How to set up my property

[whocares]

After alot of thought I invested in some longer to grow crops....like I purchased 3 blueberry bushes in hope of fresh berries in a few years. I am trying root crops this year like onions. I hope they develop on one season and asperagus, I know this will take a few years.

Heres the plan, I purchased a red delicious apple tree and I expect fruit in about 3 years as the tree is about 7 feet tall and not much more than a twig...the same with the pear tree. I plan to plant a new tree every year for the next 3 years..resulting in 3 apple, 1 pear and maybe cherry or plum.

I feel the root crops will be given beds by then, I have started with 40 strawberry plants along with the blueberries that should be plenty of fruit.

The onions and garlic I have I plan to keep, do they need to be rotated? O don't know...and maybe i should try potatoes?

I do have a few tomato plants, but we don't eat many tomatoes so maybe I should skip growing them an move onto something else?

I have basic fresh salad stuff now, but what else do I need?

any suggestions are welcome, Thanks

[Forerunner]

My first recommendation would be for you to start a composting program on a scale that will convince your neighbors that you are nuts.

Plants, seeds, plans, hopes...... all are in vain without well above average soil tilth and fertility. Neither granular nor liquid fertilizers will give you long term productivity. Only compost will accomplish that.
The soils in this country have just about all been neglected at best, and completely mined out and sterilized by chemical ag, at worst.
Any amount of organic matter that you can work into your garden and orchard is good. Large amounts of finished compost are far better....

After that, you can plant whatever you like.

[newfieannie]

All of what WIHH said and also i wouldn't wait and plant a tree a year. if you can afford it. plant what you can now. we planted 2 apple and 2 pear before my husband died 6 years ago and they only started producing last year. i wish now i had planted more at that time. i'm pleased with the blueberry bushes though. i planted 12 of those and also black and red currant and gooseberry. should have planted more grape also. jmo. ...Georgia.

[Barnyard]

well, beans..heres a nifty idea i had that dh helped with. read it somewhere?
had a full size bed that was burnt to the springs. stuck it in yard, on a metal pole each side with a couple wires. dug a small trench each side, threw some pole beans in, some compost (we make a pile when cleaning barn out of horse manure. watered it. forgot about it in the midst of all else. well, week later went and looked at it, beans popping their heads up. now its been a few weeks and they are vigorously started to climb. very little work, and beans will grow over springs, you pick when ready. i imagine even the simplest thing could work. a pole somewhere, a post here and there. did same with morning glories.

the compost pile is best idea. you don't have to be an expert to do it and the longer it sits, the better. being busy with other things, we just pile the manure up in one spot, maybe throw some leaves, sticks, whatever in, and leave it. chickens pick through it and help it along.

2 years in a row we planted a dwarf cherry tree, with other dwarf trees, and the others are well, but our cherry never seem to survive. lady at the store said as long as there is another "pollinator" within a mile, it will do fine.
not an expert but the other trees are thriving.

[whocares]

Thanks for all the input so far, I did have a nice compost pile and I used it all for the raised beds for the strawberries and asperagus...

I need to get that cooking again...

I am aware I may need another pollinators and I want some bees but hubby says no, he hates bees.

I was just wanting to try some new things...

Maybe grapes if they are easy enough...

[amwitched]

I think you may want to recalculate your strawberry plant #'s. I planted 100 plants, lost some, other's multiplied, critters dines, and I still don't have enough to make anything. I have been able to get a couple handfuls this year, but it has been really dry. They are starting to produce their June crop, though, so I have my fingers crossed.

[DayBird]

You really do need to hurry up and plant another type of apple tree as a pollinator. You need to plant at least three different types of blueberries for maximum production. Try four plants each of three different varieties. Thornless blackberries are a real producer for us. Again, buy a couple of varieties and prepare the beds well, mulch them heavily and fertilize with compost or rabbit manure.

And I second the thought about the tomatoes. You may not eat many fresh but you can always can them for soups. Do you not ever use tomato sauce for spaghetti or lasagna? Do you not eat ketchup or salsa?

[MelissaW]

If you can find someone close by with livestock manure to give away, and you have a good spot to collect and age it, definately get what you can and start a pile "cooking". I'm also on board the compost train! Good soil takes time and effort, but it makes a huge difference. We grow more of the crops that preserve well (like beans) and less of things that must be eaten fresh (like greens and summer squash). Best of luck!

[Mid Tn Mama]

Like others, we grow alot of tomatoes and beans that can be preserved for winter use. I freeze a lot of zucchini and squash. The biggest ones are grated and put in spaghetti and casseroles.

I don't fuss with things that are fussy, like eggplant.

We focus also on things that are expensive at the grocery store or taste incredibly better homegrown: peppers, figs, blueberries.

How much property do you have? I ask, because invariably if I put in only one of something, it dies. There is safety AND pollinators in two varieties. I aim to eventually have at least two varieties of: blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, figs, apples, apricots, peaches, apples, pears an plums.

We have nut trees in the woods that I forage from. Don't want to introduce squirrels close to the house with nut trees.

In terms of setting up the farm, consider where the water is located, where the manure is, where the compost is, where the shade trees are.

[whocares]

I have 5 acres, I am slowly setting up...

I do have 3 different blueberry bushes and I got the apple and pear trees planted over the weekend....

I will try an find another apple tree so I can get them going.

Thanks for the great advice everyone.

[wyld thang]

do you have chickens? chickens are awesome!

are you good at growing certain things--like some people do tomaotes really good, you might try planting a lot of different heirloom tomotoes to trade with neighbors. Some of those old varietys taste amazing. DOnt' be afraid to experiment with certain veggies or berries, you never know what you might really like. Like I dont' like green beans, but I found out I love pickled yellow green beans.

Plant more blueberries!!!! Lotsa herbs, and flowers for the soul.

[ET1 SS]

Lots of planning to do.

We are working increasing our food production. We have lists of all foodstuffs that we eat, and which of them we can produce. We have been modifying our diet to conform to what we can produce.

We are producing all of our heating fuel.

We are marketing our excess foods to others.

We can not currently produce all of our own electricity, but it is in our plans.

We currently have to plans to produce all of our vehicle fuels.

I would recommend that you consider to do likewise.

figure on producing for yourself everything that you need, or else work out a method of not needing it.

[GBov]

Have to say I am on the plant your trees now train, the faster you get them in the faster you start to get a return with no more work

I scrimped and saved and put in twenty assorted fruit trees and also when anyone asks what I want for birthday/christmas/aniverary/mothersday its trees and bushes please.

Permiculture rocks!

[kabri]

I don't know where you are, but we have encouraged orchard mason bees at our place and they do an awesome job of polinating and they don't sting! They don't give honey, but who cares if they help ensure you get fruit!