Winter Update

Well here we are in the glorious month of July.

Life on the Orchard is busy as always.
I’ve been keeping myself occupied with pruning since the beginning of May.
I’m just over half way through the Orchard right now with all the Apricot, Peach and Nectarine Blocks done and just the Plum and Apple Blocks left to go.
It may sound strange but I really enjoy pruning even when the temperatures drop well below zero.

My trusty old Hydralada has been my work companion throughout this winter and has only let me down on one occasion when it’s starter motor crapped itself!
But once the new starter motor arrived, we were back in business! I’m thinking about naming my friend. Any suggestions????

As you can see in the photos below my trusty mate has stood by me through all weather conditions.

On the nice days

Nice Day To Be Pruning Nectarines

And the not so nice days

Nothing beats a -6c morning to let you know you're alive!

Ruby is looking forward in her spare time to taking over the propagation of all the plants for our massive veggie garden this season as I will be slightly preoccupied running the Orchard.
She’ll also be flat out helping Mum run the Fruit Stall during the Fruit Season.  Thankfully she has inherited Mum’s skill of multi-tasking.

As a wee kid I thought all mothers could do ten things at once!!  I was rather surprised when I discovered this wasn’t the norm.

Mum is balancing her time right now, running the house by keeping everyone fed, tending to her vast gardens and pruning the odd Nectarine tree.
I’ve put my foot down and only allow her to prune 1 or 2 trees a day as opposed to 20 as I don’t think it’s a good idea having my mother catching Hypothermia on a -4c morning!
She has relucantly agreed and hugs me often saying “Thank You!!!!”

It may have been cold recently but Hercules Flat is a beautiful little place to live.

This photo was taken from our sunroom early this morning of the hills at the back of the Orchard.
Truly impressive.

And I snapped this one from out in the Omega Plum Block.

So apart from being a bit cold these past few months, everything is plodding along nicely in Hercules Flat.
Stay tuned for future updates including more photos from out in the Orchard.

By the way, I’ve really appreciated all the emails and phone calls of support over the past few months whilst I’ve been learning how to run the Orchard.
The transition from Web Designer to Orchardist has certainly been an interesting journey!!

And on a lighter note here’s a couple of photos of me and Mum and me and Ruby on a rare day out to Queenstown.

Cheers

Sam