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Hi Reader,

I'm SO excited to share this with you!

First, a reminder: last year I complained in this letter about our little orchard (two plums, three apples, and a peach tree) that even though one of the plums was 4 years old and an apple 3 years old, NONE of the trees has ever had even ONE blossom.

That's right, not even one flower, let alone any fruit.

Last summer the peach - one of the youngest at only 2 years old, had 3-4 blossoms and produced one small peach (which Brian and I shared as the only produce from our "orchard" 😂).

Now, this isn't my first rodeo with fruit trees - I've planted them in all three houses we've lived in. I watered and annually topped them with compost and they reliably produced for me after the first two years.

I mean, we live in an area where apple and plum trees grow and produce in the wild, so it's not that hard, really.

Except here at the farmhouse, apparently. Is it our rocky soil? The gophers? The moles? A weird microclimate? Who knows!

But I complained and this sweet community came through!

The consensus was: FERTILIZE THEM.

Now you may laugh that it didn't occur to me before, but like I said, they grow everywhere here. 😬

So I gave them a liquid fertilizer in late spring and then pounded in the stake fertilizers in the fall and guess what???

Look at the plum tree!! This is the now 5 year old tree and it's covered in blooms. 💜

I''m so happy about this, you wouldn't believe. 😀 Then there's the peach:

While it has less than the plum, it has way more than last year (and it's only 3 years old this year).

I'm still waiting to see if the apples will blossom (they come after the leaves, which are just starting to leaf out), but a younger plum that produces later than the other one also has small blossoms emerging that I can see!

I think we may actually harvest fruit from some of these trees this year!! Thank you 😘

ALSO: stay tuned as we are planning a revamp of the orchard this spring to surround all the trees with a deer fence so they will be freed from their cages (and make it easier to prune and harvest). I'll also be adding in four new smaller beds for attempting to grow more berries (another frustrating thing that hasn't done well here).

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Easter Leftover Ideas

​Vegetable Ham Bone Soup​ Make in a slow cooker, instant pot or on the stove, this makes a ton to have or lunches or to freeze. ​

​Curried Deviled Eggs​ If you've got boiled eggs leftover use them to make deviled eggs (or use leftover deviled eggs!) and add them to a green salad as-is! It's really good - you can chop them or let each person chop them with the salad as they eat.

​Cheese Crust Ham Pot Pie​ The simplest of crusts tops this creamy pot pie featuring leftover ham and even veggies from the big dinner.

​Quick Sausage and Swiss Chard or Kale Frittata​ If you've still got eggs to use, make a frittata! You can make it like this or add any leftovers you have. Leftovers of this make great breakfasts and lunches!

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From The Blog

​10 Minute Sweet Chili Sauce - Honey Sweetened​ Cut the sugar in this spicy-sweet condiment in HALF by making it yourself. Then use it to top lettuce wraps, dip potstickers in or drizzle on rice bowls! ​ Get The Recipe Here! ​ ​

From the Archives: Spring Garden Clean Up & Weeding Tips​ It's that time of the year for gardeners. 😀 ​ Read it Here! ​

A Few More Things

After more than a year of looking at these gorgeous plates I finally ordered a set of the bowls and dessert plates! The came and they are 😍. They look wonderful with my vintage creamy Pope Grosser Rose Point dinner plates and I think food looks better on them than the red transferware I had been using. Their vintagey vibe just makes me happy.

I just finished listening to this 6th installment of the Countess of Harleigh light mystery books and it was fun to be back in that world (and with the wonderful Sarah Zimmerman narrating).

Now I'm onto this memoir narrated by Barbra, complete with old recordings of her singing dropped throughout. It's been fascinating so far (and I'm not even that big of a fan, just more curious, lol).

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Here's to a great first week of April!

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