In the orchard
About farming
Good fruit starts long before harvest. My approach to farming is patient, research-led, and built on the belief that a well-tended orchard should leave the land better than it found it.
After earning a horticulture degree from Oregon State University, I invested in and operated a working apple orchard, and quickly learned that farming rewards attention more than ambition. Sustainable horticultural production isn't a marketing phrase here; it's the daily practice of reading the soil, the weather, and the trees, then doing the smallest thing that keeps the whole system in balance.
Over the years that work has widened to strawberry farms, state parks, vineyards, and wineries, but the principles carry across all of them. Whether it's an orchard, a turf landscape, or an urban garden, the goal is the same: grow something genuinely good while protecting the ground it grows in.
Healthy soil first
Cover crops, compost, and careful rotation keep the ground alive. Feed the soil and the orchard mostly feeds itself.
Right tree, right place
Variety selection, rootstock, and spacing are matched to the site so trees thrive on less water and fewer inputs.
Research-led decisions
Horticultural research guides pruning, thinning, and pest management, so every intervention earns its place.
Room for people
From therapeutic gardens to U-pick weekends, a working farm is also a place to teach, heal, and gather.
Curious where to taste the results? Plan a visit to a U-pick orchard near you.
See the orchards