This is happening in the Living Room...

So the fruit trees are growing like crazy...

And the Banana tree is so happy....

It has a second one growing underneath.

This is such a neat experiment! They have been repotted once in the year we've had them, into these bigger pots. They will probably need to be repotted/new soil once a year. 

The coolest thing of all is that in the middle of winter - the room is full of green plants.

Spring is in the Front Yard

One of the most important principles of Permaculture is observation. When I read about trees and plants changing the ecosystem of a yard, it's hard to visualize, so physical observation is really necessary. I can see where the sun hits at different times of the year, and what structures heat up even in the winter temperatures. In winter how the wind blows is more evident by the higher snow piles and drifts that were at least a foot deeper than the front of the house, and with the melting - how water moves across the yard, and is mostly captured to stay and be absorbed in the places we will need it. As the fruit trees, vines and perennial plants grow - the garden will continue to change. Every year it will be different, and where we plant annuals may change. This year, we still have a bit of foundational work to do, building up beds and installing trees and plants. And every year there will be the vegetable garden. The bulk of what we will have eventually will be perennial and only the beds will be planted. But all of this takes time...and spring is in the front yard.

The back garden looked like this on Sunday

Spring was in the front yard...trying anyway



Here is a good comparison of the size of the fruit trees when we bought them last year. We replaced the Meyer Lemon and it is on the windowsill - the potted fruit trees are only a year old and have been repotted twice. They love this sunny window!

Two new blueberries waiting for the ground to thaw

We also have a Paw-paw Tree to plant as the last of the higher story of the garden and we are waiting for several new grape vines, a couple Concord and three new varieties.

There are rumors that the next few days will be in the 50's and I hope it's true. 

There is so much to do and I can't wait to get outside and begin!

Update: Indoor Fruit Trees

In April of last year, we bought 6 fruit trees, potted them and waited to see what would happen.

The lemon did not make it. All the rest are doing well, and the Banana is almost ready to be transplanted for a 2nd time into a larger pot. It could be years before they flower, or produce fruit, but it is still so nice to have all these green plants around us in the Winter while the garden is covered in snow. My dream would be to have a greenhouse someday where they can grow bigger and live in a more tropical environment.

In the meantime, this is working fine...

Orange

Key Lime

Tangerine

Olive

Banana

Orange, Key Lime, Tangerine