Today's blue skies were hard not be under. The air was crisp and birds were singing springtime tunes. Warmth is around the corner and it was a perfect day to get out for a change. I hadn't planned on pruning anything, but my first snip of the grape vines led me to trim ALL the vines (5 of them), the Hops (no, I don't brew beer -- I just think its a cool looking vine), the volunteer fruit tree (it suddenly appeared amongst the elderberries and has grown to consume its own place in rhubarb row - so I pruned it to see what fruits it might bear), and the real fruits of my labor today -- the apple trees. I planted 3 apples trees when we moved here 15 years ago, and never did anything else with them. I'm not a believer in spraying, so I never sprayed -- but I never pruned them either thinking maybe with 
a little luck and no work, they'll produce something. They never did, but I never really payed much attention nor cared much either. So today, out of the blue (must have been the sky), I took the ladder, a good trimmer, and my tree climbing skills and chopped 15 years worth of growth off of 3 apples trees. At first I wasn't sure if I was taking enough off, then a vague memory of my master gardeners days came to mind that these babies like to be naked in the dead of winter, so naked they became. This will force some serious growth into the tree, with hope they'll bear fruit for the first time. You'd think after 15 years I'd get something out of an apple tree wouldn't you? Oh, that's right...I DID get an apple in 1998 - I forgot. And I believe I remember seeing a bird peck at one other apple last year. So this summer we may be picking apples. Won't that be a delight for the first time?
a little luck and no work, they'll produce something. They never did, but I never really payed much attention nor cared much either. So today, out of the blue (must have been the sky), I took the ladder, a good trimmer, and my tree climbing skills and chopped 15 years worth of growth off of 3 apples trees. At first I wasn't sure if I was taking enough off, then a vague memory of my master gardeners days came to mind that these babies like to be naked in the dead of winter, so naked they became. This will force some serious growth into the tree, with hope they'll bear fruit for the first time. You'd think after 15 years I'd get something out of an apple tree wouldn't you? Oh, that's right...I DID get an apple in 1998 - I forgot. And I believe I remember seeing a bird peck at one other apple last year. So this summer we may be picking apples. Won't that be a delight for the first time? 
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