The Return and FIGS!!!

Incredible.  Delectable. Amazing. Fig trees love Tucson and Arizona or so I was told. In the Amazon, they are special for their connection to the wildlife....huge gnarly trees that supply food for so many animals like monkeys and parrots. The tree is unique in that it gives off a sonar for animals to come and eat....so for the common guy like me that means...."Early bird gets the worm:)" Not only are the leaves very tropical looking but they produce a delicious fruit....a two for one kind of plant in the dry desert. So I tried planting a tree here and the tree is doing  very well.  Of my fruit trees, it is the only one that has produced a bit of love and joy.  I have never had a fresh fig in my life  until yesterday and the taste was.....incredible.  When I left for Wisconsin, they were all green.  When I returned they were a purple black:) I started to become suspicious when a visitor to our grounds asked if we had a fig tree.  It was a weird question so I went to go and see what he was talking about.....the telltale signs were there with the dark fruit:) I tried fig newtons and they are nasty tasting as are dry figs....BUT fresh figs are heaven on Earth.....they taste like plums with a nutty texture. I fell in love instantly and have a new appreciation for this wonderful fruit. Good choice for our landscape!!:)

On the return home....I expected death and destruction but discovered things actually grew and flourished!!!  This was a first and boy was I a happy camper.  Everyone helped out and the grounds looked great.....so a big thank you to my neighbors for helping out during vacation:)

Finally, fruit is still being produced by several trees on the ground.  The Bearrs lime has several fruits on the bush.  The red baron peach tree has 3 and the persimmons only 1 fruit.  So many fruit trees were planted in winter and while only around 6 months old, I am shocked that some are producing fruit this early. I have never had a persimmons so it will be interesting to see what that tastes like.  I loved the fig so I look forward to this new fruit in a couple months:)  Beautiful trees.

PS.  Monsoon hit central Tucson for the first time last night with a vengeance....how do I know?  Water leaked all over inside my house from my window....gotta love home ownership:)  Happy Gardening friends!!

These last two pics were taken from that storm by Tucson residents. Monsoon is really something to behold here.