Cherry Grove

I cannot tell a lie, we planted all 4 cherrytrees!!!! I have been trying to figure out WHERE to put them since I bought them. Had to get the original tree guild in, then the cherries. I had a vague idea but could not settle. Today was final decision day. The goal was free flowing beauty and bountiful harvests! Last night, the Lord brought to mind a sweet childhood memory ~ my sophomore year of high school, Banning High went to the State Championships. We went in a creaky old school bus up to Northern California to spend the night in Palo Alto, near Stanford in a lovely, stately home, on a tree lined street. It exploded my mind open, loved the home, hosts and garden setting. It had this breakfast area/sunroom with gigantic windows overlooking lovely, lacy trees. Not big thunderous forests ~ just pretty trees, dappled sunlight, a beautiful yard.

It was so different than the golden hills of So Cal. I remember big bookcases full of interesting books, and being fascinated by their home. It reflected the warmth and kindness of our hosts. For a small town girl, with big dreams, it was a big deal!

Anyhow, as I kept thinking about WHERE to put the trees, I could not settle. North facing, good drainage, on a slope, no muddy roots. Yesterday, we were out in the backyard, thinning plants, cleaning up the raised beds and thinking about WHERE to put the cherry trees to enjoy them ~ cherry trees are BEAUTIFUL! I walked back into the sunroom, turned around to look outside and that memory popped into my head. And that was it, the perfect solution!

We worked all afternoon and evening. We have gotten it down to a rhythm were we each have a task. Dave dug out the top of the 3rd tree, then ran to get dinner and Emily Baughn and I kept at it. Ate really quick and back out digging HUGE holes, broadforking and amending soil. It isn’t just about planting trees, it is about having super nutritious produce!

The sun dropped behind the steeple and the fireflies came out and lit the holes we were digging, lit up our path as we amended the last of the soil and dug it in, sprinkled organic nutrients! Got the last two trees in by 9:20pm! We will wake up to 4 planted cherry trees in the morning! 2 sweet Stella’s and 2 Montmorency which are a “sour” or pie cherry from the 1600’s! There is a lot of history in this garden!! Love it!

They will look amazing in 2025, but until then, they are in! Of course, they will be cherry guilds, with all sorts of fun things underneath for our permaculture fruit guilds.

Thank you to my hardworking family who goes all on with my wild dreams and insane plans!

Tomorrow we will tidy them up – we just wanted them IN! Rain expected Tuesday!