Almond Joy 2012

2011

 What a difference a year makes.  Last year we got a small bucket of the fruits, but after hulling and cracking, only a small handful of edible kernels.  I had to laugh. 

This year the tree is 4 years old and the branches were loaded.  I will have to research this, but should I have thinned them like peaches?  Hmm

I learned that almonds are harvested by shaking the tree.  I couldn't shake the whole tree so I shook all the branches I could reach.  Then I got out a ladder and rake and shook more.  But the rake was too short and got tangled in the branches.  Cumbersome and heavy.

 I then had a brilliant thought (few and far between): get an old hand cultivator and fasten to a small piece of PVC with the connector end (for easy removal and storage) and attach that to a 10' length of light weight PVC pipe (all that we had laying in a pile of leftover sprinkler stuff).  Perfect!

 It took 2 days to shake and then pick up all the fruits in the hot sun.

Then it took another 8 hour day to hull the nuts. 
Here they are in my rock sifter.  They have to dry for a few days in the sun.

This is our 2012 harvest of nuts.  Now, I am not naive enough to think they all have edible kernels in them, but so far most of them do and they are nice and plump and have the best sweet almond flavor.  Mmmmm-mmm

I need to find a better cracker than what I am using.  I have pinched a blood blister on the palm of my hand already. 
I'm dreaming of Christmas Almond Toffee.

stock photo from CA almond orchard

So, after all of this, I did some more research on harvesting almonds and discovered that I harvested mine too soon.  The California farms wait until the fruits are dehydrated-looking and peeled back.  Well, a lesson learned for next year.  Also!!!! I will not be picking up the nuts like this year.  I will lay down tarps.  How silly am I anyway to not have thought of that?