Beneath the swaying fronds of palm trees, a silent dance unfolds. Tiny bees, nature’s tireless pollinators, flit between feathery blossoms, their fuzzy bodies dusted with golden pollen. This intricate partnership is essential for both: the bees collect nectar for their colonies, while the palms rely on the bees to transfer pollen, ensuring the next generation of trees.

Palm trees, unlike their brightly colored cousins, often have small, inconspicuous flowers. But that doesn’t mean they go unnoticed by bees. Many palm species produce fragrant blooms, rich in nectar, to attract their winged allies. Honeybees, sweat bees, and stingless bees are all frequent visitors, drawn by the sweet reward.
As the bees delve into the blooms to reach the nectar, their bodies become dusted with pollen. Unwittingly, they carry these precious grains between flowers, fertilizing the female parts and enabling the palms to produce fruits and seeds. This взаимовыгодное сотрудничество, or mutually beneficial cooperation, is vital for the survival of both species.

The relationship between bees and palm trees extends far beyond a simple exchange of food and reproduction. They shape each other’s evolution, influencing the development of flower shapes, scents, and blooming times. This intricate dance, played out over millennia, is a testament to the beauty and interconnectedness of the natural world.

Quite a while ago, I planted some ginger and some turmeric (saffron) at the same time. I got loads of ginger but no turmeric. Oh well…

Then, suddenly, this nice lone turmeric shoot popped up righ/ where they were planted. This is about a year later. Glad to see it, and looking out for others.

The first yield from the peas is 3 to 4 pounds after shelling !!

I am pleased to share that the first fruit from my garden in 2024 are two small, sweet watermelons! 

The vine just sprang up where we spit the seeds this summer, and thrived despite no real maintenance other than to keep the fruit off the earth. They are not the biggest, but the fruit is sweet and juicy. Here’s to more bountiful harvests in the future.

In most parts of the world, this is known as Bilimbi or more commonly as a Cucumber tree due to the shape of the small fruit. The fruit is very sour. Here it is referred to as condescia (sp?) and is used locally to augment pepper sauces in particular. This tree is super productive, and we need to find more people who want the fruit!

Another set of pineapple starters have arrived and are planted around the property.

This was not a great year for watermelon, and most of the crop did not survive or did not develop well enough. However, there were a few small ones which we managed to reap, and as you can see here, they went great with various meals and by themselves as well.

Well it isn’t much, but we did get a little sorrel for the holidays. We will change the location and plant much more for next year.

This has to be some of the healthiest vine I’ve seen from a single spinach planting period. it has completely taken over the trellis that was full of cucumber just a month earlier. This bodes well for dark green leafy vegetables in the diet !!

Between the big thyme, the passion fruit, and the non-bearing eggplant, the garden beds needed a real clean up. The passion fruit was tearing down the shade cloth, the big thyme was overrunning the pepper plant and spilling over into the aisle, and the eggplant was just producing a lot of trash. Plus the last of the tomato vine was removed as well.