guildfordcycads

Ten feet in just two years in Western WA (cottonwood)

Think I still have time to start and plant cabbage in 5b? First frost is usually end of October.

Just going to try not to scream while I patiently await the funds necessary to put up an electric fence 🍷💀

Don’t get me wrong, I really like growing fruit and making stuff from it. Marmelade, cordial and wine, giving much of it away to friends and family, while complaining there’s not enough empty jars around the house and everyone should remember to save them.

The problem is a lot of it ripens at the same time. The red and black currants, gooseberries and raspberries all needed to be picked during the last week and a half. So far, I’ve gone through 14 kilos of sugar, just for the marmelade and it’s taken all my spare time.

My older berry bushes all grow next to a south facing brick wall, and I know that it not helping the problem. I’m trying my luck with making guilds, and have planted cuttings around my small fruit trees, but that will take years before they start to produce and meaningful amount and even longer before the trees start to give any real shade. How much can I expect growing the same varieties in shade will delay ripening?

I also try to diversify and get more species like honeyberry, mulberry and several kinds of raspberry/blackberry hybrids, but they are not setting fruit yet, or ripens at the same time as the others.

Is there any other neat tricks to essentially prolonging the season and spread out the workload?

I live in Denmark, which I think is zone 7.

I’m currently revamping the entire outdoor area around my house, and decided to start with the smaller one, so this doesn’t feel too overwhelming!

It’s a triangular-shaped area, which faces the street. Currently, it has a small olive tree, a yucca plant that I want removed (marked with the red cross), and some hedge bushes which my dog totally wrecked.
This is facing NW (the camera is pointing towards N), so it gets a lot of sun, especially in summer. Because of this, and also because it’s a place we don’t use that often, I was planning more of a low-maintenance kind of thing, focusing on perennials
Maybe asparagus near the side edge, taking the bushes out and replacing them with a lavender edge, and then plant a few aromatic herbs like thyme, oregano, sage, etc.
I was also planning to dig a broad vase and use it to hold water, like a very small pond, for birds and to attract dragonflies.

I also thought of planting strawberries on the edge that faces the driveway, as they will be at an ideal height to pick easily.

Other alternatives for the neighbor-facing edge could also be blueberries or grapes.

Thoughts and recommendations?
I’m in Portugal btw, so this is a Mediterranean climate.

Surrounding this tiny plum tree and around the catio, are raspberries, kiwi, passion fruit and on the other side herbs and some flowers (basil, parsley and coriander). Fruit trees are so amazing to have in your garden!