In addition to the four raised beds and one in-the-ground bed that we have for vegetables, we have an orchard. Of course, ours isn’t a collection of trees in straight rows, but it is an orchard nonetheless. All it takes to be an orchard is 5 fruit trees.

A couple of years ago, I was driving past Southern States and their sign said “Fruit trees in stock now.”. It seemed like my car turned in of its own volition. Everything I got said it was self pollinating, but when I got home the plum had an additional tag that indicated that it needed a coconspirator. I was going to take it back to exchange it, but my son asked how 2 plum trees was a bad thing and since he was right, I just got another variety.

So, we have a Keiffer pear, A White Princess peach, a Santa Rosa plum, an Elephant Heart plum, an apricot, a sour cherry, a pomegranate bush and a Honeycrisp apple tree.

I got a crabapple to cross-pollinate the Honeycrisp, which I ordered in line, but they don’t bloom at the same time, so I’m rethinking that. I’m going to give the bees a year or 2 before putting in another apple. Honeycrisp may not like our weather, but it’s the only one we really care to eat. If I do add another apple, it’ll be a pie apple tree.

We were given a money gift for a wedding present and we used it to buy a little pecan tree. I have no clue how long it will take before that produces.

We have tried planting a fig bush 3 times. The first 2 died. We have planted the most recent iteration in the flower bed by the house hoping that it will have adequate protection from the winter weather there to finally thrive.

This past weekend, I went to Southern States to get some hyacinth and daffodil bulbs and wandered past the fruit trees. Which were marked down 25%. And there was a damson plum, which happens to be Chuck’s favorite jam.

If you were in the area and saw a red New Beetle going down the road with a tree sticking out of the sunroof, that was me.