Magnificent May Fruit and Vegetables

The weather may be changing. However, without a doubt, this month is a fabulous month for harvest… the last of the autumn fruit and vegetables are to be had, just days before the official onset of winter.

This May, May 2016, has been characterised by a succession of very warm days. In fact, in our locale, the warmth and the lack of rainfall has meant that, uncharacteristically, we have needed to water young vegetables and needy fruit trees.

So, what have been the highlights?

Despite their small size, our Smooth Pineapple patch has provide us with three juicy fruits this month.

They have size this year but the quantity is low.

Lacking the productivity of its first crop last autumn, the starfruit tree has produced a small, second crop of six delicious fruits... these will be processed into a quenching juice.

This superb bunch of baby bananas (Pisang awak / Kluai nam wa) has been developing and extending throughout the month. It will be many months before harvest, perhaps January or February.

Chinese, Mohican and Lebanese Eggplants

We have enjoyed the final harvest of the season of our hard vegetables... eggplants, okra

and Asian Winged Beans. Aside from hard vegetables we have been able to have regular picks of choy sum and red amaranth. As unsightly as it has become, the red amaranth has been allowed to form and drop its seed in readiness for next year's adventitious crop.

Finally, I should not forget to mention the flowers. May is the traditional month for the mass display of beautiful Brazilian zygo cactus plants.

A beautiful example of a Zygo Cactus flower... 'Sunburst Fantasy'

And what about June?

This will be the month of the soft vegetables… wo sun (celtuce), yao mak, choy sum, coriander. Our seeds have been planted... we await the return...

Wishing you hours of enjoyment and contentment in your garden…