The Cottage Smallholder

Yep, Marilyn, you could call it a poor cropping year - we didn't even get any blossom this year, so not a single apple. In fact, none of our apple trees have produced any apples this year.

Our Morello cherries, Conference pears, Victoria plums and crab apples - big bounty, but no apples.

However, many, many years ago, and in a supermarket in Holland, I bought a very unusual pelargonium*, and each year we take cuttings. At the end of the season we always have far too many to look after, so often have to ask around for any takers for our surplus. This year we happened on a lady who sells flowers at the roadside outside her own home. She was over the moon with these wonderful flowers, and said "Come and take as many apples as you wish, we have a tree-load!" I have been cooking up apples since!!

*I think the pelargonium (which had no label) is "Minstrel Boy" - the flower looks like a chocolate butterfly, and is very vigorous.