The Neighbor Who Bears Juicy News

Stock photo

Today, I drove over to the house to meet with the chimney sweep to get an assessment of the fireplace.  While the guys were cleaning it out, I spied an older lady smoking on the back porch of the house next door.  I had seen her before but thought now would be a good time to introduce myself.

She eagerly told me that she used to own the home.  She let it go back to the bank.   Thanks to her the home is clad with a newer roof, newer siding, and relatively new windows.  These features made it a good buy for me, even though there are many repairs to do.

She was also a prodigious gardener.  Flower bulbs are growing all over the lot and include daffodils, happily being yellow, and tulips whose colors we cannot yet see.

As quickly as I could into the conversation, without seeming opportunistic, I asked whether all of the flowering trees, with their pink and their white blooms, were fruit trees.  What a precious answer!  Yes, yes and yes.  A pear tree grows in the back, a yellow peach and an apricot on the side, and an apple, two pears and a "fruit cocktail" tree in the front.

Stock photo of an apple blossom

Her description of how luscious and juicy the yellow peaches are had me longing for harvest time this summer.  Maybe I will learn how to can fruit.

As for my neighbor, she now lives in the Philippines and is on a lengthy visit to her cousin, who lives next door.  She works a few hours per week at a hotel in town.

Questions bombard my mind to ask her the next time I see her.  As predicted this hand watering is now old after only two times.  So, how does the irrigation system work?  Which trees have which fruit?  What needs to be done to the fruit trees throughout the year?  Does the garage floor flood during heavy rain?  What is underneath the siding?