Pruning

Garden Log: March 19th-April 1st

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It’s got that new tractor smell!

Delivery of new equipment is the big news at Buffalo Ridge Orchard!  With the new tractor we’ll be able to move the hoophouses through their seasonal rotations and use this second tractor so that we can do two jobs at once.  This New Holland replaces an older, larger Case that was too big to dig potatoes, fit between orchard rows, or maneuver along vegetable rows.  And speaking of those veggies, we’re hoping that the new water-wheel transplanter will make quick work of getting them planted now that Spring really does seem to be just around the corner.  Our brassicas and lettuces are ready for some longer days in the bright sunshine!  With any luck, Winter has had its last laugh this April Fools’ Day, and we’ll all be enjoying nice Spring weather for the next couple of months!

Garden Log March 19th – April 1st:

  • Pruned 500 apple trees (Sweet 16, Crimson Topaz, Jonagold, Fuji, Snowsweet, Pristine)
  • Grafted the majority of our tomatoes for our summer hoophouse tomato rotation
  • Potted up flower seedlings into hanging baskets
  • Potted up herb seedlings into planter boxes
  • Moved all of the vegetable, herb, and flower seedlings from the sun-porch nursery to the greenhouse
  • Received delivery of our new tractor and water-wheel transplanter
  • Harvested 2 tubs of spinach & lettuce greens
  • More weeding in the hoophouses

Garden Log: March 12th-March 18th

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Micro lettuce greens are ready to be harvested in the warm, sunny, Spring-y greenhouse.

Just think, this time last year our orchard was nearing full bloom!  Of course, 2 weeks later we were getting frosts that wiped out nearly 100% of our apple crop for the year.  This year we’re still waiting for warm, sunny spring weather to break out from the greenhouse to the rest of the farm.  The snow was all but melted away over the past few days, only to have a couple more inches dropped on us last night.  And that north wind is still blowing mighty cold!  I for one am starting to lose hope in Punxsutawney Phil’s claim of an early spring this year.  However, spring will certainly arrive soon enough (likely with summer not far behind) and we’ll all be looking forward to April Showers and May Flowers until it does.

Garden Log March 12th – March 18th:

  • Pruned 500 apple trees (Honeygold, Grand Gala, Zestar!, Suncrisp, Winecrisp, Alkmene, Candy Crisp, Braestar)
  • Harvested 2 tubs of spinach & micro lettuce greens
  • Planted 10 flats of endive
  • Planted 20 flats of lettuces
  • Planted 2 rows of radishes
  • Transplanted thyme from soil blocks to plug trays
  • Weeded the hoophouse

Garden Log: March 5th-March 11th

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Orchard row after winter pruning
Orchard row after winter pruning – just 50 more rows left

Garden Log: March 5th – March 11th

  • Pruned 200 apple trees (Snowsweet, Galarina, Smoothie, Valstar)
  • Harvested two tubs of spinach
  • Harvest two tubs of micro lettuce greens
  • Planted 26 flats of lettuce
  • Transplanted tomatoes and rootstock
  • Planted one flat of creeping thyme
  • Planted one flat of oregano
  • Planted one flat of thyme
  • Transplanted sage from soil blocks to plug trays
  • Painted final coat in walk-in cooler

We are already running out of room in the heated greenhouse, which is filled with herb plants and plant starts.  When we first built the heated greenhouse we thought we would never be able to keep it full.  Four years later we have had to be very creative to get everything to fit.  We look forward to Spring so that we can start moving plants into the garden.

We had great time this Sunday brushing up on our grafting skills at Plum Creek Orchard in Swisher, Iowa.  Jerry and Kazumi Fottral have been grafting heirloom and specialty apple trees for several years and invited the crew here at Buffalo Ridge Orchard to join them for the afternoon.  It was a very successful day and we even managed to graft a few Holstein apple trees for our orchard.

Garden Log: February 25th-March 4th

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FloweringRosemary

Garden Log: February 25th – March 4th

  • Pruned 80 apple trees (Cortland, Gala, Snowsweet, Gingergold)
  • Harvested two tubs of spinach for the Mt. Vernon winter market
  • Planted one flat of sage, thyme, and oregano
  • Planted three flats of basil
  • Planted three flats of tomato rootstock
  • Painted walk-in cooler floor

The greenhouse is getting filled with plant starts.  The rosemary plants that we use for cuttings are blooming in the greenhouse.  The orchard has an addition of 12 inches of snow this week.  We have been spending our snowy days painting the walk-in cooler and working in the greenhouse.    Day-time temperatures in the hoop houses are well above 60 degrees.  The spinach is benefiting from the long days and is growing strong.

Garden Log: February 11th-25th

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Marcus Pruning

Garden Log: February 11th-25th

  • Pruned 360 apple trees
  • Harvested four tubs of spinach for the coop and Mt. Vernon’s winter market
  • Planted forty flats of rosemary
  • Planted forty flats of lavender
  • Planted tomato flats and root stock
  • Clean and insulated walk-in cooler

The past couple weeks we have been in the orchard pruning.   Although we wish that the weather was a little nicer it is a welcomed alternative last year’s warm February which caused premature bloom.  So we are happy to put on our ski masks and insulated coveralls to work out in the orchard.  Also we are still enjoying fresh spinach from the hoophouse and are savoring the  last of our winter carrots.