Hope

We have 2.5 autumn olives left, struggling for survival.

We lost one to too much water, not enough care, some weird blight or some weird disease that attacks unsuspecting and innocent autumn olives.

One remaining shrub still  has most of its leaves, although about half are yellow and sad looking.

Another has lost all but a few crinkly yellow leaves on a lower branch.

And one has no leaves. Not one.

I know these last two are still alive because the branches are still pliable and a scrape with a knife reveals green life under the brown surface. I hope these two survive the winter.

My hope is even more urgent since making a surprising discovery. Well, the boys made the discovery.

Berries.

The plant with all of its leaves still securely attached has berries. When I first saw them a few weeks ago, I assumed they were new growth. I didn’t think we’d have berries until next year.

The boys and I picked all of the ripe red berries we could find and greedily tasted them. So delicious!

I’m going to do whatever I can to make sure the 2.5 remaining autumn olives see the Spring. Those nutritious berries are just too tasty to be lost to an unknown villain.

Tasty red berries
Dear autumn olive survive
I want to make jam

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