TODAY IN THE ORCHARD
The two pronged Magna Grecia fork hoe
Today the temperatures were in the high 70s . The orchard is dry and could use an inch or two of rain - perhaps tomorrow. The webworms are out in full force. Time to load up the Dipel. The Bee Balm (Monarda) is approaching full bloom. The bees are humming. The Queen Ann’s Lace is six feet tall and approaching full bloom.
We have hundreds of seedings growing up through the sod all over the orchard and nursery which we often topwork to known cultivars. We dig out the sod around their small-diameter trunks to create an open space about 2-3 feet in diameter. This enables us to check for borers, fertilize as needed, mulch with chips etc. The tool we use for this job is the Magna Grecia hoe. It’s a hand-forged, two-pronged “fork hoe” made in Italy, and, as far as we know, was long long ago a common tool among farmers and orchardists. The prongs are quite long: 10”. The hoe blade is 4”. It is an excellent tool for turning over soil and prying up even the most stubborn sod. We have two of them, each with a long (58”) ash handle we made on the shaving horse. The tool has incredible leverage so you have to pry with some respect. You can snap the handle if you really lay into it. You can purchase cheap versions at Home Depot and probably on Amazon. But beware! They are far inferior to the real thing.