The little squirt of orange-brown sawdust at the base of this young apple tree is an indication of a borer inside. Time to get out the knife and the wire. You don't want a borer inside the tree
TODAY IN THE ORCHARD
Today I scythed around 40 trees at the Finely Orchard. One of the primary purposes of scything is to clear around the trunk to see if there are any borers in the tree. (see photo). The other reason is to trigger a bunch of under-ground activity. As Michael Phillips wrote in The Holistic Orchard: “The mowing tool itself has relevance as well for this first orchard cut… for the benefit of fungal allies. … This … mowing causes root mass in perennial plants to shed just as the spring root flush begins. This enhances access to nutrient zones for the tree— with the help of mycorrhizal fungi…Adding to the outer edge of the fungal duff this way feeds the saprophytic fungi, which in turn makes even more nutrients available to the feeder roots…” If there’s a third reason to get out the scythe, it would yet another opportunity to observe every tree one at a time.
In 1979 (or so) I made up this little ditty about spring. It goes:
“When the spring is sprung and the seeds are sown beyond the garden gate,
The scythe is hanging in the barn while the patient farmer waits.”
Or as one of my fortune cookies so aptly said, “A handful of patience is worth a basketful of brains.” That waiting game is now over. Hooray!