Living with Deer
Deer are a fact of life for many of us. They are charming to look at, but they can wreak havoc in the garden. Not only do they browse the plants, but the bucks will quickly destroy a plant when rubbing their antlers during the late summer and autumn rut. How can you garden in […]
Scouting for Pest Problems
Scouting One of the most important tools a gardener or orchardist has are his or her eyes. Scouting is the act of observation, with the intent of recognizing disease or pest hazards before they become critical. The idea is to act before too much damage is done. This is an important skill to develop. Aphids […]
Upright Fruiting Offshoot (UFO) Sweet Cherry Training
Many visitors to Cloud Mountain are intrigued by our ‘cherry tunnel’. This upright fruiting system (UFO) is an unusual way of growing sweet cherries. It was initially developed for commercial growers, but can be adapted to home gardens and market farms as well. The Upright Fruiting Offshoots (UFO) system for sweet cherries was developed to: […]
Pruning Sweet Cherries
One important note: always prune cherries when you will have at least 2 days of dry weather. This can help reduce canker. Most people grow sweet cherries as freestanding ‘bush’ shaped trees. In a future post, we’ll talk about growing sweet cherries as an espalier or fruiting wall form called UFO (upright fruiting offshoot). Cherry […]
Pruning Stone Fruits
Traditionally, we have been pruning most of our stone fruits in late January along with the rest of the orchard for quite a number of years. A few years ago, we discovered something interesting in our Peach Plum. It has been my youngest daughter’s favorite plum since she was little, so we have always kept […]
Frost and fruit buds
With our mild winter and early spring, most fruit trees are breaking dormancy a bit ahead of normal. This time of year when the forecast is for sunny days and clear nights, it’s possible we’ll get some frost. Should you worry about those fruit buds? Critical Bud Temperatures As buds begin to swell, frost damage […]