On Wed, 29 Jul 2015 08:36:50 +0100,
Jeff Layman wrote:
On 28/07/15 13:35, Emery Davis wrote:
On Tue, 28 Jul 2015 08:32:33 +0100, David Rance wrote:

On Sun, 26 Jul 2015 16:21:18 Emery Davis wrote:

No plums or damsons which is really unusual.

I'm just down the road from you and my plums are doing well. I've even
got damsons on a tree that hasn't fruited for a few years.


Glad you've got some -- question of microclimates I suppose. Trees in
the village seem to have plenty of plums, too.

You wouldn't have time to eat plums with all that other fruit cropping
well! But it is strange how some trees crop really well, but others not
far away are almost bare of fruit. I guess you are right that it could
be a microclimate effect when the plants are in blossom - maybe
fractions of a degree are enough to stop fertilisation.

Talking about microclimates.

I can tell you that we've had all our apples, prunes and pears in
flowers when a sequence of about three nights of frost thwarted all our
hopes, this spring. We are left with one « Reinette d'Armorique » which
developped fruit despite the adverse conditions, as well a young quince.

People who live five kilometers from here did not experience the same
late frost. Our friend and neighbour, who marchandises apples on a grand
scale, still talks of a promising year. He has recently replaced his
« Délices d'Or » by « Melrose ». Our own Melrose has also been a victim of
the frost, the same as our « Reine de Reinette » and the Boscop, both
varieties that continued to blossom and will produce fruit in the other
orchard.

The mean temperature between our hamlet and a village at about 7 km „on
the other side of the forest“ differ by two degrees. For the „locals“, I
talk about L'Hermitage, between St. Patrice du Désert and
Lignières-Orgères (that's us) and the nearby village
Saint-Ouen-Le-Brisoult (family).

.... and we've lit our oven today.

Michael
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