Within the Lines

Building an Orchard - Before

We've been working hard this spring/summer re-vamping a hill.  We needed a place for the crabapple, pear and peach trees we decided to put in as well as expanded area for more black raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries, and cherry bushes.  So the project began with an excavator lined up to remove tree roots (we'd already cut down the jack pines that were previously there) and smooth the lumps and bumps.  He was able to remove the tree roots but didn't have much luck with smoothing; said the sod was just rolling and bunching up.  So we lined up to get a tiller, but in the meantime had to get those trees planted.

The hill:
In this picture, the crabapples are already planted; you can see three of them.  The orange-flagged area in the background is one of my chokecherry groves.  They're looking very productive so far this year.  Yay!

Husband digging:

Then each kid had to get in on the action:



We now have five crabapples, 3 pear and 3 peach trees planted and apparently thriving.  Yesterday, I worked on rock and root removal, and putting wood mulch around the trees while husband tilled an area for the black raspberries.  This past weekend we tilled the hill seen in the background of the last two pictures and planted lilacs.  It's beginning to look more as intended.  I'll post "after" pictures later.

P.S.  It'd been maybe only a week since I took those baby robin pictures and they've already flown.  I wanted to take some update pictures on Monday, but the nest was empty.  Amazing!!  I think it took longer for Mom and Dad to build the nest than for those babies to grow and fly off!

Chokecherries & Robin's nest

The chokecherry blossoms are fading fast.  Fortunately, this week I got all I could find on our property flagged so I can find those berries later.  Chokecherry jelly is delicious; although I do need to research and improve this year.  My first attempt last year tasted good but had the consistency of, well, to put it indelicately, snot.  But I've seen that of friends and it reminded me of currant jelly with it's smooth texture and rich color.

Thought I'd also share with you these picts of the nest a robin built in my garden gate.  I actually went to get picts of the eggs (if I could sneak in when mama wasn't around) but the babies had already hatched.  Here they are about a week or so ago:

and here they are yesterday:

They sure grow fast!  Probably due to their vigilant mama keeping them safe and well-fed.  It's wonderful having a nest built right in the garden gate, but it's not so great being told in no uncertain terms that my garden is now OFF-LIMITS!

She dive-bombs me every time I come in or go out!!  I'm glad she's protective, but my goodness, it is my garden after all!

N. MN Seed Starting

A friend asked me to post my seed starting plan.  I plan to get most of the garden in by mid-May, maybe slightly earlier, since we are planning to put tunnels over all that needs it (with the exception of the flowers that I knew wouldn't be under tunnels, so have to wait till June).  Normally, we have to wait till the first of June to avoid frost.  (So if you aren't doing tunnels, you may want to extend these dates a couple of weeks.) 

1st Week in March -- vinca (a trailing flower I'm trying for the window boxes),  delphinium

3rd Week in March -- peppers, onions

4th week in March -- melons, tomatoes, amaranthus, cleome, cosmos, gaillardia

2nd week in April -- zucchini, summer squash, winter squash, zinnias, and pole beans(?)

(That question mark is because I'll have to decide closer up if I want to start the beans then, wait a bit, or even wait and direct seed.)  We will put potatoes, greens/lettuces, and borage direct seed into the garden in early May, and the sweet corn direct seed mid-May.  Most of our little plants should be ready to go out by then, too.

I don't claim to be an expert.  I usually have at least one failure, learning opportunity  every year.  Hope this helps, Alissa!

Remember...

Here we are in the deep winter of northern MN, the only hints of spring the box of seeds delivered last week!  So I thought I'd offer up some memories of last summer to remind us what's coming.

In just a few months, we'll have irises in bloom...

and the garden coming up...

and crabapples ripening...

and roses, dewy in the morning...

and long bike rides by clear blue lakes...

with time afterward to relax in the shade...

From this...

to this...

What a lovely miracle!

Crabapples, Part 1

Crabapple season begins with a trip to the home where I grew up...

Tho when I grew up we had a strawberry farm, they've now converted to a tree farm.  These are a portion of the crabapple trees they had waiting to be picked.

There were tons of apples, on the trees and on the ground.  Fortunately I had several helpers.  There was Bug...

and Son...

and Bee

Thanks to their help and a few hours work, we came home with 4 grocery bags full (about 7 gallons in each bag).  --(the regular apples came from a friend)--

I worked on canning these --into sauce and juice-- for the week following picking, only to start again when some friends came bringing about twice this amount, a "gift"  from my parents!!  I was definitely fed up with crabapples by the time I was done, but thankful for the full storage.  Next time, I will post picts of the canning process.

Just had to add this P.S!

Oh my goodness!!  Speaking of "fruit of her hands",

MY FIRST EGG!!!  (from my chickens, that is)

It's about 2" long and clean as a whistle.  How pretty it is!  I have to say I don't think I've ever seen a prettier one!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

With squash vines, and tomatoes fine,

and corn stalks all in a row.