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Growing Fruit Entries

Orchard Update, Summer 2016

Friday, June 24th, 2016

It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead. There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. Miracle Max All of our fruit trees sailed through winter unscathed, with the excepti...

Orchard Update, Spring 2016

Tuesday, May 10th, 2016

I thought for sure a two-week trip to the midwest would mean we'd miss an event on the homestead I'd been eagerly anticipating: the blossoming of our fruit trees! Fortunately, I was wrong. Just a few days after our return, our trees are leafing out...

Starting an Orchard in Vermont, Part Five: Protecting our Trees

Friday, November 20th, 2015

Yesterday morning, as I drove to the Bocoup office in Boston, Tara texted me a pair of photos and a single word message: Fuckkkkk. We'd really hoped the odiferous garlic clips we used on the trees would be enough to deter animals, but alas...

Starting an Orchard in Vermont, Part Four: Planting Complete

Saturday, October 3rd, 2015

I am pleased and relieved to report: all eighteen fruit trees are safely tucked into their new homes! I've brushed their bark with white milk paint to prevent sun scald, wrapped the base of their trunks with mesh to prevent boring insects, pinned o...

Wild Grape Jelly

Thursday, September 24th, 2015

When Tyler and I felled a small sapling to make room in our orchard for a pear tree, we discovered a whole mess of wild grapes tangled in its branches. I was thrilled about the unexpected bounty and felt no remorse about removing them. Grape vines ...

Starting an Orchard in Vermont, Part Three: Planting Trees

Sunday, September 20th, 2015

Today, we woke early, excited to finally plant our eighteen fruit trees. Tyler got busy digging holes, while I weed-wacked the entire hillside so we could get a sense of the contour of the land, hidden beneath knee-high burdock and nightshade. ...

Starting an Orchard in Vermont, Part Two: Clearing a Hillside

Saturday, September 19th, 2015

Today, Tyler felled the last three trees we've been talking about removing for our hillside orchard. They were perfectly healthy, but they would shade our site more than we wanted. It was hard for me to let go of them, but if we didn't do the work ...

Starting an Orchard in Vermont, Part One: Buying Fruit Trees at Elmore Roots Nursery

Sunday, August 16th, 2015

We officially started homesteading in January of 2013. Ever since, the topic of planting fruit trees has come up at least once or twice every season. Each time, overwhelmed by the projects before us, we've pushed the undertaking into an unknown fut...