Jim Green

I can think of two particularly important issues for you to address,

1. Pest Control ...
- what pests do you have in your area?
- what pests are specific to cherry trees?
- how will you keep your orchard pest free with organic methods?

2. Soil Reclamation ...
- how will you start to rebuild the soil ?
- what chemicals were used previously that may affect your attempts to reclaim the soil?


Off hand I'd recommend some basic permie knowledge such as...

comfrey - plant comfrey at the base of your trees to deter pests and to insure the plants around your trees will not be competing with the trees roots

AACT - actively aerated compost teas , these are essentially super powered innoculant a of microbial life

Mycorrhiza - this fungus is an essential part of building life in the soil, the fungus will form a symbiotic relationship with the roots of your trees facilitating the exchange of positive ions to the tree in return for negative ions for the fungus. This exchange is one of the most important aspects of soil life.

Edited for typos.

I enjoyed my

" Teaming with Microbes "

As my introductory book, it's written for the layman not scientists

grafting while not exactly natural still doesn't qualify as a GMO.

Grafted trees are almost all the edibles I have except for one avocado and one macadamia, but I will graft onto those when they're the right size/shape


I personally prefer heirlooms over hybrids

Hope you get what you need! : )

No.

hybrids are the result of simple breeding.

GMOs are animals or plants that have had their genes altered on the molecular level.

I am unsure what you mean by splicing - I can't get this terrible movie out of my head (splice - with adrien Brody - never watch it)

Aloha Renate,

Most folk buy their trees young after someone experienced has grafted a cutting from a tree already fruiting onto the young tree. This ensures your tree will bear fruit immediately instead of possibly waiting anywhere from 5-20 years depending on what you want to grow.

Many choose to supplement their trees with fertilizers, especially where I live here in Hawaii because the ground is so porous it soaks up all the water and drains away all the fertilizer applied very quickly because of all the rain (where I live on the island we get 200+ inches of rainfall per year!)

I believe in planting rings of comfrey around your fruit trees, this will help keep away problem causing insects and luckily comfrey grows in such a way as to not compete with the trees root system.

I think any fruit would be loved by your pigs whether it germinates from a seed from grocery store or is taken from a graft!

Also it's not terribly difficult to graft you could learn yourself if you have the time, not a very expensive hobby either! If you know anyone or anywhere there's an orchard - especially commercial orchards regularly prune their trees and the branches they cut make great grafting material - just make sure you aren't getting some pesticide laden Mumbo Jumbo fruit : )

I like the poultry idea, the omega3 and proteins in the hemp seeds would be perfect for free ranging poultry.

EDIT:
also the above comments about goat milk are right on, and it is stupidly simple to make goat cheese from the milk. Check the price on goat cheese next time your in the store...it may push you toward goats more than poultry, but if you have the resources, patience, and time, 9 acres is plenty to do both goats and poultry. I'd do ducks, chickens, and turkeys if I was up in Nebraska like you!

Your soil should be great! id figure out about the legality of hemp where you live and If I were you I'd go ask your local county / department of AG. For a special use permit to harvest the hemp for industrial use...rope, cloth, paper, etc.