On the evening of May 17, the Finger Lakes Region of NY experienced an extreme freeze event. Farms in our region saw temperatures ranging from a low of 21 degrees in Marathon to a "high" of 30 degrees in Hector. After speaking with growers from across the region, it is clear that there was widespread damage to the 2023 fruit crop. We heard from a few growers that it was the worst late-season damage they'd ever seen in their decades-long careers. Damage was severe because temperatures were abnormally low for mid-May. There is speculation that the high-altitude smoke from the Canadian wildfires may have contributed to the low temperatures, but this has not been confirmed. Fruit trees, berry bushes, strawberries, and grapevines were at sensitive...
Save the date! The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County's Annual Spring Plant Sale is Friday, May 19! Find us at the Ithaca Farmers Market Pavilion from 12-6 PM!
It's that time of year again! We have a handful of our bare root dwarf and semi-dwarf apple trees for sale! $30/each. Pickup is this Saturday, April 8 at the Ithaca Farmers Market, or at our new farm in Willseyville, NY. Send us an email if you'd like to purchase trees: svangaasbeck@gmail.com
It's hard to believe it's already February! It's almost pruning season on the farm! After a few years of taking care of two orchards (one in Brooktondale and one in Willseyville), we are finally settled into our new place, and have only one orchard to tend. We haven't started pruning yet, but will in a few short weeks. Our trees here are younger, so pruning this year shouldn't take us very much time. Winter 2022-2023 has been quite mild, and we have had bare ground for a good part of the winter. Crystal is almost done harvesting her first-year willow patch. She coppices the willow to the ground when it's dormant, and dries the willow out for basket weaving. Once...
You can now purchase our seed garlic in one pound or two pound quantities! Here are our garlic planting tips. Under the Tree Farm’s Garlic Planting Tips: Plant your garlic in fall, just like a tulip or daffodil bulb! In the Finger Lakes Region of NY (we’re in Zone 5b), we plant our garlic the second week of October. Garlic loves fertile soil and sun! Plant it in the most productive spot in your garden and you will be rewarded with a bountiful harvest. If you have access to compost or composted cow/horse manure, amend your soil before planting. Break up your garlic heads into individual cloves for planting. Each fall-planted garlic clove will grow into an entire head of garlic! We...
