This year the garden has been very good to us. The plum tree very suddenly became heavy laden with juicy sweet fruits.  I was out weeding at the weekend and every so often I would hear a thud as another plum dropped to the ground. It knew then it was definitely time for picking. However, three full baskets later and the plums still weren’t all picked! Last year’s harvest seems pitiful in comparison to this years. Here is a photo of some of this years plum harvest..

This week I converted lots of the plums into jam. I made a lovely sweet, sticky  plum and cinnamon jam. It’s so delicious – the wintry  flavour of the warming cinnamon combined with the sweet summer taste of the plums makes it an ideal jam to be eaten in Autumn. I also made rhubarb and ginger jam this week. It too is ideal for eating on Autumn mornings. It is nearing that time of year now when we say farewell to summer and welcome in the cold winter months. The spicy ginger and the sharp yet sweet rhubarb is a tasty treat. I baked some scones to sample the jams on and I was really pleased with how they both tasted.

It has been a busy time in the garden over the last few weeks. I gave a lot of my produce away to friends and neighbours as there was just too much for me to deal with this year.

We got a fantastic harvest of blackcurrants, redcurrants, rhubarb, gooseberries,  raspberries, elderberries and grapes. We only got a  handful of strawberries however, they didn’t do too well this year – I think the birds may have got to them before I did!

There are also some blueberries that are still to ripen in the next few weeks.

I have also come across numerous blackberries growing wild in Aberdeen in random places. I found these ones in a graveyard.