Orchard Talk

There are a lot of cherries on the trees, and all signs point to a good crop of both sweet and tart cherries. Our latest estimate is that sweet cherry picking will begin around July 10th, with tart cherries following a week to 10 days later.

Betsy and Rose expect to have strawberries in the markets beginning Monday. We still have wonderful, delicate & crisp asparagus available for the next few days, and also some tasty fresh spinach.

Montmorency cherry trees

Little green cherries, soon to be plump red cherries!

Tags: cherry crop, Crop Updates & Orchard Talk, tart cherries

The King family and crew are readying for what we hope is a fruitful growing season. Our strategy for 2009: Growing great fruit, while providing exceptional service and value to our customers and community.

Some of what we’re working on:

Betsy and I have been finalizing new designs for 1/2 peck fruit bags and updating the product catalog to reflect new items (insert shameless plug for Nuts about Cherries Trail Mix) and packaging.

Rose has been busy laying out her garden and bakery plans for the Kewadin market, but took time out to make one of her famous cherry pies for our photo shoot.

John and Jim are ordering more trees, repairing equipment, filing taxes, preparing crop reports, attending GAP (good agricultural practices) training, making this year’s IPM plans, etc. In short, working hard to grow great fruit.

I think it’s really starting to happen. Spring, I mean. There is one resistant pile of snow in front of the M-88 fruitstand, but I give that bugger 2 or 3 days at best.  Soon we’ll be talking about bees and blossoms and buds. Oh my!

For visual proof of impending spring and a glimpse of life in the Torch Lake area, you really have to read Gerry Sell’s Torch Lake Views blog. She is far more eloquent than I, and has a real gift for capturing the character of our community. This week, she posted some incredible morning shots of Torch Lake and Grand Traverse Bay, and also writes about Michigan-made products. Gotta love that.

Don’t forget to drink your cherry juice!
Patty

Tags: Crop Updates & Orchard Talk

Hi Everyone,
It has finally slowed down here on the farm and I hate to say it but Jim and John are already talking Spring? Meanwhile our Jésus in the Office has been getting out and trying new moves on the Snowboard! Unsuccessfully I might add! He tried a ‘Big Move’ and came down in a pile! Broke his collar bone and has been in a arm sling ever since. You should see him keep up in the office with one arm. Hahahah I think he is going to have one arm like Popeye! Good luck Jésus!

Tags: Crop Updates & Orchard Talk

Today I talked with Adam from Hilltop trees in Lawton, Mi about our tree order for 2008. I want to get several rows of McIntosh planted this spring. We have McIntosh planted on the home farm and on Jim’s home farm but most are on the larger rootstock so picking requires ladders. The larger trees are a real headache when it comes to u-pick Mac’s. The top of the tree has the best color and people are inclined to reach for those, but Macs fall off readily when they are ripe so any disturbance causes apples to fall. I hope that by planting fully dwarfing trees I can have u-pick work more easily. We manage the height and bearing branches on the dwarfing trees so that the fruit colors more evenly and the apples in the top are the same as the apples at eye level. Also the tree is only a few feet across from outside to outside so most of the apples can be reached from the ground without disturbing the apples that we don’t want to pick yet.

We plant the trees on dwarfing rootstocks close together. The trees I ordered today are on M-9 rootstock and we will plant them 3 1/2 feet apart in rows 14 feet apart. Trees on M-9 can not stand up on their own so we will tie the tree to a bamboo stake and then tie the bamboo to a trellis for support. On the plus side the trees on M-9 root grow large apples and start bearing in the year following planting. We hope for full production by the 5th year!!

I am going to plant these Macs in a block near the M-88 market right next to some rows of Northern Spy, Mutsu, Gala, and Honeycrisp. I hope to encourage u-pick apples.

John

Tags: Crop Updates & Orchard Talk

Well, today it is nasty weather here on the farm. No school for the local schools so the kids are having a ball! They’re doing flips behind the snowmobile! No really! Oh, to be young enough to do it. Cherry Juice is being packed. Its Cherry Month too, so the creativity with the Dried Cherries is great. Rose

Tags: Crop Updates & Orchard Talk

Our plan for our blog is to have ongoing discussions on a variety of topics:

• What’s happening on the farm and in the markets this week.
• What does a real 21st century farming family look like?
• Sustainable, responsible and scientific growing methods.
• Montmorency Cherries! Why we love our Montmorency cherry juice concentrate and dried cherries.
• Apple varieties, including the famed Honeycrisp apple.
• Tips and Recipes for our fruits and cherry products.

We invite you to share with us your comments and suggestions.

Looking forward to hearing from you as we embark on our blogging adventure,

Patty

Tags: Crop Updates & Orchard Talk