This is post #3 in a series of 3. Click here to read post #1, and here to read post #2.
This year we ordered 8 more fruit trees to go with the 6+ we ordered last year (more info here). The weather was beautiful this weekend and allowed us to get them in the ground just a couple days after we received them. We were much more ambitious than last year when they sat around for a couple weeks...after we got them delivered in February!
We planted them in the area we recently sheet mulched, which might I add is aging like a fine wine. It looks great!
BEFORE
The 'before' pictures show the sheet mulched area which hasn't been tidied for a couple weeks. No fruit trees in these shots.
AFTER
You'll notice little twigs in these shots - the bareroot fruit trees!
'All in One' Almond in the lawn
'Pink Lady' Apple in foreground, 'Double Delight' Nectarine + 'Early Autumn' Apricot in background (in the same hole in the ground)
Here is Chris digging out a huge rock for the Apricot/Nectarine hole!
'Laroda' and 'Santa Rosa' plums + 'Flavor King' Pluot in same fruit bush hole. For more info about planting fruit trees in the same hole, visit Dave Wilson Nursery's website page on the topic of Backyard Orchards.
You will notice that I cleaned up the edges of the sheet mulched areas. Some of the burlap became exposed over the last couple months, so I swept and raked the mulch down again. I tried to redistribute the mulch to areas like the edges that didn't get as much in the first go-round. It was easier to see how that it has tamped down some and isn't so fluffy.
I really like the way it looks!
We planted the pear in the backyard today near the fruit trees we planted last year (I will update you on those soon). I also spread some more mulch around and everything looks so tidy now.
Chris' back hurts. He's such a good and dutiful husband when I ask him to dig holes!
PS - There are lots more pictures from this weekend on my Flickr page.
Dec 28, 2008
Orchard Install - Year 2 Additions
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17 comments:
Pink Lady apples are my favorite, and so are nectarines. Yum! Hope your trees grow healthy and strong.
In a couple years it'll be less of a yard and more of a fruit salad.
I can imagine beautiful fruit trees blooming in spring.
There is nothing better than going out to your own yard and finding fruit for the picking!
Carol, May Dreams Gardens
It looks great! I like how you placed them, and I love Pink Lady apples. They are wonderfully tart. Thanks for sharing it with us.~~Dee
How refreshing to see newly planted trees without mulch volcanoes! You're setting a good example for your neighborhood. I hope you and your trees have many happy and fruitfull years together. (Sorry about the bad pun, I just couldn't resist.)
It was a lot of work to plant all those, but I have to tell ya, where I come from, that is a normal sized rock, not a big one.
We've planted I think about 11 fruit trees in the past six years that we've lived here. It's so fantastic to be able to go out and pick your own fruit...and then can it! We love our fruit trees and although we hope to move some day, we'll be truely sad to leave them.
Almond tree! I never even thought about planting my own almond tree. Thank you.
You are beyond ambitious.
They will look so beautiful come spring!!
Oh my, this is going be so amazing. Gorgeous blossoms in spring and then all that amazing home grown fruit to enjoy later on!
Amy
So. Exciting. Wishing you bountiful harvests. Those little trees grow fast; I just realized that our slip of a peach tree that we put in exactly one year ago is now as tall as I am!
I just wanted to complement your sheet mulch job. It looks wonderful. Your little trees will be bearing fruit before you know it. How awesome is it going to be to have all of that variety in your own front yard....and all of those pretty blossoms in the springtime too :)
Ahh, I'm jealous. You are way ahead of me this year. I had hoped to pick up a few trees to espalier along our fenceline before full winter struck, but the nursery I want to get them from is closed till the end of January so it looks like we will be February planting like you did last year. Thanks for the link about planting more than one in the same hole. It seems a relevant idea for those of us without acreage.
Your own orchard is so exciting, Katie. And I agree, the blooming season is going to be gorgeous at your home!
Wow - 15 comments! Here goes my responses...
d.a. - We love Pink Lady apples. They mature a bit later than most, but are worth the wait. Thanks for the well-wishes.
Jim/Art of Gardening - Actually, we already have a fruit salad tree (4 different fruits grafted on one tree). What do you need for a real fruit salad?
MNGarden - I can't wait until the trees bloom this spring...! Especially our two year old trees.
Carol - I agree, there isn't anything better than fresh fruit (or veggies) from your own garden.
Dee - Pink Lady apples are our favorite. A good description - tart, but very sweet as well!
Mr. McGregor's Daughter - We planted the trees last year high. I just finished reading Rain Water Harvesting for Drylands, Vol. 1 by Brad Lancaster (which I will review soon), and I had never heard of planting trees in a basin, but it makes total sense! Is the risk of crown rot really that high in amended soil? Many fruitful years together...yes!
Kathy - Yes. I may complain about our rocky soil, but I know it could be worse...
Kendra - Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! Welcome! We're at 15 fruit trees including the citrus, and perhaps we'll be planting more. I can't wait until they start producing and we get fruit from our own back/front yard!
cookiecrumb - Almonds grow well here in the hot summers of Northern California (think Yolo)...And their blooms are beautiful! I like being ambitious. Thanks for the compliment.
The Forge Village Farmer - I can't wait until spring. It's not that far off here in Northern California either.
Amy - Blooms + fruit. It's like ornamental and food gardening all in one!
Heather - You said it, these fruit trees do grow quickly! One would hardly recognize the ones we planted last year that are now two years old. They grow up so quickly...
Sarah - Thanks! Sheet mulching is so easy and I recommend it as a great way to get rid of grass. I am excited to see all of my wonderful fruit trees bloom and look forward to eating the array of fruit our yard will produce.
Maya - But it's not too late! Lots of nurseries carry bareroot fruit trees right now, as does Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply. Your espaliered trees are not out of reach. I'd love to see them grow as well - espalier is so cool!
Chile - The orchard is exciting. Thanks for sharing in the fun!
It's not crown rot that is the problem with too much mulch but surface girdling roots. Around here, people seem to think more mulch is better, to the point where the mulch is piled up around the tree trunk.
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