I keep my ear tuned to the weather in BC which right now is perfect for fruit. I just think of those peaches growing fat and juicy. What a delight!

This kind of heat BC is getting now is perfect for cantaloupe. Those melons will be so sweet and juicy. I would rather eat a cantaloupe than a peach, maybe because there is more to eat with a cantaloupe.

Last week we purchased peaches from a fruit pedlar at our local farmer’s market in Edmonton, but I wasn’t happy with the flat sided peaches. They just were not up to par. Why did we buy them? We were hoping the taste would be alright. Some were sour and some were sweet. They were Oliver peaches grown by someone I know. Next purchase we will be looking for well rounded fruit.

As a boy, picking peaches was the most difficult job in the whole orchard. First, you had to cup your hand around the peach to pick it off the tree. If you removed the peach any other way you would bruise it with your finger tips.
I  put the peaches into a pail which was hooked to a harness which I wore. I had both hands free for picking. I did not hang onto the ladder but balanced on the step and leaned against the ladder which gave me more balance.

When the pail was full, it was down to the apple box where the peaches were hand lifted out of the pail and gently placed into the box.

I could never pick more than an hour because the peach fuzz drove me crazy! As soon as my hand moved from one peach to another, the air filled with fuzz and it would land on my sweaty body. I would breathe it in too, then I would rub my nose and have it on my face. Before I knew it I was covered in fuzz, at least that is what it felt like.
When I think about those days I still scratch.

The best peaches that Wally grew were the Red Havens. They were free stone and delicious right off the tree. During peach season we ate peaches for dessert every day, never growing tired of them. We ate them with strawberries, raspberries, ice cream and cantaloupe, and once in a while we had peach pie or cobbler.

Auntie Kay would can the peaches and make some into jam, then we would enjoy them out of season too.

Heat brings an abundance that we can all enjoy.