Been a long while...

It's been a while since I have posted anything on this blog. Circumstance have changed for the better recently and this will positively effect this blog. My wife and I have move onto five and a half acres. I will be growing a wide range of edible and medicinals as well as looking for native plant life and weeds. When we first moved here there were only a few landscaped plants; these being tansy, privet, and albizia (mimosa). The native perennials include California Bay Laurel, Grey Pine, White Oak, Live Oak, Elderberry, Redberry Buckthorn, and loads of Poison Oak.

Since moving here I have planted:
Two Pomegranates
Three Rosemary
Four black velvet Gooseberries
Three Goumi
Five unknown Opuntia
Eight Eastern Redbud
One Oscar White Mulberry
Two Black Hawthorn
Three Strawberry Trees
Two Lavender
Four Sage
Four Feijoa
Two Figs
One Chaste Tree
Two Service Berries
Four Chilean Guava
Loads of Strawberries
Two Golden Currants
One Red Currant
Two Maypop Passion Fruit
One Issai Hardy Kiwi
One Loquat
One Camellia sinensis
Three Society Garlic
Two Grapes
Five Raspberry
Three Oregon Grape
Two Aronia
One Mexican Tarragon.

Most of these are quite young and I don't anticipate any fruit this year. As these plants mature I will post articles and photos on them. We also have three raised beds, so I will be growing some annual crops as well. I will try to be more active this year, hopefully someone finds this entertaining.

California Bay Laurel nuts - Umbellularia californica

California Bay Laurel or Umbellularia californica is found in the coastal hill and foothills of California and southern Oregon. This tree is in the same family as Avocado, Bay, and Cinnamon, which is quite evident of the way the fruits look and the leaves smell.


California Bay Laurel Fruit

After picking the fruit and placing them in a colander I took off the fatty fruit pulp.


California Bay Laurel Fruit and seed

Once all of the nuts were de-fruited I put them in a pyrex dish.


California bay laurel nuts or seeds

I roasted the nuts in the oven at 350 degrees until the kernals became a dark chocolate brown.


Roasted California Bay Laurel Nuts

When my wife and I tried the Bay Nuts she described the flavor quite well, "it taste like slightly burnt popcorn". In my opinion the texture is like that of peanuts, with a dark bitter flavor. Others have also described the taste as having a coffee or cocoa like flavor.

These nuts also make a very tastey beverage. I tried the drink plan and with sugar and cream. The plain drink has a spicy nutty flavor. The sugar and cream I added complemented the beverage very well, it reminded me of coffee with hazelnut creamer.