Orchard

 

Remember the pictures of the new orchard I sent out a couple weeks ago?  They spent the time and money to put a bag around every tree! 

It’s a Rio Red grapefruit orchard.  I checked it after the freezing cold weather we had recently, and the trees all look fine inside their protective bags.  Once they get established, it will be another whole round of expense to cut all those bags off, unless they’re designed to deteriorate after a certain amount of time.  (Mission Impossible?  “This message will self-destruct after…”)  Big investment, anyway.

 We can see an example of how that big investment might pay off though.  Three years ago, I sent out this photo of a new citrus orchard down the road from us that impressed me with its precision.

 I doubt it’s unusually precise for an orchard.  They probably all line up that well.  It’s just a symmetry that appeals to me.

 Well, in the three years since I reported on that newly planted, but unprotected, orchard, we’ve had a couple of freezing spells and a couple floods.  The combination of those back to back events did a number on the trees.  Now that orchard looks like this. 

Can only tell it was ever an orchard by looking at the layout.