Homestead Mystery Solved

There are many, many plants on our homestead—not just the type that we’ve intentionally planted but also the panoply of species that grow wild. Many of these are beneficial, some are invasive, while others are appreciated on one part of the farm but a nuisance in a different location.

Learning to identify each plant properly is an important skill Mom nurtured in us since childhood. I remember being shocked to learn that most Wisconsin children are unable to identify five plant species native to the state, while they can easily identify the logos of companies. To me that sounded crazy, as learning the plants, birds, and animals of our region had been such an important part of my childhood. But then, I also know that I had a unique childhood.

Our bird book is so well loved, the spine is falling apart, we’ve delighted in learning about edible berries and mushrooms (with great caution), and we even take time to learn the names of the weeds in the garden (which the pigs love to eat as hand harvested salad buffet). Still, some plants come as a surprise, especially when they appear out of their usual location.

Apples seem to have a particularly sneaky habit on our farm. Grandma and Grandpa had planted just a couple in the yard, and later we added some crabapple trees for pollination, but there were no old growth apples from the original homesteaders. This seemed odd, as almost every homestead would have planted apple trees. Then, one year, crabapples fell from a red pine behind the yard. Snaked up alongside the trunk and using the branches for support, a gnarly crabapple tree had grown. It was completely untamed by pruning, since we had no idea it was there in the thicket. The apples are much too high to harvest, so we wait for them to fall before gathering them up as welcomed treats for the pigs and chickens.

But how did the tree get there? A few years after that, another tree on the edge of the forest not far from the wayward crab bore fruit. These were large, round apples of a flavor we couldn’t identify. Where had this tree come from? Talking to a local arborist, we learned that it’s possible the original trees may have died off because of drought, but the roots could have still been alive. Later, these roots could sprout new shoots to become fresh trees. Behind the barn could have once been the old orchard.

More recently, we’ve planted a few apples beside my studio yurt, on the hillside near the marshy creek that separates Farmstead Creamery from the main part of the farm. In the flower beds beside our house has sprung up a volunteer small red crab tree, like the ones we planted by the bigger apple tree in the barnyard. Did a squirrel plant a seed? It’s too close to the house, so in the spring we’ll dig it up and move it over by the other trees for pollination. Apple trees seemed to be spreading themselves around here!

But there was one more adventure to be had with feral apples, not too far from the volunteer baby crab. In the dip that leads down to the creek, a small tree was coming up in amongst the tag alders and pussy willows. But its leaves were larger and waxy and a telltale dark green.

“It looks like an apple tree,” I noted the other year, as it held onto it’s leaves longer into the fall just like apples do.

“Well, we’ll watch it and see what happens,” Mom offered.

The dip goes down quite a bit in that spot, so the tree had to grow significantly before it cleared the tops of the tiger lilies and wild raspberries growing there. Each year it grew taller, but no flowers or fruits had presented themselves.

Then tragedy struck one of our apple trees. Grandma’s crabapple tree, which was really just coming into its own, was ringed by rodents over the winter. Conditions had pushed up the wire mesh protecting the trunk, and they chewed the bark and green growth beneath all the way around. The poor tree gave a half-hearted attempt at recovery the next year, but it was toast. We were so sad, as this type of crabapple produced fruits that were fairly large and made a great addition to applesauce. In the end, the poor tree had to come down.

And then, just the other day as I was coming in from chores, something round caught my eye. That mystery apple-like tree growing in the dip had a fruit on it! Hanging right there like an offering of peace and hope was a single, small apple, much like Grandma’s lost crab tree. It really was an apple tree!

Did we throw out a core, and it decided to grow? Did an animal bury a seed or a bird drop it after consuming an apple? It’s far away from the potential old orchard, and in a mostly wild area. How the tree got there might remain a mystery, but it will be exciting to see how it grows and produces, becoming part of the edible landscape that is the farm.

What types of plants do you enjoy identifying in your area? Any recent surprises? It’s not quite apple picking time for us, but it’s one of my favorite seasons. It will be especially fun picking that one tiny apple and seeing how it tastes! See you down on the farm sometime.