2021 Plant Sale!

Greetings Friends!

We hope this message finds you and yours well and having a nice summery spring!

We are offering nursery plants for pickup downtown Jeffersonville or at the farm in Johnson, in the Old North End of Burlington, and possibly delivery to limited locations in Southern VT or Western MA.

We presently intend to offer our 14th annual Permaculture Design Certification course July 18- July 30 in person and hands-on, at Willow Crossing Farm, at the intersections of the Lamoille River, the Long Trail, and the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail. The course will run with a limited group size, ensure your space by registering now! As always, we can offer full scholarships for income-eligible VT state residents and are happy to work with folks from out of state to make the course more accessible.

We’re excited to offer the following plants from our nursery- as always please ask if you are looking for anything in particular, and search through past years plant sale pages for more information on varieties and a sampling of the many things we offer different years.  With Covid complicating many endeavors on the farm and in our community, we greatly appreciate your patience with this year’s list and getting orders together. We will have an expanded menu of options (including wholesale quantity pricing) available for spring 2022, and can begin taking reservations, now. (We also really need help updating our web and social media presence!)

With limited capacity this spring we expect to sell out of most offerings.  Pick up starts Tuesday April 27.

All proceeds support floodplain reforestation, resilience, productive habitat stewardship, and insect and wildlife sanctuary at Willow Crossing Farm.

Please inquire about ‘bulk’ pricing (10 or more plants in any combination) or ‘wholesale pricing’ (10x or 100x etc of the same variety).  This is great for folks establishing hedgerows, windbreaks, shelterbelts, orchards, vineyards, or looking to begin commercial production of these Vermont-proven fruits, nuts, berries, and vines.

BARE ROOT is a naked tree and wants to be planted as soon as possible, prices are determined by size (diameter caliper or ~height) and rarity of tree or variety.  Please arrange pickup as soon as possible.

POTS are ONE GALLON and $20 EACH unless otherwise stated.  They would love to be planted into their permanent home sooner than later but can ‘hang out’ for several weeks if necessary.

Please reserve your quantities ASAP, as we imagine most of these will sell out quickly.

Plants are available for pickup BY APPOINTMENT- with contact free transactions.  Pickup can be arranged in Johnson, Jeffersonville, or the ONE in Burlington.  Because some plants are at the farm, or in greenhouses, or cold storage- please call or email to confirm availability and arrange a time and ensure the right location to get your plants, and allow me time to gather your order- I’m available by phone or email to make an appointment.

We will try to hold trees, but without cash in hand (venmo: @earthsurfing) there are no guarantees- first come first served, especially with bare root as we want them planted asap.  Feel free to PayPal Friends and Family or Facebook Messenger money for a guaranteed reservation.

CORNELIAN CHERRIES

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A beautiful, super early flowering cold hardy edible dogwood- with beautiful flowers and delicious pest-free fruit. Large 3-5′ bare root plants $40 each “Elegant”, “Pioneer”, “Red Star”, “Red Dawn”, “Yellow” need more than one variety for cross-pollination

HONEYBERRIES / HASKAPS:  All $20 Each

The superfood Honeyberry or Haskap

A very hardy and unique shrub, Honeyberry is an edible species of Honeysuckle with sweet and tasty fruit- presently being developed as a commercial crop through the coldest parts of the world.  Valued for its tasty, blueberry-like fruit, its extremely early ripening, often two weeks before strawberries, and its exceptional hardiness, to minus 40 degrees F., or below. Great for fresh eating, juicing, and preserves.  Has approximately 5x the anti-oxidants of blueberries!

“Arora”, “Czech 17”, “Indigo Gem”, “Indigo Treat” (requires more than one variety for pollination)

NUT TREES:

HAZELNUTS/ HAZELBERTS-

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This is the earliest of all nut trees to bear nuts.  One of our favorites for a future crop in VT, now well into production here at Willow Crossing, these multi-stemmed trees will begin to bear nuts in as little as 3 years from planting. They also make nice hedges, living fences, privacy screens, or snow fence, and have attractive fall foliage.

Pollen-Controlled Cross (bare root): $20 each

WALNUT FAMILY:

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BLACK WALNUTS-  The most valuable lumber tree in the the northeastern forest, and long-lived producer of delicious nuts. Mature trees can be tapped for syrup, a favorite for silvopasture design. Not recommended near areas where tomatoes or potatoes are grown.  Proven VT Hardy 3-4′ Bare Root Tree $25

BUTTERNUT– Our native and endangered ‘white walnut’ Bare Root seedling trees 2-3′ $25

CARPATHIAN WALNUT (Juglans regia) 2-3′ bare root: $25 (*experimental in Lamoille county, proven in champlain and CT river)

SHAGBARK HICKORY: 6-12″ bare root $15-20

NORTHERN PECAN: 1-2′ bare root $25 (*experimental in Lamoille county, proven in champlain and CT river)

American Chestnut: 6-12′ bare root $15-20

Black Locust: 2-3′ bare root $15-20 Super fast growing Nitrogen Fixer, edible flowers, rot resistant wood, high btu firewood.

VINES:

HARDY KIWIS-  Hardy, Fuzzless, and even Sweeter!  One Gallon Pots $20

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-FEMALES:  “KEN”S RED”, “Geneva 3”, “MICHIGAN STATE”, ANNA, CHANGBAI,   Requires at least one male.

-‘CLARK’ and ‘MEADER’ MALE-  1 gallon pots. $20 3/5″ potted males $15   1 male needed for every 8 females, depending on pattern.

SCHISANDRA:     Eastern Prince: gallon pots $20, ~self-fertile  

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The ‘Five Flavor Berry’- selection of self-fertile Magnolia Vine from the Vavilov Institute at Vladivostok, Eastern Prince Schisandra Vine™ bears good crops of large, tasty fruit. Eastern Prince™ Schisandra Vine is hardy to minus 35 degrees F., USDA Zone 3. This particular variety is bears clusters of lightly fragrant, magnolia-like flowers. The snow-white flowers are followed by striking, crimson berries which have a tart and very distinctive taste and aroma. The fruit makes tasty, vitamin-rich juice and preserves, and the dried leaves, shoots, and roots are used to make a refreshing and stimulating tea.

HOPS:  3.5″ pots $12 “Alpha Aroma” or “Brewer’s Gold”

Black Currants

FRUIT TREES/ BUSHES:

ELDERBERRIES a favorite native for its medicinally valuable delicious berries and showy flowers. Source of syrups, wine, pies, and fritters 3.5″ pots $12: “Adams”, “Ranch”, “Bob Gordon”, “Wyldwood”, and “Wild”.

Paw Paw: 1-2′ bare root $20

SEA BERRIES: Nitrogen-fixing hardy superfood fruit! “Amber Dawn” 1 gallon pots,

FIGS: 3.5″ potted rooted cuttings $10 ‘LSU’; One Gallon Pots ‘Chicago Hardy’ $25

RIBES

‘JOSTABERRY’ BLACK CURRANT x GOOSEBERRY- One gallon pots

A unique cross of Gooseberry and Black Currant, Jostaberry is the most vigorous of all our Currant varieties. A very disease resistant and easy to grow small shrub, Jostaberry produces very large, jet black, sweet-tart fruit, high in Vitamin C and good for fresh eating and excellent for jams and jellies.

GOJI BERRY:  Crimson Star:  Gallon Pots $20,  Phoenix Tears small pots $10 ~zone 5 hardy.  Commercial variety, edible leaves also! ~self-fertile

aronia berries

ARONIA-  One Gallon Pots $20 “Nero” and “Viking”

An easy to grow, productive small shrub, Nero grows 3- 4 ft. in height and bears abundant crops of large, jet-black berries, good for juice and wine. A beautiful ornamental, you’ll enjoy Nero’s abundant clusters of very dark blue fruit and striking, bright red, fall foliage.

8-10′ Seedling Rootstock Plums, Pears, Antanovka Apples available $200 and up. FALL

PEARS:  1 gallon pot grafted trees ‘Bartlett’ $30

NITROGEN FIXERS:

SEA BERRY:  A Nitrogen Fixing Fruit Tree- know for its medicine/ super-food / nutraceutical properties.

BLACK LOCUST: 2-3′ $15-20

Inquire about wholesale pricing (10x plants or 100x plants) for orchards, windbreaks, Shelterbelts, and production systems.  Inquire about Lemons and other citrus, Tea and Maté plants, and other unique plants.

CANNABIS:  Please contact us for seeds, seedlings, clones, or flats of starts of CBD hemp.  We also have organic flower and pre-rolls. We are offering cloning services for a limited number of ‘adult use’ strains for legal grows (21+, please) $25 each cloning fee Durban Kush x Venom OG; DK x Pineapple Punch; Gelato; Forbidden Fruit x Gelato; Granola Funk; Starfighter Wookie; Blueberry Muffins x Runtz; Garlic Cookies.

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING ELSE?  Let us know- we have more than is listed here, including scionwood and seed. Feel free to reserve things for fall 2021 or spring 22

HOW TO ORDER?  The best way to ask questions is to send an email to KEITH@PROSPECTROCK.ORG, TEXT, or CALL (802) 734-1129.  The best way to send money is Venmo (@earthsurfing), Paypal Friends and Family, Check, or Paypal purchase, Credit Card over the phone (in order of preference).

 – ALL PROCEEDS SUPPORT ECOLOGICAL REGENERATION –

A reminder- enrollment is open for our 14th ANNUAL FARM AND WILDERNESS IMMERSION PERMACULTURE DESIGN CERTIFICATION and full scholarships  available for income-eligible Vermont State Residents.  Please invite friends and family members who may be interested in immersing for two weeks in Vermont!

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR FAMILY FARM and SHARING THIS!

Wishing you and yours health and resilience!

Keith and Family

Willow Crossing Farm is Vermont’s Longest Running Permaculture and Agroforestry Research and Demonstration Farm-  Contact us for Design Consultations and Design/ Build Services.

Diana Beresford-Kroeger- EARTH DAY in Johnson!

Prospect Rock Permaculture- Vermont’s Permaculture Institute- in collaboration with JSC’s Green Solutions and the Center for Bioregional Living, is pleased to present a talk with Diana Beresford-Kroeger, free and open to the public, THIS WEDNESDAY APRIL 22 at Johnson State College’s Bentley Science Building Auditorium (room 207) at 4 PM.

Diana is a world-reknown Canadian scientist, whose work is grounded in reverence for the natural world and the rich history of tree’s roles in spiritual life.  She is the author of ‘The Global Forest’, ‘The Sweetness of a Simply Life’, ‘Arboretum America’, ‘Arboretum Borealis’, ‘A Garden for Life’, and other works.

Please join us and SHARE this event with your friends and networks!

Diana Beresford-Kroeger is a visionary natural scientist and druid with a powerful and intimate understanding of our crucial relationship with the global forest, its flora and fauna and its role in our health and well-being. Beresford-Kroeger conducts her experiments in a garden laboratory outside Ottawa and in the house she and her husband built with their own hands.  Her latest book, The Sweetness of a Simple Life, is a handbook for living more harmoniously with nature, for guarding against illness, ensuring the vitality of our children and our pets—and it tells us how to protect ourselves and our environment from the effects of climate change and global warming. Her comprehension of and compassion for the forest is beyond description. She is truly a living treasure.

 

Her website:  10 Trees That Can Save The World 

 

A collection of press about Diana and her work- including the New York Times: Beresford-Kroger Press

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There is still space in this June’s Permaculture Design Certification Course– June 19-July 2 reserve your space now in the northeast’s longest running FARM-BASED PDC.  Hands-on Training in Ecological Design- immersion in nature and regenerative systems, natural building, and incredible community working to meet human needs and increase ecological health!  Tuition includes on-farm camping and ENTIRELY LOCAL Organic Farm Sourced Meals.  Scholarships available for VT residents, Women Farmers, and people working on the ground in food systems or food justice in communities of need.

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NURSERY SALES!

We have one of the largest collections of rare fruit and nut trees, medicinal herbs, vines, nitrogen fixing plants, hedgerow and windbreak species, and more!  Plants are only available for a short window in spring- details for pre-order will be announced LATER TODAY!

Thank you for your support of our work- and SHARING this announcement with your friends and networks!

Please share this email or link, or spread the Facebook event:  https://www.facebook.com/events/1574107769541949/

In Spring,

Keith and Family

Willow Crossing Farm

Orchard Pruning Workshop- March 2

2015 event details HERE

Hands on- Fruit and Nut Tree Pruning

A day long exploration of the science and practice of ecological tree crop management for diverse yields.

Willow Crossing Farm

Johnson, VT

SUNDAY, MARCH 2

10 am – 4 pm

Join VT’s Master Horticulturalist Zach Leonard and Tree Farmer Keith Morris for a day of hands-on practice with fruit and nut tree pruning, in a diverse permaculture forest garden setting.

Spend the morning in the large yurt learning the science and ecology of how trees lose limbs and ‘heal’, and explore the deep traditions of how humans beings observe and interact with this phenomenon.   We’ll synthesize a variety of pruning ideas, strategies, and techniques to help you develop your own philosophy, understanding, and confidence to go out and work with trees in your landscape in a regenerative and yielding way.

After lunch and some hot cider we’ll go outside to explore one of VT’s oldest permaculture designed food forests- a reforestation of old pasture and hayfield in the floodplain of the Lamoille River.  We’ll briefly tour ‘Productive Buffers’, wildlife corridors, and stop to work in zones of Plums, Apples, Peaches, Pears, Berries, Vines, Hazelnuts, Walnuts, and more- driven by the group’s interest, and discussing pruning techniques for trees both young and old.

We’ll look at and evaluate previous years of pruning decisions and ensuing consequences, and explore some natural tree injuries and healing responses, helping participants to better understand the implications of our pruning decisions over varying periods of time.

We’ll finish the day practicing with different tools to cut wood cleanly- with an eye towards maximizing production, fruit quality, ease of future maintenance, and minimizing pest and disease pressure.  We’ll also set the stage for top-working, multi-variety grafting, species changes (i.e.. Peaches on Plum roots), and other forms of propagation.  In preparation for our March 16 Grafting Workshop and Scionwood Exchange

We’ll also prune mature, bearing Hazelnuts and manage black locust, walnut, butternut/ buartnut, pecans, and more for nuts, firewood, high-value lumber, succession, aesthetics, and other long-term aims.

We’ll pass around, demonstrate, and allow you to trial favorite tools, including pruners, saws, pole saws, etc.; speak to their selection and maintenance, and discuss hygienic practices to promote orchard health and reduce cross-contamination.

This workshop kicks off our series for 2014!  

Please enter your email in the box on the right hand side of the page, or ‘like’ us on Facebook to get the calendar and details for our other offerings such as:  fruit tree grafting (March 16), nursery plant sale, natural beekeeping workshop, nut production, diverse understory planting, spring development for gravity fed irrigation, natural building, compost heat, season extension, earth oven construction, stone masonry, and more.

Our Plum Flower Festival and Nursery Plant Sale is scheduled for May 4, with some plants available for pickup Saturday May 3, or delivery into Burlington.

Our 2014 Permaculture Design Certification Course will be held July 20- August 1, and is filling quickly.  Applications for our Advanced Permaculture Design / Build /Grow / Teach internship, and APDC guided portfolio development will now be accepted on a rolling basis!

Event is $60 suggested donation/ sliding scale, including warm or cold cider during lunch and a round of hard cider tasting (21 and over) afterwards.  No one will be refused for lack of funds.

*We are looking for photographers or videographers to help document the event, or create a short educational video.*

Please pre-register, and dress to spend the day outdoors.

We’ll need your email address if you’re planning on coming because the weather will determine where we’ll have people park.  Feel free to bring your *clean, sterile, and sharp* pruners and saws.

Zach Leonard is a master horticulturalist and was farm manager of Elmore Roots Nursery for over a decade.  He and his family have created High Hopes Farm, a diverse, off-grid homestead, where they preserve heirloom apples, sheep, and more.  He runs High Hopes Tree Care, Vermont’s most experienced orchard restoration and maintenance service specializing in Organic Management.

Keith Morris has been collecting and experimenting with rare fruit and nut trees for 14 years, and is professor of ecological design at the University of Vermont.  He has worked to help create resilient, diverse, socially just, and economically viable food systems around the world since 1996.

Please spread the word to potentially interested friends and networks.

Thank you for your support of our work!

Thanks,
Keith and Crew
Willow Crossing Farm
www.willowcrossing.org