Nespolo

The Nespolo tree was humming in the weak sunshine today. Every bee in Chianti seemed to be gorging itself on the last available pollen and nectar of the year. The tree flowers in November with a delicious scent, then bears small, orange, sweet and sharp fruit in the spring. The fruit is called Loquat in English, but you rarely see them in England. The best thing about the tree for us is that it's about 7 metres tall on the sunny side of our terrace with a thick canopy of large, tough evergreen leaves. It gives a dense shade, meaning that we can eat outside even on the hottest of days in the summer.