Harvest Garden Skyline & Instant Apple Trees

Construction continues on our Heartland Harvest Garden, soon to be largest edible landscape in the United States. Below is a scan across its "skyline" from west to east; as taken from the long allee of bur oaks in front of the Visitor Center (January 23, 2009).

The exterior of the barn is nearly complete, the silo is still awaiting its wonderful interior spiral staircase and observatory dome -- the elevator (in the tall shaft) has actually been installed!

Scanning right (east), the arbors of the Missouri Star Orchard are complete at the garden's core: a soon to be backyard fruit production idea garden! Twenty varieties of hardy kiwis and espaliered apples, pears, peaches and cherry trees will shade these beautiful structures. The Missouri Star orchard will also have backyard fruit from groundcovers of strawberries and containers of citrus to blueberry bushes and trained rows of blackberries and raspberries; it should appeal to all tastes.


Scanning far to the east you see the "bones" of the new greenhouse which should be finished shortly. This greenhouse will be a portal to the garden where you can see germinating seeds and the tropical plants that provide food on your plate nearly everyday (bananas, oranges, coffee, tea, chocolate and vanilla!).


The "front yard" of the barn is getting some instant landscaping today--apple trees donated from the old Stephenson's Apple Orchard. Note the huge 90" tree spade from Colonial Nursery delivering the second of 11 apple trees to this space.


The second apple is set soundly in its new home; the first tree on the left was the first Stephenson's apple (Red Delicious), the second tree is a Golden Delicious apple.


Horticulturist Matt Bunch makes sure the tree is set properly in place. We are pleased to have these more mature trees in the landscape and are thankful for them to be donated by Stephenson's Orchard so a bit of our local orchard history may be preserved at the new garden.

Powell Staff led by Gardener Barbara Fetchenhier grew eighty varieties of apples in our nursery for display in the new Heartland Harvest Garden. This variety shall show the dazzling diversity of this most American of fruits (as American as apple pie!). From Lodi apples maturing in early summer and perfect for baking to Granny Smith apples ripening at the end of the season in late fall and perfect for storing for months, there will be an apple for every use and taste ripening through that whole season. Be sure and come out for a taste next season, opening day is scheduled for June 14, 2009.