I’ve come to appreciate seeing a tree with a structure indicating many years of careful pruning but that has since gone wild from neglect. To me it’s a beautiful reminder of the value of effort. An expression of the life force of someone who cared. In many ways it would be worse if the tree carried on by itself in perfect form after that steady, loving hand is gone.
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Oh, shoot, yes! I moved out here pretty late, and cut down two ancient apple and one pear trees with hollow trunks annd breaking branches. I never even thought to collect scion. I still feel guilty. I planted part of my orchard twice. First time I failed to know my site and soil enough so I replanted. My kids live far away, and when they visit they eat well, but they clearly think I work too hard. I don’t think either would want to take on that work. I’m the only real outdoors person in my family other than my son, whose buttocks are glued to a kayak. But in my day job I work with old folks and I have learned some things:
Hard outdoor work, fresh food, and planning for next year are good for mind and body. My centenarians were all active outdoors people. Conversely I have patients younger than I am who can hardly dress themselves due to lifelong inactivity.
Don’t become diabetic for a large number of reasons, but in this business, diabetic neuropathy is a serious problem, leading to many falls. Not to mention wounds to your ankles and feet won’t heal well, and your balance after losing a few toes would be even worse.
Stop doing the dangerous things like climbing tall ladders BEFORE you have an accident.
Plan how to do some work with an injury. I moved a lot of trees so I could get to them on a golf cart or mower.
Downsize, organize, and cleanup the property when you start feeling tired or ill more often than not.
Hire help if you have a major injury or if it’s time to move. Never expect your kids, especially if they don’t live nearby, to do your work for you in addition to working jobs and maintaining their own households.
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No, our garden and trees is our hobby. Even my best friends love the boxes of peaches I give out, but have no interest in planting their own.
I wonder more about my stone carvings I made over the years and gave out. I imagine they get over grown in someone’s garden. The house gets sold and years later its found and newly appreciated?
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pictures?
LarisaLee ~ Hard outdoor work, fresh food, and planning for next year are good for mind and body.
Yep, plus you can sweat and not need a sauna with all that garden / tree work!
I am not married to my trees. They don’t produce and they get cut down. Although I am neglect to doing this with a few of the apple trees I planted back around '08 - '10. They sometimes do produce well, but it may be a few years between the production. So, I keep hoping this year will be the one they come in. Last couple years I planted 7 more apple trees. So, hoping these are better varieties. If they become half-ass reliable producers, then I will cut down a couple of the apple laggards and replace with something else.
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Where are you moving to?
I’m in kinda the same boat. But I can get by here fine with 46 trees, more or less. I’d like more land, a greenhouse for figs and warm weather persimmons. And may a sapote.
If short on space, try the 2 trees in 1 hole method. I’m giving it a go in '26. The thing with me is; if I do ever move, I will keep this place for a few years until the new place’s trees are somewhat established. I would not move away-away, I would stay local. So, I could still use this place for the time being.
no idea. But ideally the fingerlakes region would be nice… But i right now I’m on long island and have to be for my job for awhile till I can get senior enough I can send younger attorneys to me for basic court stuff.
I like the idea of 2 in a hole but i dont know if it looks nice aesthetically. Debating on doing it for my 2 apple trees coming in the fall.
I am not having children and totally would understand not caring if children destroy the trees in a property gifted to them, but i just dont understand choosing to buy my property specifically which is full of trees when dozens a block away without them are always on sale. I dont know am i crazy to hope whoever buys it picks it FOR the trees and not inspite of it?
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I can relate to your comment about the best value is in the land itself. I live in an area that acreage is at a premium. So if I move or pass away and my family does not want to take care of the fruit trees I can see them selling the house and acreage off. My taxes really went up these last few " tax re-evaluation" years my taxes have gone up because of the acres NOT because of my house. I had a house appraisal company do a " comp" and see why my taxes have gone up so much. They told me my taxes have gone up so much because of the acres. My taxes went up went up 75 of the tax bill is because of the land and 25% was because of the house itself. Whomever buys this can divide the land up and build more houses on it.
I am almost positive that if my place is sold all my fruit trees will be torn out and the land will be bare. So my fruit trees are just for my entertainment and or work while it lasts.
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how many acres and how much tax on the land? Ive got 40 acres and my tax is about $130/year in ND, pretty cheap I think
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Okay folks, it looks like North Dakota and Kentucky are our winners here!
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Lol i have 7k square feet and pay 13k in taxes a year in a mid school district. What does that work out per acre
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How many trees can you grow on 0.16 of an acre?
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95 acres, 1800 sq ft house, one shed = almost $6K next year. I know its worse elsewhere, but it seems you actually get something for your taxes in those states.
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I am not getting something from the majority of the tax dollars I pay. My trees are on vacant land in the next county. Of the four line items on that tax bill I do not benefit from the school taxes, park taxes, fire and police taxes that I pay, only from the general upkeep/roadway taxes.
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Is that with a building on it or just farm land? either way, here is your answer
Your property tax works out to approximately $80,895 per acre per year.
I aim to find out… right now i have 21 with room for probably 3 or 4 more spots. And thats if i dont use the easmenet to try to grow or an area od mt backyard currently filled with concrete i need to replace. And 8 8x4 raised beds.
3 paw paws, 2 mulberry, 1 black walnut, 1 serviceberry., 2 sweet cherry (may end up grafting pluerry over idk), 2 eastern red buds, 2 red maples, 1 american persimmon, 2 apples, and 5 figs
This is without planting in one hole. Many are still young but should have space based on my math. The closest togehter are the 3 paw paws planted about 6 feet between.
Also have 2 each of honeyberry, blackberry, raspberry, black raspberry, blueberry, black huckleberry, and spicebush. And 1 flowering purple . raspberry
Just land. House is 1475 sq feet but 2 stories so not positive on the footprint
I live on a weirdly shaped 9 acre parcel of a very large old farm. Part of my house was the laborer’s quarters. Over time before I moved here someone had the bright idea of carving it up for tax purposes without actually changing the land itself. So I have 3 tax lots, one of them for a triangular, very deep ditch where the roadside ditch meets the road. It’s about 4 feet across. There’s also and easement for the house up the hill to drive through a very steep portion of our land if they want to, and the neighbor in front owns about 1/16 of the middle of our driveway. It’s madness. We just gave up and pay all the driveway maintenance. We pay about $2800 a year in taxes for this insanity (including the 4’ ditch, which is over $200)
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