Top Photo: Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) flower buds.
Just a brief reminder that Japanese apricot is about to burst into bloom, thorny olive is fruiting, and American holly still has plenty of fruit left over to satisfy the resident robins, wintering hermit thrushes, and visiting waxwings.
Two of these plants are non-natives while the last, American holly, is born and bred. They all produce drupes, fruits that have one central seed surrounded by a fleshy, usually edible, part and skin covering.
All of these plants can be found lining the path adjacent to the our Farmyard.
And that’s all for now.
Regarding “first choice fruit”, Do you know which fruits they prefer? Thanks.
Each year in winter it seems that the American holly fruit are the last to be attacked by the robins. Earlier in the season they descend on the red cedar, or juniper, for their fruit, hawthorn, the various cherries, privet and even yaupon holly are eaten before the American holly. Is this because the Am holly fruit is not ripe until late winter? Regardless, the birds tend to eat the other fruit mentioned here before the American holly. By the way, in the late spring the birds much prefer mulberry to all other fruit ripe at that time of year. Mulberry is king on our campus.