Spring 2017: Due to the need to focus my work on the new cob house, the garden development will be in a holding pattern. Planted a few gooseberry, 2 chestnuts, and 2 arbor vitae this spring.
Update: April 10th, 2016. Yesterday Bob helped me plant 70 rosa rugosa and hazelnut for the hedgerow. A couple weeks ago I planted the gooseberry and blackthorn. Still have quite a few gooseberry and hazel to put in the ground. Have not yet received the hawthorn and Rosa Carolina.
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Update April 2016: This spring I’m planting a 150′ long mixed hedgerow along Middlebury St. for privacy, security, and wildlife shelter and fodder. Here’s a link on hedgerows:
The hedgerow will consist of hazelnut, rosa rugosa, Rosa carolina, Cockspur Hawthorn, Northern Gooseberry, blackthorn, and seaberry. All produce fruit or nuts, and all but the hazelnut are thorny. As of April 1, I have some of the plants in, but am waiting on some to arrive in the mail.
Willow wattle fence with purple coneflower (echinacea) in front.
In 2015 we’ve had lots of rainfall, so everything is very lush. This year we will have yellow blackberries and gooseberries for the first time. I was able to crop a small amount of asparagus and rhubarb. The sea kale is doing well. The apricot tree has 3 apricots! This spring I saw 2 green tree frogs hanging out in a tree tube.
In 2013 I hosted a weekend permaculture workshop which was taught by Beth Neff. We had around 12 participants. We planted 18 fruit and nut trees, berry bushes, perennial vegetables such as rhubarb and sea kale, and some nitrogen fixers. The garden flanks the new brick driveway and a swale is formed uphill of the drive to catch water coming from the roofs of the shed and house uphill.
Gregory Lehman 