Cherries

Cherries was Originally Posted on June 21, 2009 by lavarock

Of the 1600+ coffee trees I planted, a few of the small ones died. That is to be expected, because they were in tubes, above ground for months. There were some days that they could not be watered, and were mostly roots.

Still, most of the trees are doing fine and some of the almost dead trees will recover; so I’m not worried.

The mature trees were all on 1/2 gallon bags with dirt and they fared quite well. A few have some yellow leaves and I expect that is transplant shock. Still, they are thriving. I counted 4 rows today and out of 160 trees, about 40 already have good sized cherry on them. That means that I will in fact have to pick coffee from this new section of trees this year! Now just how much I get will remain to be seen, but this is the culimnation of many years of preparation and I certainly will celebrate at first harvest!

These trees are all immature compared to regular trees and a full crop will take a couple years. The trunks will strengthen and trees will develop very good root structures as they wind their way through the rocks below.

Soon I’ll have to buy crop insurance. In the meantime, I’m growing replacement plants in the event some die off.

We have had a few days of good soaking rain, which is good because my tanks are dry at the moment. As soon as I can afford it, I’ll divert the rainwater from the roof to the bottom tank.

I’m sure that some of you are interested in the whole process of coffee farming. A neighbor wrote most if not all of Wikipedia page entitled “Kona Coffee”. Give it a read if you like at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kona_coffee

Although the article says that the trees flower in April, our recent rains caused another flowering. My neighbors’ trees all had blossoms and the aroma of the blossoms fills the air. It is a very light, sweet smell which fills the air.

As for the farm status, the first round of new trees are planted and the irrigation is all in. I have received payment for much od the work I have done; with one exception. The drip line and irrigation portion of the contract had the most money in it. In order to maximize my return, I need to fill in the 1000′ trench alongside the driveway (and I use the word “driveway” sparingly). It will cost many thousands of dollars for dirt or sand, but when filled, I can submit all my reecipts for the microirrigation section. That payment will return, perhaps, $12,000 to me for money spent.

In the meantime, I am shuffling money from one account to another, trying to ease cash-flow for the rest of the year. If I had been a year or two earlier with this planting, as I had hoped, everything would have been smooth sailing. Still, I have hopes of a small business loan to carry me for a year until I am able to tap into some funds I have waiting. It is a very strange feeling to have, to all of a sudden not be able to pay all credit card bills in full each month. I know that may be the norm for many nd lately a common experience even for people of means. I have prided myself on being able to control costs and spending and something has always worked out.

So even though there will be some lean times, our lives are a lot like farming. (Oh gosh, is he gonna get philosophic on us?).

We have our good times when thing are growing strog, then we have lean times when we slow down and take stock and wait. Soon the climate changes and we begin to grow again. You know, as I write this, I am reminded of (or perhaps guided by) the movie “Being There” with peter Sellers. A very interesting movie where Peter is not a comedic figure. he plays “Chance” the gardener, who is not as smart as others thing, yet still has a simple understanding of the world. The following discussion explains better what I was trying to say.
The President is asking Chance about the economy and the country. Chance talks about the only think he knows, gardening; but the similarities are quite close.

President “Bobby”: Mr. Gardner, do you agree with Ben, or do you think that we can stimulate growth through temporary incentives?

[Long pause]

Chance the Gardener: As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.

President “Bobby”: In the garden.

Chance the Gardener: Yes. In the garden, growth has it seasons. First comes spring and summer, but then we have fall and winter. And then we get spring and summer again.

President “Bobby”: Spring and summer.

Chance the Gardener: Yes.

President “Bobby”: Then fall and winter.

Chance the Gardener: Yes.

Benjamin Rand: I think what our insightful young friend is saying is that we welcome the inevitable seasons of nature, but we’re upset by the seasons of our economy.

Chance the Gardener: Yes! There will be growth in the spring!

Benjamin Rand: Hmm!

Chance the Gardener: Hmm!

President “Bobby”: Hm. Well, Mr. Gardner, I must admit that is one of the most refreshing and optimistic statements I’ve heard in a very, very long time.

(Benjamin Rand applauds)

So, let us all go out and prune and trim some, a bit of dieback may happen, but in the Spring, things should look a lot better.

Oh, and I’ll keep th fertilizer going via the blog