U Pick Strawberries and More

USDA hardiness zones 5-9

 This area is abound in U-pick farms and on this sunny 

mid-June morning only days before the official start of summer we ventured out with the little ones to pick strawberries. A good time was had by all and the harvest plentiful.  We came home with enough strawberries to treat ourselves to strawberries and vanilla ice cream for lunch and made a delicious strawberry pie served with more ice cream for supper dessert.  Truly the way to bring in summer.  

  Once the strawberry picking was done we walked by the orchard to see what would be in store for us later in the season and saw peach and pear trees.............

.......and further to our delight Jenny knew where to find the raspberry patch so we picked a pint to add to our strawberry and ice cream lunch.

To visit the site of this U-pick click Berry Picking.

Strawberry Pie

Pie Crust for Top and Bottom Crust
4 cups strawberries (quartered, halved or whole depending on size)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbsp. tapioca
1 tbsp. lemon juice
lemon zest if available


Roll out 2 pie crusts and put one crust in pie plate .  Combine strawberries, sugar, tapioca and lemon juice in bowl.  Pour strawberry mixture into crust.  Place second crust over filling and crimp edges.  Vent top with knife slits.  Brush top with milk and sprinkle with a little sugar.  Pie can be frozen at this point to cook later or baked right away.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 75 minutes if frozen and 45 minutes if fresh. 

Azaleas

USDA hardiness zones 5-9

This azalea bush grows in sandy soil in Lansing, New York with a southwest exposure.  Sitting in the sunroom you can look out the window to see a multitude of tiny dark pink flowers.  This azalea bloomed in May and continued to have showy flowers into June.  

Azaleas are generally slow-growing and do best in well-drained acidic soil.  They are shade tolerant and they prefer living near or under trees.

In Chinese culture, the azalea is known as "thinking of home bush" (siangish shu).

Dogwood Tree

USDA hardiness zones: 3B through 7

This small tree grows in the front yard of a home in Lansing, New York. This year it bloomed in the middle of May and had blossoms that lasted about 2 weeks.     

To find more information on the dogwood tree click dogwood.