dum dum
Dum dum
Dum Dum
DUM Dum
DUM DUM
DUM DUH DAH DAAAAAHHHM!
My new orchard!!
It's so big I couldn't fit it all in one picture.
I'm SO excited! Can you tell?!!!! Did all the exclamation points give it away?!!!
I've been dreaming about doing this for years, and this year was the year. I had a blank spot that needed an orchard and a video game console I didn't really need. Michael Ford, a coworker and friend and landscaper, had a need for a video game console and the know-how to plant an orchard. Weren't we a pair.
Michael did a great job, too. I wasn't sure where to put each one, so with his advice I made up my mind. I kinda' helped a bit with the placement, but he did the final spacing and shifted things so it looks nicer (See those diagonal lines? That was his idea and I really like it. A lot.). After I hemmed and hawed and finally made up my mind, Michael went to work. He mowed the dead weeds down and started digging. I'd put a half yard of cow manure compost in my little Toy truck, so he backed that right out there to amend the soil in each hole. He also put a couple inches on top of the ground around each tree to sweeten the soil outwards and encourage roots to grow out to get it. I like that, too. But most importantly, he planted them at the correct level, all with their root flares showing, just like they're supposed to be.
So there are thirteen trees out there - two plums, two peaches, three apples, two pears, and four figs. Here's the map:
I have two Gala Apples because I didn't realize I already had one at home in a pot, and I have two Florida Crest Peaches because someone put one in the TexKing Peach bin when I bought them (and I didn't double-check the tags before buying them. *slaps forehead* Live and learn...). Oh, well ... let's say those will be my best producers! Yeah! That's it!
I have lots of room off to the right of the map for expansion to the east. Just need to remove a fence over there and cut down some scrub hackberries. I hope I'll have that done by next year. I want more peaches, some more apples, maybe a couple more pears, some persimmons, a few more figs, a couple-or-four pomegranates. I'll put in some apricots, too, even though they don't reliably produce - I love them, and I've got the room to spare. And some citrus, too! I'm thinking satsumas, Meyer's lemons, and whatever else is hardy.
It's so nice to dream. But it's even nicer when those dreams become reality.
