Grapes, gorgeous grapes. Photo by Angela Lansbury.
Grapes grown in England.
I know several people who grow grapes in their gardens.
UK Wine & Dine Groups
If you belong to a wine and dine group in the UK which meets at people's homes you often start your dinner in daylight at a table in the garden and if you arrive early, whilst waiting for latecomers you can ask to see the flowers and fruit and trees and plants.
Inspiration
On one such occasion I admired the vine leaves which had draped themselves over the fence and back of the outside of the conservatory and house so much that I asked if we could have one, or more, in our back garden in London. When you see what can be gown locally, you can also ask the gardener, who may be the householder, whether the plants do well in light or shade, how long they take to produce edible fruit.
Growing For The Future
Plant even if you are planning to leave. Because your stay might get extended.
Singapore
My family went to Singapore on a two-year contract (for the rental flat). We stayed there ten years. If only I had started growing at the start! I discovered that aloe vera is easy to grow.
Growing Vines In The UK
Growing vines in the UK. created more work than I had expected. First a space was cleared in the garden and along the fence for the back row. No point growing just enough grapes for half a bottle of wine. Grow more than one variety to find out what you like and what grows best. the wine makers usually blend two or three varieties of grapes for good reason. Some grapes produce a bigger crop in a particular year. The sweet can counteract the sour and sharp.
We had to buy stakes and dig holes. (We is the royal we. It means my husband. I was just providing advice which was not welcomed by the one who was doing the work and trips to the shops and ordering. Lesson learned. Do not give advice until asked, or the other person has agreed to listen to your suggestions.)
As soon as the grapes appear, so do the birds. You rush out to buy netting.
Next year you have netting. The first year is the most work and the most cost.
Singapore
In Singapore where a relative of mine has been renting a flat in a condo, I got talking to a local lady in the swimming pool. She invited us to her flat to see all the plants growing on her balcony and gave us a couple of cuttings and sent photos.
If you are an expat, plant a pot on the windowsill or balcony, or garden. It will be a conversation opener with anybody anywhere.
Indonesia
In Indonesia many expats and local people employ drivers, or cooks, or housekeepers or gardeners. When friends from overseas come to stay, it's easy to pop out to the back garden for fresh fruit and vegetables. If you are not a keen gardener, you can get an employee to do the gardening.
I have had two disappearing fruit experiences. If somebody has driven over to my house to visit me, especially if I have not baked a cake, I feel obliged to give in to their requests for fruit.
On one occasion, a friend asked if she could have some of my fruit. I said yes, She took all of it. She said just enough for a pie. She never brought me any pie on her next visit. When she asked for more fruit I said no I was making a pie and there was only enough fruit for one pie.
On another occasion a friend asked for some fruit from my apple tree. I thought he would take one bag. He filled about twenty bags, my entire year's crop.
If they are allowed to keep some of the crop they will be extra keep. Specify how much they can keep, ten percent, 50 percent, not 100 or you could find nothing there when you need it, and they spend all their time growing crops to feed the family and sell whilst drawing a salary from you and neglecting all other work. You might prefer to decide which items they can have after selecting what you want to eat and store.
USA
When I lived in flats and town houses in the USA I did not do this. I was too busy with my career, writing books, and travelling, and looking after our son.
However, now that I am semi-retired I have revived my interest in growing plants. My husband's interest in growing a vine to make wine has made him more interested in which plants you can grown.
On a wet day, or when you are too tired or jet-lagged to go shopping, it's handy to have some fresh fruit growing.
UK
In London, when we had a bumper crop, we saved apples on trays from microwave meals, covered to protect the fruit from possible bird or insect or rat droppings. As the saved crop increased, we found more and more space, on shelving, above a fridge and washing machine. When we ran out of space or had to cut bad parts out of an apple, the apple flesh could be cooked to a pulp and put in labelled bags in the freezer with a use by date. I thought of making apple juice ice cubes.
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