July Tips: FRUIT AND NUTS

July Tips: FRUIT AND NUTS

After harvesting your strawberries, remove excess runners and any
unhealthy crowns.

To keep birds away from fruit trees, try fake snakes.
Cut a garden hose into pieces about four feet long, and place among
the branches.

To see if blueberries are ripe enough to pick, pull some berries off
the stems. If they come off easily, they are ready to harvest. If
not, they need to ripen more. Cover with netting, or the birds will
beat you to the fruit.

Allow peaches and plums to ripen on the tree. Harvest them just as
they begin to soften.

What's a plumcot or an aprium? Both are fruit varieties produced by
crossing plums with apricots and are available on a very limited
scale from fruit tree, mail-order catalogs or at specialty nurseries.
They are reported to be sweet and juicy.

Grape leaves, the "wrappers" in many Middle Eastern appetizers and
entrees, are easy to freeze for a year-round supply. Gather young,
unsprayed leaves, lay them flat in freezer containers and freeze.
When
ready to use, scald leaves in boiling water for 30 seconds, then run
cold water over them until they are cool.

Harvest raspberries frequently to discourage Japanese beetles or sap
beetles from becoming troublesome. Both insects are especially
attracted to ripe and overripe fruit.

Fireblight on apple and pear trees can be identified by looking for
blackened twigs and branches. The disease will spread and kill the
tree if not controlled. Remove all blighted twigs, cutting eight
inches below the infected area. Disinfect pruning tools after each
cut
to prevent spreading the disease. Dip the blades in a solution of one
part household bleach and nine parts water.

Cover blueberry bushes with plastic netting or fine cloth (tobacco
cloth) to control birds. When harvesting blueberries, allow berries
to remain on the plants for three to five days after they turn blue.
Waiting several days allows berries to reach their maximum sugar
content.

Ripening grape clusters may be covered with brown paper, polyethylene
bags, or nylon netting to reduce bird damage. If using bags, provide
ventilation with holes in the bottom of the bags.

Strawberries need summer care. If you have your plants in hills, pick
off all runners. If you planted a matted row, encourage the runners
to root and grow until the row is 2 feet wide.