new and old

Driving by the orchard these days, folks may see something in the distance, it's not just a forest of poles...we started a new adventure this spring: grapes!

We planted 550 vines, a few different varieties for wine and a couple for eating. We are super excited to be working with a new crop, a new challenge.

In the next 3 to 5 years, we hope to start harvesting our first fruits and pressing them for our first wines. Dad calls this acre the 'Glass of 2014'

We also have some hops growing for our Bunny #13, our OTS Wine made by fermenting hops with our apple cider.

They are a couple of years old, and we look forward to the time they reach the top of the poles.

We currently are growing willamette, nugget and cascade; and so far, the cascade hops seem to be doing the best.

And, or course, our old standby: apples. We took out a few hundred trees this winter and planted as many more. I believe we are now somewhere around 4200 trees, but i haven't counted yet this year to be sure.

Despite the inclement weather during bloom, the honeybees seem to have done what they do.

We will probably start picking apples in a few weeks. It's hard to believe that apple season is already upon us again.

This is a branch full of pristine apples.

A start to a countdown for fresh apples!