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September Surprises

It is always a thrill to stumble across a plant that I may have forgotten about or one that does something unexpected. That has happened several times over the past weeks.  First, the vine pictured above is the Eastern Prince Schisandra vine ( Schinensis chinensis ), also known as "Magnolia Vine".  I purchased it in May of 2023 from One Green World in Portland. I don't know what attracted me to it, other than the fact that I'd never heard of it before and the description sounded nice.  I didn't forget about this plant; in fact, it has grown quite vigorously up an archway at the entrance to our woodland path. It shares space alongside the rose 'Lamarque'.  I did forget that it produces berries, so I was surprised when I looked up and saw them dangling over the top of the arbor.  The berries are used in Chinese medicine. They are called the "Five Flavor Berry" and said to have five flavors in one - sweet, salty, bitter, tangy and sour.  Chinese le...
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Apple Crisp


One of the few trees already existing at our house is an apple tree in the middle of the hedge that runs along the back fence line. For the past several weeks, it has been loaded with apples and with them, flocks of birds. The scrub jays are the ones that seem to be enjoying them the most (as well as disrupting the peace and quiet with their incessant cawing).

I have been picking a few of the apples, thinking that they were probably no good, but it turns out they are okay for the most part.

 I made an apple crisp this afternoon. 

 The late summer sun here looks just like autumn in the South. It is very strange but wonderful.

 Apple Crisp

  • 4 or 5 medium tart apples, peeled and sliced
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1/3 cup butter, softened
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 375. Grease an 8x8 pan with butter or shortening.

Spread the apples in the pan.

Combine all the other ingredients and sprinkle over the apples.

Bake for 30 minutes (or until the top is golden brown and the apples are tender).




Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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  1. Lisa at GreenbowJuly 31, 2016 at 4:24 PM

    That Apple Crisp looks delicious. I want a bite...or two.

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  2. Kathryn/plantwhateverbringsyoujoy.comJuly 31, 2016 at 4:34 PM

    Yum! I have an apple tree, too. My apples are not quite ripe. I'll return to this recipe when they are! Thanks for the reminder!

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  3. debsgardenJuly 31, 2016 at 4:53 PM

    Yummy! It won't be long before we will be harvesting apples from our two trees. Lou likes to bake apple pies. (They are OK, not great.) He bakes so many our friends run for fear he will foist another one upon them!

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  4. RobinLJuly 31, 2016 at 6:24 PM

    My all time favorite dessert, warm with ice cream! Drool...

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  5. AaronAugust 1, 2016 at 5:34 PM

    Dang. That recipe looks amazing. It's not apple season here particularly (peach season and blueberry season!) but I'll file this away and maybe try it in autumn.

    Just another hot, humid summery day here. We had a line of ominous-looking storms approach, but they sort of fell apart right before they hit us. We got thunder and wind and some lightning, but only sprinkles. It was anti-climatic.

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