Adding fruit trees and bushes

     With our property very open, with no more standing large trees in the yard, we have plenty of room to add a small orchard and a bunch of berrying bushes to our yard. This is something I wish we would have done years ago but just now really started getting into "growing our own" food.
     Recently we bought 6 blueberry bushes, bare root stock that is 3 years old. We will see some berries on it but it will take a few more years before they are heavily covered in berries. We had already 2 Tophat variety and purchased 2 Jersey, 2 Toro, and 2 Bluecrop. The one we have and the Jersey are tiny berries, good for eating of course but also great for baking. If you ever baked with the big berries you know what I mean. They are messy, but the tiny ones work perfectly. The Toro and Bluecrop of large berries. We made sure to have 2 different varieties that flower at the same time to help with cross pollination. We were lucky enough to purchase them as bare roots from the nursery at the right time, as it was we got them half off. The lady had said, once they go into pots they double in price. We did pay a little more than I would have liked but I got to pick out the ones I wanted, plus I got to see the root system. I had no idea how to pick the "right kind" of plant and made sure to ask the man who helped me what to look for. He talked about how it is best to get plants that have a few canes as opposed to have only 1 or 2, lots of buds, and nice root system. I felt bad because I picked up just about everyone and gave it a good look over, but at least I know I got the best ones.
     I know where I am planting these, however there is so much that I need to do before I can plant them in their permanent spot, so for now they went into big black nursery pots that I acquired for free from the same nursery I purchased the plants at.
     I want to try a permaculture raised bed for the blueberry bushes from the pine tree we took out last fall. I was originally going to use it for raised beds along our property line but after reading what woods are best I nixed that idea and thought it would be best for the blueberries since pine is acidic and blueberries are acid loving plants.
     We also picked up a semi-dwarf, super sweet, nectarine tree. It is already taller than me and has lots of buds on it. I still need to put it in the ground but alas it is currently raining out, so it will have to wait.
     We bought a 4-1 pear tree and a 5-1 apple tree a few years back, but still haven't gotten fruit from them yet. 2 years ago we put in pomegranate, cherry trees, and pawpaw trees. These will take awhile also before we get fruit from them. That is the price for buying new plants as oppose to paying a lot more for ready to go trees. Plus we have Meeker raspberry canes that I purchased from a lady off of Craigslist, the Quinalt strawberries I planted last fall after taking out 4300 unknown strawberry plants, and rhubarb.I also have a fig tree and kiwi starts that a lady gave me.
     We plan on adding other fruits too, just haven't gotten that far yet.
    

Chickens vs Flying Predators

    

Some of our flock in July 2011

     We have had chickens for years and have been fortunate enough to not have many predators trying to snack on our chickens. Over the years though, we have notice an increase in incidences with predators the more we add to our flock. Plus with all the brush clearing I have been doing hasn't helped either, nor the 2 big pine trees coming down this past fall.

     I loved having a blank slate for a yard, however, with little to no hiding spots for the chickens, they become easy prey for the flying predators. I did do some research and found that depending on the flying predator they need a certain amount of space to land and take off. My hope is by adding more trees and bushes it will help deter the hawks and eagles while keeping our chickens safe from harm. The other plus side to having more trees and bushes, it provides not only shelter but food as well.

   Yesterday my chickens started cackling like crazy. Sometimes it is just hens making noise from laying or screaming at other hens to hurry up with the nest they are using, but there are times where you just know something isn't right. I grabbed my coat and ran out the backdoor, surveying the yard and sky. I did not see any feathers nor predator flying above, that is until my DH yelled out about the big bird hanging out in the trees in the back part of the yard. This bird took off and my word the span was massive! I guess it liked what it saw and decided to make a return trip today to snack on one of our hens. This time when I went out I did not notice any noise or chickens. I knew something was up, especially once I saw the big bald eagle taking flight from the back corner of the yard after sensing the jig was up.

    It is always sad one a chicken is taken, but it does happen. That is the price when you free range your chickens without providing adequate protection for them. Hence the fact that we are trying to fix that very problem. Obviously I still free range my chickens, but I always try to be aware of their cries or lack there of.