Espalier! Espalier! Espalier!

Anyone out there that speaks French and wants to tell me how to say this word I'm all ears. I'm saying it as "es-spa-lee-aye" but no idea if that's correct.

So here's the plan....not only espalier-ed but an apple tree guild. A guild is a method of companion planting to support the main crop, in this case the apple tree, by growing around it other plants that will deter pests, enhance flavor, improve soil, and increase yield.

Here's the easier to understand diagram:

But since drawing this diagram and reviewing my perennial beds I decided that most perennials need 18-24 inches not a foot so my collage has less plants than diagrammed to give them more room. So the plants I plan to possible put around or *definitely put around the apple trees are as follows:

Comfrey

Mint

*Chives, regular not garlic unless garlic already there

*Allium Globemaster, some already in place

*Yarrow, summer dreams have 3 plants

Daisy, not sure which type needed

*May Night Salvia because I love it!!!!

*Lupine plant from seed

*Strawberries, some already in place

Trifolium purpurens-purple clover

*Thyme creeping pink, have lots of seeds not sure how easy to grow

Need to add stepping stones into the diagram as well. Maybe need new diagram!

And I guessed when I drew the tree about a foot from the fence but that turns out to be the right minimum distance away.  This blog was also helpful:

Flowers and Weeds: Espalier Fruit Trees You Can Grow

I would normally never be planting or moving plants in July and August but this summer the weather has been ridiculously mild and lots of rain. So let the planting carry on!

Now to get my husband to work on the deck and fencing. He promised to do so tomorrow. If he reneges there is going to be some possible blood shed, ok at least tears.

I dug and I dug some more....

I intended to work a few hours when I saw it hadn't rained yet. I was pretty sure it was going to rain so I just kept working thinking I'd stop when it rained. But it never happened. And wow I got so many things done today!
1. Weeded and covered with leaf mold blueberry bed
2. Dug out 2 blueberry bushes from front yard added to that bed
3. Planted 5 strawberry plants in that bed
4. Planted 4 apple trees
5. Planted a weeping willow
6.  Started another expanse of hugulkultur in parents backyard and now encompasses almost entire back border of fence
7. Mixed entire pen of leaves with grass clippings
8. Mowed both yards
9. Moved all the bricks to mow the future herb wheel really low
10. Cleaned up my area of garage
11. Took fence panel out of parents fencing to access backyard better and had to chisel out a stripped screw
12. Cut down a large weed tree except the highest branches next to parents house
13. Set  up my dad in backyard to watch me with seat cushions and a root beer with a straw
14. Trimmed grass next to trees in their backyard
15. Moved all the wood piles and sticks to form the first layer of the hugulkultur
16. Filled one garbage can with leaves mostly wet and grass clippings and tied the lid on so I can roll around and speedily have some leaf mold
17. Put up 8 tomato cages
18. Put up a support for an eggplant
19. Stuffed all the tarps in a galvanized trash can
20. Put the stuff Pat left in yard for trash in trash and also dragged some carpet to curb and moved recycling bin back to house since we had wrong week
21. Raised Rylie's bike seat and took training wheels off yesterday and today filmed her riding without training wheels for first time!
22. Added dirt to potatoes and made one potato cage
23. Put back up wire cages around blueberries
24. Raked up straw for strawberries

Needless to say I am very, very afraid that I WAYYYYYYYYYYYY overdid it! Oh boy. 11 hours later.

Dwarf honeycrisp that soon will be pruned back to prepare for espaliering!

I forgot to mention I twisty tied all the daffodil and allium globemaster leaves together! Maggie trampled them and they looked terrible and you're not supposed to cut them before they die back so this way they were out of my way. Oh and I planted 9 sweet potato slips along the front of the blueberries.

Strawberry new bed

Another dwarf apple, think this is granny smith?

Willow tree!

25. Planted 9 sweet potato slips

26.  Twisty tied the daffodils and allium plants in blue berry bed

27. Moved lime and lemon to front of house

Wow I'm tired.