“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galatians 6:9 (NLT)
My neighbor, Libby, had been leaving bags of fresh lemons and limes on my side porch for nearly five years and I’d grown to appreciate the taste of freshly squeezed juice in my recipes. So while selecting spring annuals at a neighborhood nursery, I stopped to inquire about the citrus trees. Thirty minutes and a few dollars later I loaded up my car with impatiens, begonias, and zinnias – along with citrus-tree food and two leafy treasures sticking out the back.
I was like a kid at Christmas!
I couldn’t wait to get home to dig in the dirt and plant my new trees – one lemon, one lime. I grew up picking apples from our orchard and eating concord grapes from vines in the backyard, so I was excited about the idea of harvesting fresh fruit from my own garden. Following all the advice of the nursery horticulturalist, I went about transplanting the trees into their new home.
It generally takes two to three years for new trees to bear fruit, so I nurtured and watered and fed them for months. At the four year mark, the growth was steady but there was still no fruit to show for my efforts. Patient waiting was giving way to frustration so I decided to consult the internet; “How long before citrus trees produce fruit?”
“Young lemon (lime) trees are a practical addition to your yard since they provide both shade and a food source as they mature. However, you must have patience with a new sapling since it only provides ornamental value for several years before any fruit appears The tree needs time to establish itself and grow larger so that adequate energy reserves are available for cultivating juicy lemons (limes).”
You must have patience? Several years? You can learn a lot about life by looking through the lens of nature.
It’s been five years now and my lime tree has become a prolific fruit producer! The branches hang heavy with fresh limes and the ground is spotted with those that have ripened and fallen off. My lemon tree? Not so much. It seems to be busy ‘establishing itself’ before yielding a crop. But I keep tending to its’ care with a renewed sense of purpose, realizing that it too will produce fruit when it’s ready.
Harvesting fruit is a lot like gathering blessings. You reap a lot if you don’t give up.
