I created two new planting beds in the BRC orchard. Both will be sites for new companion plants. At least one will have a new apple tree. Over the past few year I’ve piled brush in the two spots—each about 4 feet wide and forty feet long. Today I laid old rotten hay over the surface, dug the tree hole and then partially filled it with gravel. The gravel will act as a bit of drainage as well as a medium for the tree roots to get established. Eventually I’ll cover the entire surface of the two beds with composted manure and woodsy soil I get from an old pile of decomposing stumps.

Meanwhile Cammy dug trenches for more asparagus. Love that asparagus! We have a large bed but one of the three rows has never done that well so we’re adding plants to that row. Plus, another totally new row for good measure.

The temperatures remain cool, and we had a brief but insistent shower in the middle of the afternoon. Enough to convince us to come inside. Malus hupehensis is at “pink” now, suggesting it will soon be blooming. I’ve read differing stories about its common name: Tea Crab. Some suggest that the leaves make a delicious tea. Other suggest that it was a tree to sit beneath and drink “real” tea. Either way, it’s a beautiful tree.