Some of the citrus trees acquired in 2014 have begun to fruit. The Robertson navel oranges have produced their first batch of fruit. Three small oranges hang from the tree. I had the chance to taste one the other day. The fruit was full of juice and had good flavor and sweetness.

The yuzu is already producing its second batch of fruit. The number of fruit on the tree is showing me that it is doing well. This tree is an appealing tree to me. I am drawn to its central China/Himalayan origins– gives this tree a mystic feel. The other draw is that it is the primary ingredient to the condiment, yuzu kosho. Whenever I am in the mood for sushi, often it is to satisfy the yuzu kosho craving. On fresh pieces of tai (sea bream/snapper) you will find it finished off with a small dab of yuzu kosho. While it may look like just a garnish, the impact it has always says otherwise.

The most well known culinary use of yuzu is in the making of the dipping sauce called, “ponzu.” The third most popular use of yuzu can be found as jars of marmalade in Korean supermarkets. A teaspoon of marmalade is stirred into a hot cup of water to make a cold remedy tea. My wife has adopted yuzu marmalade tea as her go to cold remedy. It works out that I have a yuzu tree with ripe citrus. To which, I will make our own batch of honey, sugar, yuzu marmalade.

The pink lemonade citrus finally produced fruit. They are notorious for being terrible producers. Which is not too big a deal because: 1. I do not have a high demand for lemons 2. Variegated pattern is what I am drawn to. The lemons are still very small and what is unknown at the moment is whether they will continue to mature or not. A few months ago, I dissected one out of curiosity and found that they insides was bone dry. Ideally, this tree will produce just the number of lemons I need. If not, I will have to seek out a Eureka lemon tree to add to the collections.