So I was away on a fertilizer mission the second half of last week, and I missed the planting of the Christmas trees by Dr. Brian, Tim B and Dan. They planted 500 Dougals Fir and 500 Fraser Fir trees. So with the 3000 apple trees planted recently, that makes 4000+ trees now on the farm. I can't wait to get up there tomorrow and breathe all of that new oxygen, and with an evergreen fragrance to boot. Like with the apples, they used the gps guidance for row straightness. And I believe that is the new, old tree transplanter that Brian found last year. Apparently it worked. I guess I will have to come up with a new name for these hard workers as they have definately expanded beyond the veg-head stage. Planting is done, but the work is just beginning. Michigan ranks third in Christmas tree production (behind Oregon and North Carolina). But check back soon as this may have put us ahead. Good job guys. (Thanks to Brian for the pic.) 
On a sad note, I read in the paper this morning that 10,000 acres of grapes grown for juice succumbed to sub-freezing temperatures recently in Southwest Michigan. You may recall the exceptionally warm weather we had in Mid-March, and this caused trees and vines to come out of dormancy early, long before the threat of frost is past. Well in recent weeks temperatures returned to normal and these grapes were among the victims. It said that Welch's Foods gets 17% of its juice grapes from SW Michigan. I have heard that there is similar havoc in the Tart Cherries in Northern Michigan (Michigan is the #1 producer of tart cherries), but haven't heard any numbers yet. Not a good start for the year for these poor farmers.
On a sad note, I read in the paper this morning that 10,000 acres of grapes grown for juice succumbed to sub-freezing temperatures recently in Southwest Michigan. You may recall the exceptionally warm weather we had in Mid-March, and this caused trees and vines to come out of dormancy early, long before the threat of frost is past. Well in recent weeks temperatures returned to normal and these grapes were among the victims. It said that Welch's Foods gets 17% of its juice grapes from SW Michigan. I have heard that there is similar havoc in the Tart Cherries in Northern Michigan (Michigan is the #1 producer of tart cherries), but haven't heard any numbers yet. Not a good start for the year for these poor farmers. 