A Dream Of Apple Trees

The story of Johnny Appleseed (John Chapman) captivated me as a child. He was born September 26, 1774 in Massachusetts and lived much of his younger life in Longmeadow before moving out west where he helped cultivate apple growing from Pennsylvania to Ontario through the northwest. I loved the story of a man planting apple trees wherever he went, but his story is actually much greater as he brought apple growing to these regions.

Apples are native to the New England landscape, although there were not as many varieties as there are today. The early settlers found a few varieties when they came here and planted more in the early 1600s that they brought with them. Many of the settlers in New England originally came from England, where meat pies were the norm. The new settlers used the food available to them; apples and local fruits. It is an oversimplification and it had many origins and ancestors, but that is how the apple pie was invented in this region and became a staple of the north east.

Since I was young I have adored apple picking. My dad took us every year and it was an important tradition for him, as it is now for me. In my teens I started dreaming of having my own mini home orchard one day. I would plant a few rows of various apples including Courtland, honey crisp, glo, and pink lady apples. I would also have another row with peaches, pears, nectarines, and apricots.

The dream is that once the trees were producing fruit (which would take several years after planting), I would host family gatherings where we harvest the apples, place some in baskets for donations, make apple pies together (several for the local shelters, senior homes, and soup kitchens), and gather around a long wooden table for a family dinner complete with a salad with fresh apples, apple glazed meats, and apple treats for dessert. Basically, a true apple harvest meal.

Over time this dream was put on pause. I don’t own my own yard after all, however, now that I’m getting closer to home ownership one day, I figured it is never too early to research how to grow my own apple trees. They say the best time to plant an apple tree is ten years ago and the second best time is today. I don’t want to waste a moment when I do get a yard of my own. So I picked up a few books on how to grow apple trees and I am learning quite a bit about the varieties and the best ones to plant for certain heights and regions. And perhaps even sillier, I am also learning about sheep as they are an asset to an orchard and if I have a large enough plot of land it would be nice to take in some rescue animals as a little orchard sanctuary. I’m also hoping to have chickens. They will have the cutest old lady names like Ethel, Betty, Etta, Fern, and Francis. Can you picture it? “Orchard Animal Sanctuary” just sounds so sweet.

So there you have it, I have some sweet and silly ideas for when I have a yard one day. For all I know I may not end up with a plot large enough for a mini orchard or even a few sheep, but no matter what I will be planting a few apple and fruit trees. How about you? Do you have a special little dream? One that you have been keeping tucked away in your heart to pull out and admire in a daydream every once in a while? I would love to hear all about it.