TOPIC: showing the changes of Springtime

Hey Maya,
Beautiful picture. It says it all.
I grew some Stark Supreme Staymans on Bud9, trained to the Slender Spindle a few years ago and they were really precocious. They produced a money crop in a hurry. What varieties are you growing now? UMass has some great videos of their projects of growing hi density apple crops for the NorthEast.
You are right about the PerpendicularV training that I have used on the orchard that I showed in the video. Many of those trees that you saw are only starting in their 3rd leaf and will carry about 1-1/2 bushels of fruit this year. The 4 year old trees will carry 2 bushels. The largest (6 year old trees will carry almost 4 bushels per tree. That is about where I will hold them because of space limitations. I have only sold by the 1/2 peck, 1 peck, and 1/2 bushel baskets so far. This year much of my fruit, (if it makes it), will be taken to the Farmers Market in Morristown and sold by the 1/2 bushel Market baskets to vendors. After making some contacts, I will probably just let them come to the house and pick them up.

If you happen to want to expand you peach varieties some, the Contender, Challenger, and one or two other varieties that North Carolina has developed would survive in Vermont. They are hardy to -20 below zero and have a very late bloom to escape late frost and freezes. I have the distinct feeling that they are going to get tested here this year, because we are off to such an early start this season. Everything is just about in full bloom here right now and I know we will have at least 3-4 more freezes before all the little winters have passed. Good luck with your crop.
Hugh

Maya and others,

While the board is a little slow I'll post a little color to help liven things up as well as showing growing techniques. We were dicussing the Perpendicular V system. First planting.

Here is first Spring growth.

You can see how fast things progress using this growing system. This picture shows the Perpendicular V pretty well and the high density of the trees.

The trees grow so fast if watered that you will be doing this in 2 -3 years.

Here is the final result of this type of training and then we're on to ginseng.

Awesome!!! Thanks for the heads up on those varieties, I'll try one of each next year. UVM said no to anything but Reliance, but I am very low in the Champlain valley and have a good southern exposure, so they may make it. Funny you mentioned UMASS because I went to a couple of seminars/demos they put on and they are the ones that really turned me on to tall spindle. I went to a demo on prunning and we did a block of peach. Looks like they would be fun to grow.

I pruned a guys apples for him last week and he is going to show me some areas that should be good for digging seng, so apples and seng go together quite well imo!!!

Well we don't have anything to show for color up here yet, but do have some bud swell, but here's a prunning pic of one of my 7th leaf honey crisp just outside of my tall spindle orchard.Gotta fence the deer out of that orchard!

Here are some honey Gold last spring in the TS orchard. Still got another month at least before we see that this year even with the warm weather. I've got 600 more trees to plant this spring. I just finished putting together a rootstock nursery this morning to propogate my own for now on. Now more paying for trees!!!

This is a block of Honeycrisp on mm111 in the foreground and the Tall Spindle orchard in the background. Pristine, Zestar!, Mac, Gala, Honycrisp, Fuji, Macoun, Ida Red, Cortland, Galarina, Grimes Golden, and Honey Gold in that orchard right now. Hope to have a U-pic for the locals out there in a couple years when the trees are bigger. Still have room for a couple hundred more.

Great Pictures of a well groomed and well maintained orchard. It looks like you are out in front with the newest growing technology and varieties. I wish you luck with them and a great year with the seng. John Clemmons will be proud of you.
Hugh