!

I didn't want to mess with the trap and skunk, so I simply propped open the traps door and the skunk eventually made it's way out, through the fence and under the neighbors shed -

I'm not dismayed and still wanting to take advantage of the peaches, so I reset my trap Wednesday afternoon around 4ish, and now we wait!

Just over an hour later when I emerge from my shower what do my wandering eyes see but Mr. woodchuck trapped - 

Being freshly showered and hungry myself I contemplated on whether to deal with it then or wait until morning.  Since woodchucks are gross - their poop anyway, I opted for an evening drive -

And YES, as you might have guessed, this SOB left me a present in my trunk, well actually 4 smelly and wet and gross present pieces, GROSS and PU!

One problem solved...

Peachy Peachy!

Our peach tree is loaded with peaches.

The tree was planted by the previous home owners, so it's over 20+ years old now.  It had some sort of fungus when we moved in and it's only gotten worse over the years, slowly killing it.  I've been pruning the dead limbs each fall for the past several years, so there's really not too much left.  The peaches are super tasty but they too have something going on with them - they have, what I'd call, rust spots on them with some oozing sap.  Although, there is a lot of fruit hanging, sadly not too much is edible.

Our last rabbit, Jack, loved this time of the year and gobbled the peaches as fast as you could put them in his cage.  Even some of the chickens we've had in the past would enjoy them but not the ones we have now.  I swear these chickens we have now are like many kids today; fussy, entitled and spoiled, and want noting to do with peaches.

So, the wild rabbits and woodchucks eat their share but all others that fall end up in the compost pile.

I've been contemplating cutting the tree down, so I can reclaim that area and possibly have a shed installed.  This fall just might the time...

It's Last Hurrah!

This is our peach tree.

The previous owners planted this tree over 20+ years ago.

We've been here 20 years now and each fall we've had oodles of peaches.  Sadly, the tree has been on the decline for many years now.  I can't recall the disease it has but it's one that is somewhat common in fruit trees but also fatal.  I've pruned back the dead branches and limbs the last several seasons and it's now down to essentially a single stock.  Even the peaches themselves seem to now have some sort of issue.  They're splotchy and most have sticky goo oozing from them, alas.  Jack 2.0, our Holland lop rabbit absolutely loves peaches and eats them completely down to the pits, which litter his cage.

The tree has also served as the host to the bird feeders we hang in the fall, with birds perched throughout as they wait their turn to eat.  Sadly, I'm planning on cutting this tree down come fall, it's time.  Also, I've been thinking about, wanting and needing a shed and if this was to happen it's location would be in this general area, so I need to plan and prep.

First Peach Blossom of 2019

First peach tree blossom of the season!  Seemingly over night the rest of the tree popped too.

It's Peachy!

The come slow but then seemingly overnight they all ripen at once and begin falling.  Seems many a critter enjoy fresh, ripe peaches, as there are more peach pits scattering the ground than actual peaches.

I eat what I can and share others with Jack 2.0 (our mini lop rabbit).  The damaged and eaten ones go into a bucket, which is eventually added to the compost pile.

As of this posting, 9-15-2018, all of the peaches have fallen off; the tree is now bare.

You're A Peach Hon!

Our peach tree, which the previous homeowners planted many, many years ago, is hanging on and like clock work presented us with some beautiful flowers this Spring.  It suffers from a couple diseases that I'm aware of and maybe more - Gummosis and peach scab (aka "freckles"), and sadly doesn't produce as many peach as it had years ago.  I faithful prune it each year to remove the affected limbs but in doing so the tree is slowly becoming a Charlie Brown type tree.

The Peach

I was out back tending to the critters a short time ago when this BIG succulent and juicy peach caught my eye.  It was calling out to me - "hello friend", "pick me", "eat me" "you won't be sorry"...

So, I did what any home gardener would do.  I picked it and I ate it and I VERY much enjoyed it!

IT was heavenly!

Peach Pair

Pick the last 2 peaches of the season.

Edible Juicy Fruit Tree

 

When we bought our house the previous owners planted a peach tree.  For years now it's been producing peaches come late Summer, see above from this season.  However, the tree has some sort of a bacterial canker to which sadly there is no cure.

 

This bacterial canker produces a jelly-like ooze that seeps from tree/limbs.  This problem existed from day one but back then the ooze was limited to a couple spots.  The first couple of years, and before I realized there is no cure for this canker, I sprayed the tree each Spring before the blooms in the hope of eliminating it.

 

Today, the ooze has spread and is throughout the tree, yet it's still fighting on and producing fruit.  The fruit however is hurting also. Very few are edible, as they're spotted, rot on the limbs and/or contain the ooze themselves.  The rabbits love them just the same and eagerly look forward to getting them.  Frustratingly, the woodchucks love them too and they venture out of their safety zone to dine.

 

Since there is no cure the tree really needs to come down.  I'm postponing this task because this is the tree we hang our winter bird feeders from and it's where the birds perch and rest when waiting their turn or working up the courage to grab a bite.  Taking this dude down will then leave the birds with no comfort zone, alas...

Bucket-O-Peaches

It's been a while since I posted a "Bucket-O" photo, so I present to you a bucket-o peaches.

We didn't have good luck with our peaches this year. A large number of them began falling off the tree before they were ready, the ones that remained and ripened had a lot of defects although tasty just the same. Our rabbits were not bothered by the defects and enjoyed them immensely. Although, they had to compete with Emilie who insisted on collecting them in this bucket. However, unlike acorns peaches have a short bucket life, so the ones that didn't get eaten were relegated to the compost pile.

Peaches

Our peaches are almost ready. Don't they look delicious? Well, they have been in past years, so I can only assume they'll be just as tasty this year too, no reason to think otherwise - I'll let you know. I bet you're all jealous and have peach envy too.

The rabbits enjoy the peach tree too; they love to eat the peaches and the leaves. Any peaches that are questionable or are on the soft and rotten side go into the rabbit cages and gobbled up in no time. Emilie likes to pick up the leaves that fall and feed them to the bunnies, which they eagerly devour. Come to think of it last year the woodchucks would venture out and eat the peaches that fell to the ground. Not a big as there were plenty but I'd rather feed my animals instead of some pesky rodent. The good news, at least I think it's good news, is that the woodchucks are no longer around this year. They've migrated to my dad's yard and have become a HUGE nuisance there by helping themselves to his garden vegetables.