Planting a fruit tree or bush

Alright friends, so maybe you've decided to put in a fruit tree. What a great idea!


Before you go off and buy the first fruit tree that you see, make sure you think about what fruit trees other people in your area have and are successful with. For example, here under the Wasatch Mountains, I'm not going to have any success with a mango tree or an avocado tree.


I don't like avocados anyway.


But peach, pear, apricot, cherry, plum, apple-- these will all do well in these parts.


So step one is to find a good tree. First off, if you are a cost cutter like my family is, you will likely buy a bare-root tree. You could get a tree with roots, dirt pack and all covered with a canvas bag, but that's just not necessary. I'm going to assume you are going to go with a bare-root tree.


Now, a tree is good if it has healthy roots and some new growth. Healthy roots are not brittle, are moist, and will have small, hairy bits growing off of the bigger roots. If you are going to have the seller deliver, be sure that they are going to keep the roots nice and moist during delivery of the tree. If you are going to take the tree, bring along a black trash bag with wet dirt in it. You will stick the trees roots in the bag to protect them somewhat. 


However, understand that you need to get that tree in the ground fast. Without regular dirt and its nutrients and moisture, those roots are going to be exposed to all of the elements and they will start dying fast. So, while you are digging and preparing the hole, be sure to keep the roots moist and in the shade or in the bag. 

The hole comes next. This is where your artistic nature comes into play and memories of building sandcastles will flood your mind. So think about depth first. The hole should be deep to the point that when the tree is placed in it, the crown, which is where the roots all branch down from the trunk, is a couple inches above ground. Why? Because the tree is going to settle naturally and you don't want the trunk flare to go too deeply underground. What is the trunk flare? The spot right above the crown.

Next you need to help those roots start out right. So since you are planting a bare-root tree, you need to give those roots support. Which means you need to build a mound of dirt in the center of the hole. When you place your tree in the hole, the roots need to be gently spread all around this mound. Thus, the mound you build will be inside the root system. The mound should be nice and packed so that the tree will be held firmly, but it does not need to be rock hard. Some settling is allowable.

Now that you have finished the hole and the supportive mound, get that tree in there! As you replace the soil, you can add some nice fertilizer to help the roots find their way into a firm home. A good fertilizer is Mycorrhizal Fungi, which you can find at http://www.treehelp.com. Then, with the dirt all replaced, tamp it down tight and water. The next day, pack it down again to make sure your tree is not going to fall down. 

Feel free to water again, but then leave the tree for a few days. This will wake roots up and get them working to find water. Also, make sure that water is not going to pool too long in the area around the base of the tree, as that will sometimes cause the tree to weaken and fall.

Finally, keep an eye on the tree and be confident that nature will take its course and your tree will flourish. 

These same principles apply to planting bushes. Remember: 

• A nice deep hole.
• A mound to spread the roots out on.
• Fertilizer to get things started. 
• Strategic watering. 
• Trust in nature. 

And that's it for today. Remember to share this site with your gardening friends. I would also love to have you comment with questions, links to other helpful gardening sites, and any other thoughts you might have. 

See you tomorrow, when I will discuss the chickens a little more in depth. 

Nature's providence

Thought I'd get a job I'd been interviewing for. Found out today that this is just another job, in a series of jobs, that is strangely beyond my grasp.

But on to nature's providence.

First, I'm listening to Promontory off the soundtrack to Last of the Mohicans. 

I hope there are moments where you can stop and breathe quietly, taking in the world and its magnificence. If you find yourself wondering what I mean, try this:

*Step outside. Yes, you can do this now.
*No matter where you are standing, you should be able to look up and see the sky.
*What is between you and that vast swath of multi-layered gases up there? Can you feel any wind? Do you know how that wind is made? Do you understand the complexity of the air you are breathing, the interplay between the sun's heat, gravity and the atmosphere and our planet's gravity?
*If you can feel wind, think about skin. The sensations you can feel: smooth, cold, soft, rough, dry, wet, and so on.
*What do you hear? Cars? Birds? Wind murmuring through leaves?
*Atmosphere, wind, skin, gravity, heat. Waves of light, sound, and sensation. The marvelous complexity of a single moment.
*Not such a simple moment anymore.

This is creation: the organization of potential into the knowledge of a moment and a place.

Your garden, lawn and other areas of your stewardship provide opportunities for creation.

Today, I wanted to write a bit about chickens and another area where our labors provide for us.

Here are some chickens:

We have seven chickens. Annemarie, my wife, could tell you what type they are; she provides the majority of their care. I'll spend more time another day discussing what has gone into the getting and raising of these hens, but today I'll just say that they have a good life and we get from three to six eggs a day from them. We have learned a lot from them and they will probably pay for themselves in another six months.

There is something that feels more complete inside when you watch your kids interacting with chickens as the chickens eat pests and weeds. There is something miraculous about a little girl who has a terrible phobia of animals who, when her family raises four chickens from chick to hen, completely and naturally overcomes that phobia. In my heart, these chickens have paid for themselves because my daughter plays with them, cats, dogs and recently had a pet earthworm.

I had an assistant this morning with the chickens. He put on his rubber boots before heading out to the messy coop:

At the coop, he went right to the laying boxes and poked through all of them:

He found one:

I love my assistant.

Nature provides so much, if we open our lives to it. There is work, much of it repetitive and mundane, but in the very banality of that work are the moments of connection. Connection to creation, to firmament and to life.

Last year we planted two very young fruit trees.

Here is the peach tree:

The cage around it is a tomato cage surrounded by chicken wire. I put this on because in fall of last year, we had deer essentially stripping it down past its bark. I wanted my tree to live, so this has been its protection. It's looking good. The cage will come off soon.

Here's the pear tree:

It's smaller, but it's doing well so far.

We also have a raspberry bush, still quite young but doing well:

All three fruitful trees/bushes set us back less than fifty bucks total. The fruit, work and connections they will provide are worth far more than that half-benjamin.

It's a great time to put in a fruit tree or bush. I'll discuss how that can be done tomorrow. There is a particular art to it.

My friends, I hope your day is filled with moments of peace and happiness. I also hope you will pass this site along to your friends, family and enemies. If you're enjoying it, so will they.

Until tomorrow.