Stripes

 
I just liked the looks of the stripes in the rows of this apple orchard.





Raining hard tonight. Thunder and lightning. A little warmth in the next few days should green things up nicely.

	See Snowy Orchard
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Snowy Orchard

 
This apple orchard is about 35 miles from my house, but I've seen it quite often. It's on the paper route we used to do, and it's on the main route to Silver Lake. I go there to do cases quite a lot, as I did today.

It's exceptionally well cared for with each tree carefully pruned to keep the tops open. With the couple inches of snow we had last night every branch is defined.



I like how the look and the color changes if you just shift your angle a little. And you can get good pictures, because it's on a slight hill.



A closer view is a study in light and dark.

	See Apple Orchard in the Rain
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Ag Report 3- Fruit

 
Fruit is the biggest agricultural industry in this area. I took more pictures, but can't find them all right now. That's ok, a few things is enough.

The first picture is taken in August. It's a peach orchard. Although we produce mostly cherries and apples there are a fair number of peach and apricot orchards too.



One picture I can't find shows a cherry orchard "put to bed." Basically the rows were mowed, and the trees were wrapped (because they were still very young) to protect them from rodent damage over the winter.

Now, and for the last month, it's apple season. Things are winding down because we've had a couple of hard frosts, but there are some varieties that are still being brought in. It's been a good apple year.



Apples are picked by hand. That's why the trees are pruned to keep them low and open. This also allows the sun to reach the interior.



Speaking of apple harvest. I finally went out today and brought in some of our scaly but usable apples so I can make some cider. Yum! Don't want to miss out on that.

	See Ag Report #2- Odds and Ends
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Apple Orchard in the Rain

 
A long day of work, some of it in the rain. But I really like these apple trees beginning to show signs of leafing out, and the dandelions. I didn't adjust the color at all. It was like that- all fresh from the rain.



As I was taking this picture I heard a familiar sound, and managed to catch two sandhill cranes. Not a great picture, but I'm always pleased when I can catch them in flight.

	See Where the North Begins and the Fine Fruit Grows
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Wind, and Inspired by Stew

 
The wind was brutal today. I didn't look up the windchill, but my ears were still tingling an hour after I got home (and that's with wearing a hood). How does one show the wind in a still photo?

This one might work.



This one for sure.

How about this one? And this is where I begin to be inspired by Stew. He showed us Views Around the Valley, which included some big snowbanks they still have. Here's one of ours. This is a road that drifts completely shut unless they bring in front end loaders to keep scooping the snow up into piles.



No wind obvious in this one, but Stew also pictured an apple orchard. Here's one from me. This isn't the picture I want to show you, but the only really good vantage point I've found for that is on the freeway. I may have to stop anyway if the light is right next time I go by. Despite the snow and cold, the twigs are beginning to get reddish- a sign of spring. And the farmers were out today, pruning the branches. Have to keep the trees trimmed just right so they can be picked by machine.

	See Where the North Begins and the Fine Fruit Grows
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Where the North Begins and the Fine Fruit Grows

"Where the North Begins and the Fine Fruit Grows" is proclaimed on a billboard as you enter a town just a bit south of where I live. It's for certain that fruit growing is a huge part of life in west Michigan. This time of year, hillsides are blanketed with blooming trees.



Sometimes, they make the horizon completely "fluffy."



When I took these pictures, most of the blooms were cherries. Most of what is grown here are sour cherries, but also a lot of black sweet cherries.


The apples weren't in bloom yet, but the peaches were!


Hope you enjoyed the fruit tour.