The Orchard was installed in 2017 with the “close planting” technique as described by Dave Wilson Nursery. There are multiple varieties of apples, cherries, pears, plums, figs and pawpaws. Peaches did not work well. The concept of a “fruit guild” is utilized, consisting of a community of plants that support each other. The guild contains chives to attract pollinators and repel pests, and comfrey, with its deep roots, as an accumulator to pull nutrients up to the trees. Comfrey is planted directly under the trees to also act as a mulch. Yarrow is planted on the outer borders and in the cherry tree island to act as a weed suppressor and attractor. There is some Rue, which can be toxic but is known to repel Japanese beetles. There are also Zinnias and Cleome for the bees, which are located at the end of the orchard. Most interesting is the bottle fence, which seems to keep out the deer! Because of the Miss Moon Pie scare crow, bottle fence, dangling pie pans and more, my friend Patti describes it as very “Sanford and Son”!
