It wasn’t until the second summer we moved house that I realised there was a fruiting cherry tree in the backyard. I’d watched the tree blossom and grow new leaves but assumed it was only an ornamental tree. It never occurred to me that there could be fruit.
Only after I’d seen spots of red between the leaves did I investigate. Yes, there were pairs of cherries, ripening on the tree! There weren’t many, and I couldn’t wait until they turned deep red but they were the best tasting cherries I had ever eaten.
I pampered that tree for the following year but it did not result in a single fruit the next summer, nor the following summer. Maybe it was all the rain we’d received? Maybe it was the paucity of sunny days? None of the advice I read on websites helped with my tree so I simply left it alone. No food, no pruning, no watering.
So, I was thrilled to discover this spring that the tree is covered with bunches of green fruit. I’m happy to take credit for that, though I know it had nothing to do with me. The tree knew what it needed and I simply had to let it get on with it. Now, all I have to do is to work out how to protect the ripening cherries from birds!
