I will keep learning and discovering more as I live here on fruit tree care along side what varieties I have inherited. I am making a scrap book of information, of each corner of this property.
I should have it well put together over this winter and be ready for next year! I want to have good apples next year to share, to harvest those cherries before the worms get in as they did this year.
It was shocking to me in coming home from a weekend visiting my Cousin Henry in June to fine all the cherries brown on Derek's 2 cherry trees, how shocking and surprising to me because they look AMAZING when they were still green....
I wish my Grandpa Ansil Graber was still alive to walk around this huge back yard with me and advise step by step in tree care for each one of these 5 trees. Derek's 2 cherry trees are HUGE, and Derek's 2 apple trees are really wild looking, and of course Derek's Peach tree the one he loved sharing with the rest of us is looking old and struggling. I feel like I am running out of time in my responsibility to care properly and wisely for these trees.
My Father who worked along side my Grandpa came over on Mother's day with his own education, his awareness in these fruit tree problems. I wanted to write down what he said as he talked fast but then I thought I would take him up on his offer to prune this fall/winter and start my proper spraying schedule for next year.....as I am battling the bugs, blight and worms already!
Derek's apple trees are the same apple from what i can tell looking over the fruit, everything way up high I give happily to the birds all of nature needs to eat I know!
My mother was explaining how to make apple sauce the other day in cutting around the worms or bird damage. I realized I need to get organized on all my canning equipment and setup a shelf in my pantry for can goods in this fall season, such planning and doing will be magical and fun for me!
As I was talking to a fruit tree expert in the local garden nursery last week he said sometimes apple trees can be to far gone to bring back to a good tasting apple again. I sure hope my trees that were once my brother's trees are not yet lost to the wild again. I have watched many documentaries about the history of the apple as we know it today and I am in awe!
I suppose if all else fail I will go back to making the original hard apple cider again with these trees, for the possibilities and the wonder of it all brings me such joy while missing my brother every single day!
My husband said to me with a chuckle "When you left to help your Mom, your Dad kept talking about the issues with fruit trees and I had to tell him that he needed to talk to you instead because you are the one who does all of this care taking, this gardening and I had no idea what he was saying!" I smiled proudly with the nod of my head saying "Well I am a farmer's daughter, and a farmer's granddaughter! I feel very much at home on these topics!"
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