Let’s continue by discussing the details of how, why, and when to range animals under fruit and nut trees. We spoke to the why, that is to interrupt the pest cycle so that you are the ones enjoying the ripening fruit instead of a rotting larvae filled ball of mush. Next is the how. When ranging […]
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How to Disrupt Pests without Sprays
It is late summer and if you have trees producing fruit chances are you have asked yourself this questions once or twice before. If this is your first season with fruit don’t be bummed out because we can help you stop the pest cycle without using toxic sprays. I have been getting a ton of […]
What are Gooseberries? And why you should grow them!
“Gooseberries? What is a gooseberry? I have never even heard of them!” That is the reaction I most commonly get when we walk by mygooseberry patch. Up until recently my “lame dad joke”, as my wife likes to point out, has been, “it’s a berry that tastes like a goose, only sweeter!” Judging from the […]
Dormant Pruning: Why you need to Prune your Trees!
Check out this dormant pruning video we did last winter. Here I am pruning this large elderberry plant. Not only is pruning necessary for your plants and trees you can also turn the prunings into new plants! Pruning is an essential part of our fall and winter schedule here on the farm. Dormant pruning accomplishes […]
Road Trip to John W. Hershey’s Defunct Tree Crop Nursery
Today I visited the old nursery remnants of John W. Hershey’s Downingtown, PA tree crops nursery. J. Russell Smith, author of Tree Crops, mentions John W. Hershey’s now defunct tree nursery in his book repeatedly. From what I can gather John Hershey worked tirelessly toward the improvement of native fruit and nut trees in the region. Much […]
Comfrey Planting Guide
Comfrey Introduction Comfrey enthusiasts often tout comfreys utility while detractors vilify and discredit its effectiveness. Because of the over hype on both sides it is hard to get the true story on comfrey. Together let’s dispel the rumors and get the full story. Comfrey is hardy, most people see plants as fragile and can only […]
6 Months of Fruit: A fruit by Season Guide
After the recent article about choosing the right blueberry varieties for expanding your harvest I got a lot of questions about expanding the harvest in general. Most of the questions have revolved around what plants or trees to select if your goal is to be picking fruit all summer long. With that premise in mind […]
Fruit Trees with No Fruit?!? Here’s how to Solve the Mystery
So you planted a few fruit trees and for some reason you still haven’t gotten any fruit, what gives? Fruit trees have many benefits and uses: enhancing the beauty of the landscape, bird habit, pollen sources for bees, and above all and probably why you planted them in the first place is the potential fruit […]