Medlar Flower

It's possible I may get a couple of medlars on my Mespilus germanica this year if the pollinators cooperate! The tree has half a dozen flowers in varying stages of openness. What's a medlar? It's a member of the Rose family, believe it or not, and the fruit resembles an outsized rose hip. But here's the catch: you can't eat them/make jelly out of them until they've begun to rot. Yep, you read that right. Once they've been hit with a light frost, they begin to soften, and once they're thoroughly mushy, they're ready to eat. You can pick them or gather them where they've dropped from the tree, and take them indoors to "ripen" during a process called "bletting." The taste is honey-like with a hint of citrus/rose. I haven't perfected making the jelly yet, but the batch which didn't set made a lovely, aromatic syrup to stir into vanilla yogurt. It also made a delicious glaze for my Christmas ham!