Planting 2023
Last year was easier.
In April 2022 we planted our first block of apples. The ground was freshly tilled and we got nearly all of the trees and varieties that we ordered. Aside from a single rain shower that interupted planting, everything went really smooth.
2023 has been a bit more complex. We had to replace some trees that didn't survive in the 2022 planting, and we planted two additional varieties. The nursery had some troubles getting us the numbers in our order, and we had to change our row layouts last minute to address the change. We also took on planting a few experimental trees under a collaborative project between Cornell, Penn State, and NC State. It was a lot of moving parts.
Despite the challenges, we were able to add an additional 1,600 trees to our orchard this year, bringing the total to about 4,622 on 4.5 acres.
As if to celebrate a job completed, the Virginia craps burst into bloom this past week.
