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I only put out about half of what I started indoors when planting today. Just insurance policy against Ma Nature's indecision! The planting is not the hard part. Putting in fence posts in the rocky soil and putting up fence and doors is necessary before planting anything. The chipmunks are everywhere now! In the past the chipmunks ate big Easter cactus plants down to the dirt in the container!

The old compost area is 16X16 ft and very rich soil. I have about 2/3 of this planted with cold tolerant varieties. The new planned 20X20 area is partially fenced and fertile soil only in rows where I have dug down to 18 inches and screened out rocks and added in compost and bagged topsoil. I will only get about half of this area usable this year, and only in rows. The rest of the area will be my new compost area for yard leaves and kitchen scraps. I will gradually work material in and sift out rocks this summer and likely into next year too. I also planted three jumbo blueberry bushes, three Nanking cherry bushes, two different apple trees (about 6 ft) and have two butternut nut trees now in containers. Everything in the fruit and nut tree category is atleast zone 4 tolerant for winter temps, but I am trying for zone 3 and 2 varieties since my previous zone 4 trees got wiped out a few years ago.