Introducing myself to Scott's forum

Rob, don’t worry about clogging up anything, just start a new topic! Even people who know a lot already can learn more from the responses.

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Hi - I finally clicked on this thread and realized I probably should add my own. My husband and I have an alternative energy homestead on 80 acres of forest and field in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where we’ve lived for 40 yrs and where/when I started gardening. It’s zone 3, last frost usually by mid June, first ones often early Sept. I’m the passionate gardener/orcharder of the duo (with assistance whenever needed/wanted). It’s nice that this passion pretty much feeds us. The (organic, permanent bed, mulched) fenced garden, berries and small orchard is about one acre, plus many wild apples/crabs that are sprouting more grafts every year. I got into grafting when we started planting new fruit (mostly apple) trees to add to our few old apples and cherry plums. Borers killed many of those new trees but the root stock regrew so nicely so I looked into grafting, with the result I guess all of you are quite familiar with! A new passion! I have 50-60 trees, mostly apple, with pear, plum, cherry, cherry plum. I’m finally getting better at pruning and grafting but have LOTS to learn. Am so happy to have stumbled on this forum and looking forward to winter when I’ll have more time to read the wealth of info here. So appreciate everyone who is sharing. Most of you are in warmer climates but I learn from it all and it’s so interesting.

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Welcome Sue! I’m amazed with what you’re doing with that short of a growing season. I hope the fishing is good. I won’t last up there if it wasn’t.

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Welcome aboard and you will find this a great place to make friends and learn lots!

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Welcome Sue

Thanks much! And plenty of fishing fruitnut if you ever want to try your hand at the top side of the country!

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Welcome Sue, to the forum. Sounds like you guys are the ultimate homesteaders. I takes real perseverance to live where you’re at, but I imagine y’all love it or you wouldn’t be there for 40 years. I’m sure we will learn lots from you as well…

Hi everyone,
My name is Amy. I just found out about this forum through one of your members. I used to be on GW under cdnfruit and I am keeping the same screen name. I live NW of Prince Albert, SK and am in Z2. I grew up picking berries along the North Saskatchewan River in Alberta to make jam. One day I found a necklace of marigold blossoms on the riverbank when I was 12 and I planted it. It bloomed through most of the winter that first year and I was hooked on gardening. I have lived a lot of places so have experience growing in different zones and soils. I live on my sister’s farm and am growing some trees from seed as well as learning air layering and will be starting to learn grafting next spring. I am building a sustainable tropical greenhouse that will be heated from underground. My interests are hardy fruit, tropical fruit, nuts, as well as flowers and vegetables.

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Welcome, Amy, very glad you found us! That’s a challenging zone to be a fruit grower, but sounds like you’ve got plenty of experience. My parents were Canadian, mom grew up in Edmonton, AL, dad in Vancouver, BC. I spent my summers in Vancouver, and my entire 3rd grade year in BC as well. Love it up there.

Patty S.

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Welcome. Glad to have you join us.

Welcome aboard. That greenhouse sounds very interesting. Eager to hear about its design and how it works out.

Good to hear that another GW refugee is joining us!

Hi Amy, I’m happy to have anothrr cold climate member! I look forward to your posts. I do enjoy the great variety of experiences on this forum but maybe i just like to know there are a few others who can’t grow peaches and apricots and figs and…

Hey Eric. I know you’ve been here several weeks but I just noticed that you said you grew up in middle TN. I grew up east of Nashville and now live north of Nashville and just wondered where you grew up? Thanks!

BTW…I still want to offer a belated “welcome”! THis is a great place to learn about fruit. Hope you get a lot of good info. Take care.

Kevin

Hi!! Thanks for the welcome. I grew up in a tiny town about 45 minutes east of Nashville called Watertown. That is about 20 minutes south of I-40 and Lebanon. What part did u grow up in?

Very cool. I have been there…right outside Lebanon. I grew up in Cookeville and now live outside Portland, TN. Nice seeing someone with some TN roots, even though you live in UT now. Amazingly there is only one other person on here from middle TN (near McMinville I think) and only about 3 people from all of TN (including me!). Anyway, glad your here.

Wow!! That’s great. My wife is from Cookeville and my dad was plant manager for a few years of the Russell Stover factory. Maybe you knew my wife’s family?? Cassandra Droke?? TN is an amazing place and we regularly talk about moving back. Definitely a lot easier to garden there than UT!!!

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Hello everyone my name is Daniel. I’m a grower of many different fruits living in SC zone 7b just south of Charlotte NC. I’m a former GW member but haven’t been on Gardenweb in a number of years because of all the changes. I miss my fellow fruit growers and I’m very glad Scott told me about this place. I looking forward to meeting new friends and seeing some familiar faces.

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I remember your handle name. Welcome aboard. Glad you join this forum.

Thanks mamuang, I’m happy to be here. I’m already enjoying the threads on the site and can’t wait to see what else I run across.