December 2007
The Daley News
We would love to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very fruitful Christmas and a wonderful New Year.
In this Newsletter
1. You can now send Fruit Trees as A Birthday, Thankyou or Christmas Gift.
2. Don Burke talks Dwarf Fruit Trees with Daleys Nursery - Watch Video
3. Kath discusses the Black Sapote or Chocolate Pudding Fruit.
4. Reflection on the Fruiting Successes and Trials namely the Big Frost for 2007
5. New Videos - We have added a few more videos for you.
Send a Fruitful Gift this Christmas
Do you like the idea of sending a box of fruit trees to your loved ones door. Here is video demonstration and remember we still have Gift Vouchers for Christmas.
Video: Don Burke talks with Kath about Dwarf Fruit Trees
Reminder: Watch Don Burke this Sunday Night on NBN 6:30-7:30pm (25 Nov 2007) as he talks about Dwarf Fruit Trees. Press below to listen to Kath from Daleys Fruit Tree Nursery discuss Dwarf Fruit Trees on Dons weekly Radio Program.
I feel I have been very lucky recently to have the opportunity to chat with Don and
Marea Burke. It all began as a little discussion about the joys of dwarf fruit trees with Don on his weekly radio show on 2UE in Sydney. We shipped a box of the dwarf trees down to Don and Marea and they are going to be shown this Sunday, 25/11/2007 on the new Burkes Backyard Special, 6.30 - 7.30pm on NBN which is very exciting. Intrigued to find out more about one of the best known gardeners in Australia I have got my hands on Don's book, Indigenous - The Making of My Native Garden. It is an invaluable resource for any gardener with an interest in native plants and garden design.
Frost Protection For 2007
As usual the year has flown by and it is already nearing its end. The outstanding event of the year for us here at the nursery was the big frosts back in July, dare I mention them again but they have had a significant impact here at the nursery and our orchard is still in the process of recovering. It took us all a long time to venture back down to the orchard after the frosts as it was so disheartening at the time. All our subtropical evergreen trees were hit very badly and some such as the star apples, santols, and some of the mangos have not recovered. The custard apples, cherimoyas, Mexican soncoya, lychees, and black sapotes are slowly recovering. The avocados aborted all their fruits which almost brought tears to our eyes as some were just about to begin ripening, the trees however are all recovering very well and are beginning to look like normal avocado trees again as are the carambolas and wampees.
The orchard despite its setback remains an inspiring space, after a visit today I have filled my belly with some delicious tree ripen plums, the gold beauty and the gulf rubys are all coming off now. Remember it is important to thin out the fruits on your trees as the branches can break under the weight of a full crop if they are left.
The nectarines are almost finished fruiting in the orchard, my favourite is the sunraycer with its juicy orange flesh and smooth skin. The pomegranates are also looking very beautiful with their stunning red blooms. I guess though the pick of the fruits in the market at the moment is the black sapote, if anyone is passing by Murwillumbah drop into Tropical Fruit World where you can buy freshly picked fruits.
Black Sapote - Chocolate Pudding Fruit Diospyros digyna
The black sapote is one of the more unusual fruits of the world, I guess mainly because the colour of the flesh is a rich chocolate brown as young Torin discovered. The black sapote is an attractive, slow growing, evergreen tree, eventually forming a dense spreading canopy. The shiny green fruits blend in with the glossy foliage and crops can be deceptively large. A question I am often asked is how to tell when the fruits are ripe. The skin makes a subtle change from bright shiny green to a more olive green and when fully ripe and ready to eat they turn a muddy green. After picking the fruits need to be left to ripen at room temperature as with astringent persimmons to which they are closely related. Handle the fruits with great care as they are very soft when fully ripe.
The glossy dark brown flesh of the black sapote is delicious eaten slightly chilled but it is also very versatile in the kitchen. It blends beautifully with citrus, cinnamon or it can be pureed with coconut and pineapple for a refreshingly tropical smoothy.
Don Burke Dreams of the Perfect Town - Does Yours Quality?
Don is on the lookout for a town with Fruit Trees, Nut Trees and vegetable gardens for all to enjoy? What about shops and ladscaping that match this theme. We would love you to know what you think on the new Don Has a Dream Forum
NEW VIDEOS
We have 2 new fruit tree videos for you the first one is on planting your fruiit trees and the second one on Aftercare of your plants. We hope you enjoy them.
View All of Daleys Fruit Tree Videos
