Lessons

Things have been a bit bleak lately. My plums are being massacred by insects, my strawberries are being ripped up by neighbouring horses, my blueberries look like they're burning from the leaf edges, my grapes are stunted. 

It's all my fault.

I frequently visit other people's orchards. Usually they are an abandoned side project and I've been proud to see that for the most part my trees look like those in orchards that were planted several years ago. My bubble burst when I visited my best friends who planted their orchard at the same time as I planted mine. Their trees have at least twice as much new wood, three times more leaves, and no apparent evidence of insect damage. 

I hated them.

Only briefly. (C'mon, a little jealousy keeps you human!)

Their orchard is very near their house, which allows them to water it daily. They need to. Their soil is sandy and has trouble holding water. Daily water and the endless heat and sunshine that we've had this summer are the perfect recipe for plant growth. 

I've started a new job this summer and with the busy whirl of finding my feet in a job that has me travelling around the province I've been neglectful of my orchard. I've only been watering Eden's Rise once a week, sometimes even less. No wonder my trees are being ravaged by insects, curling their leaves up, turning yellow, and my two weakest plants (weak since being planted too early and getting a hard knock by the frost) have finally died. 

I realised that far from being on par with those older orchards, I was on the road to having my orchard stunted and looking much as it does now even 4 years from now when ideally I should be in full production. Tough love is not what these young trees need.

Like a procrastinator who has realised the deadline is now only 2 days away I've been pushed into action by panic. I have been watering my orchard every day for 4 days now. To see change overnight seemed too good to be true and yet change is here!

My elderberry plants have added an inch of new wood in 3 days, my plum which had lost 60% of its leaves to insect damaged has now sneezed out a huge tuft of new leaves which totally hides the half eaten massacre within. The blueberries with crusty leaf edges are pushing out some fresh green leaves and the grapes which have been lacking in action nearly all summer have finally sent enough tentacles to reach the first wire of my trellis (about 4 feet) (not all of them, some varieties seem to be struggling more than the rest). 

Seeing an immediate result to my extra work is exactly what I needed for morale. I should have known thirsty plants don't have the energy to fight off predators, etc.

Things will be back on track now at Eden's Rise. It may take 2 hours a night to water my orchard, but let's face it. What else would I be doing?

Have a lovely week!

-Eden

Two Sunny Sundays

Spring is the time for new beginnings and while I am anxiously awaiting my first trees, my brother anxiously awaits his first child. 

Obviously my thing is way more scary. 

My brother and my good friend offered their help to get me on track to have my field ready in time for planting. With Marilyn’s strong back all of the holes are prepared and mulched for my pommes, stones, and berries. My own back has been turning over soil to make raised beds for strawberries, trenches for asparagus, and a patch where I will sow native flowers. And with Jack's knowledge of carpentry the trellises are mostly done, now I only have to add the wire and the grape vines! 

This week should also be the last for frost (though I’ll make sure not to trust the weather forecast for a while longer) which means my vegetable and flower seedlings are beginning to think of moving outdoors. Full disclosure: my seedlings are the ugliest, weakest, and unhappiest plants I have ever seen. Those that managed to sprout and that haven’t died from damping off shrivel up as soon as I put them outside like the mere thought of a breeze is enough to make them faint. All and all it has started my adventure off on a bit of a minor key.

I can think of several reasons why the seedlings are struggling.I think the main issue is that I tried to start them in a 50/50 mix of potting soil and coconut coir. Skimping on the growing medium and trays has taught me my first important lesson in growing: if you’re going to do something, do it right. No more half-assed-ness going on here.

Speaking of asses, here are Eden’s Rise’s neighbours. These two horses come watch me as I work, then go back to their grazing when they get bored of that. They'll likely find me much less boring when I'm harvesting apples five years from now.

The big stuff is all happening this week, stay tuned for updates on the new life in Eden's Rise!