MAS turning into GAS

In the mandolin (music) world, there’s something called MAS - “mandolin acquisition syndrome” - as in you keep buying or upgrading to more and better and different mandolins over time…

I think I now have GAS - “grafting acquisition syndrome”.

What began as bud grafting onto my existing trees in July has now turned into an obsession of reading rootstock reviews and finding scions of fruit I’ve never tried but sound interesting. I also don’t really have obvious space to plant more trees and already have more fruit trees than my family can reasonably consume…

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Welcom to the club.

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I know exactly what you mean. I’ve poured over apple variety books, looked up pollination groups, harvest times, looked at my own trees and space I have left, ordered some ahead and worked out a few early trades. I look at my trees differently like why did I graft there and boy that will be a good spot to graft. It’s maddening. Yes I have GAS!

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The issue with gardening with fruit and nuts is there is so much to plant but so little space. I used to think that not a lot grows here in zone 5 Colorado but now I have cherry trees, peach trees and am going to get pear and pecan trees in the spring as well as more cherries. I still would not have other trees some would want like apple trees. Easy to keep on buying

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Stay away from high density planting videos or you may say something to your better half like:

“Look honey… a WALL of apples! We could make one of those mazes you see in English gardens, but out of apple trees! How cool would that be?!?”

… at that point, my wife got up… and without saying a word… left the room.

My thought: Woohoo! She didn’t say “no”… !

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I’m already planning on having no room for more trees and figuring out how many bushes and ground covers are able to live underneath them. Good luck.

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If I hang around you folks a bit longer then my PAS (plants acquisition syndrom) might progress into GAS as well :smile: Everything started so innocent some years ago, just a herbs garden, then just little bit tomatoes and cucumbers, etc., then why not to have some small blueberry bushes, got 15, then what about haskaps, 7, then black currants would be good too, 3 of them, then yellow currants, place left for only 1. Why not to use side of the house where there is unused sunny location, not a big spot, but managed to put there 2 black raspberries, 2 yellow raspberries, 1 red one, 2 polar berry blackberry, 2 pairs of hardy kiwi, 2 red currants, 2 white currants and 1 josta berry. No more room there, walk around the house, time to move to the front yard, really need that Cornelian cherries, planted 2, and cannot be without silverberry, got it there. How to live without bush sour cherries - better not to see the look on my husband’s face, ruining his lawn. Planted 5 romance series along one side, but the other side looks even better for Carmine Jewel, planted 3 of those, done. 58 plants only in this season. Looking for persimmon tree now, husband saying that no lawn will be left. Oh, well, I really need that persimmon. And may be dwarf nectarine - that one he doesn’t know about yet :sweat_smile:

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" I can quit any time"…

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I have done my last graft and have no more GAS.

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How very sad

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Not really, I got what I want and need no more.

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I’ll get there someday. Possibly sooner than later. :grin:

I find myself in the same club, I have PAS too. Keep buying new plants, but I don’t have much space left. Anyone else collecting table grape varieties and persimmons too? :joy::joy::joy:

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