My husband and I voted early, as did most of my friends, and listening to political advertisements and constant flurries of statistics and predictions was something I've wanted to avoid ever since. Unlike a certain billionaire, I can't give people a million dollars to "encourage" them to vote (and I certainly wouldn't act in support of the man he does). However, I decided that an innocuous condition-free giveaway of my own might provide the diversion I needed on Election Day.
I got started with my preparations on Monday. The obvious focus was the two persimmon trees, which have been laden with fruit this year. The trees' branches have strained under the weight of it and critters had started going after that fruit, breaking branches in the process. It was time for a harvest.
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| These are both shots of Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu'. I tackled the fruit shown on the left first, collecting 4 dozen undamaged persimmons to give away. The fruit on the right, hanging over the fence, still needs picking. |
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| The flat-bottomed 'Fuyu' persimmons are shown in closeup on the left. The rounder 'Hachiya' persimmon is shown on the tree (right). I harvested 3 dozen of the latter as a start. |
As I'd spent several hours cleaning up our back slope over the past weekend, I knew I also had an excess of lemons so I decided to add a bucket of those to my giveaway too.
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| The lemons that looked like this one, presumably stripped of their skin by rats, went in the green bin but I was able to pick more than 2 dozen lemons in good shape |
As we had just two children show up at the door on Halloween, I also had leftover candy I needed to unload give away. And of course I usually have succulents to pass along. All combined, I was able to put together one of my larger giveaways.
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| I took photos with my phone after my initial set-up, which is a good thing as by the time I returned with my regular camera some things were already gone |
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| Both varieties of persimmons were offered, along with bags if walkers needed help in carrying the fruit home. A prior post on the differences between the 2 varieties can be found here. |
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| The candy and the lemons are shown here |
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| I put out 2 large rosettes of Agave attenuata (aka foxglove agave) I'd removed from different areas. They weren't planted in soil but both had developed roots. In addition, I added several pots containing pups of a Mangave, 2 varieties of Agaves, and an Aloe. Surprising to me, all the small succulents disappeared quickly but the 2 foxtail agaves hadn't caught anyone's interest when I last checked in the late afternoon. |
If you're a US resident, I hope you found a way to focus on little things that make you happy yesterday (after voting of course). I imagine it's going to take a while to sort out the results given all the reports predicting a close race. Be sure to take time to breathe!
All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
And, here we are. Feeling a lot of things right now, but determined to continue on as best as I can given the situation. Right now, I've got a lightly snoring cat on my lap and I am reading garden blogs in our warm house. I am grateful for that. Per today's post, the most shocking thing was your lemon - I had no idea that would be attractive to rats. Nice to see kindness and sharing of the bounty with your neighbors. Wishing you and yours all the best as we move forward into an interesting new world.
ReplyDeleteI knew the vote was a toss up but I was still surprised by this one, Jerry. However, I'm with you on moving forward and I'm appropriating/paraphrasing the AA creed: to accept the things I cannot change and act with courage to change the things I can. As I keep repeating to my friends, we have to remember that there's still a huge portion of the population that shares many of values and concerns we hold dear.
DeleteAs I've said before your neighbors are very lucky, what a giveaway, what a nice distraction for you. Turns out we're gonna need a lot more of those (distractions).
ReplyDeleteI think many of us could do with a sedative today, Loree. The winds are up here with forecasters warning of an "extreme" Santa Ana wind event today and fire risk intensifying. Although I can't smell smoke, the sky has suddenly taken a foggy look but humidity had dropped and there's no fog. Apparently, there's a fast-moving fire in Malibu already...
DeleteLucky neighbors to have you nearby. I first tasted persimmons just a few years ago and loved them. Wishing you peace in these disappointing times.
ReplyDeleteThanks, right back at you, Susie. At least the race for governor in NC ended on the right note.
DeleteI guess the the only positive is that we won't have an instant replay of Jan 6 and all the other rigged election crapola we've been subjected to since the last one. That was high on my anxiety list. It's windy as hell here too-red flag warning etc. I expect I'll be checking the Cal Fire frequently .
ReplyDeleteI thought of that too, Kathy. Although a short-term battle versus a 4-year sentence might have been worth something in the long run. There are 3 fires in SoCal that I know of so far.
DeleteKind of you to do all that. I hope your neighbors appreciate you!
ReplyDeleteWind roaring here. No outdoors today.
The persimmons were mostly gone before I left late this morning to meet a friend for lunch and mutual hand wringing. The candy, lemons and all but the largest succulent were all gone by that point. Time to harvest more persimmons!
DeleteI would love to have some of your virtual persimmons. (It was shocking news to come back to from our hike)
ReplyDeleteAlthough not altogether a surprise, the news shocked me and virtually everyone I know too, Diana. It's sad when perceptions about what one person claims he can do with the economy eclipses all other factors.
DeleteThat is kind of you to provide some giveaways. I don't know what to say about the election; I'm still trying to process it all... Peace.
ReplyDeleteThankfully, at least we can indeed say the mood is peaceful at the moment as there's no one asserting that the election was stolen. It's still a question as to whether this is the calm before a storm of a different kind.
DeleteYour neighbors must love your generosity, Kris! 💕
ReplyDeleteI had a rough start today, so hard to believe we're facing another 4 years of cringe-worthy news. God, help us! Eliza
We may indeed have a tough 4 years ahead of us, Eliza. But we can focus on the issues we have hope of affecting and march ahead, if at a slower pace than we'd hoped for.
DeleteA neighbor a few houses down the street had a persimmon tree planted in the parking strip. Every year, just in time for Halloween, it is covred with ripe orange fruit, and every year it's left on the tree to rot. If I ever run into someone who lives there I'd volunteer to pick the fruit... I love persimmons!
ReplyDelete4 years minus one day left to go...
Chavli
I expect that homeowner would appreciate the offer, Chavli. The fruit is much more manageable to handle before it rots! I wonder if someone will issue a countdown clock for the new administration...
DeleteActs of kindness are what is going to get people through dark times. You are a role model. Would love to be one of your neighbours.
ReplyDeleteThanks Elaine. I'm just happy that most of what I left out was promptly picked up :) The only thing I gave up on was the larger Agave attenuata, which I deposited in my green bin this morning - too big to walk home with maybe.
DeleteYou are so kind. It's acts like these that give me hope for humanity.
ReplyDeleteI suspect people are kinder in general than it may seem at this moment in history, Gerhard. However, many are so focused on what is (or isn't) on the plate in front of them that they can't see the bigger long-range consequences of their short-term decisions.
DeleteYou are a wonderful neighbor! *I would've grabbed the large attenuata. I was happy to be out of the country for the election, a bit of a buffer.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you had the opportunity to distract yourself with a wonderful trip, Tracy! Almost everyone I knew was looking forward to Election Day to being over and done with. It's too bad chaos and negative politics didn't end with it :(
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