Wow what a difference a year makes! The Hidden Springs Orchard made giant leaps forward this season. The trees were healthy for the most part and the bounty of fruit was 180 degrees from the previous year. In fact there is so much fruit out there that if there is anyone who feels that their harvest wasn’t sufficient the HSTA collected a bunch of apples and pears from non-adopted trees and we are willing to share, just let us know and we will hook you up.

This winter there is more to do. Now that we have a handle on the over-watering and have a consistent fertilization plan implemented the way is set to address other issues affecting the trees. The HSTA will continue to provide care and feeding for the trees in the orchard but after a full season of successful growth it is time to do a little pruning.

            Pruning fruit trees in the winter helps promote new growth in the spring and is essential to help stabilize the overall tree structure. Those long gangly branches that tend to break when loaded down with fruit will be looked at. However knowing that many trees are damaged and may not have a sufficient number of healthy branches, Richard and his crew will error on the side of overall tree health when deciding what to prune and what not to prune.

In addition to consistent pruning we will also be focused on mitigating rodent damage to the roots. Specifically, voles and gophers will be targeted aggressively this winter. One idea that has taken a foothold is the concept of leaving much of the fallen fruit on the ground. The idea here is that if the rodents have just enough fruit left on the orchard floor they may not need to attack the roots. This idea is theoretical and will be done in conjunction with our normal trapping and poisoning efforts. If the fallen fruit idea fails and the rodent population appears to thriving we can always pick up the fruit.

 

We would like to thank all of our adoptee families for their support an ongoing commitment to the orchard. And we look forward to a great Orchard 2011.