In my various attempts through the years to establish a homestead one thing always became a consistent part of my plan: Fruit and nut trees.

Building an orchard takes time and patience. In a world where everyone wants things instantly, most cannot even conceive of the idea you would plant a tree and wait for years (YEARS) to benefit from the food it provides. As with anything in this world getting a result sooner (buying larger trees to plant) comes at a cost. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on your trees you may instead want to buy solar power (I couldn't help it.)

Those homesteading rock stars that pull it off are like real life super heroes to some of us. You can't help but stare in awe as you consider that they literally have a renewable source of bulk food just waiting for them each and every year. Bags and barrels and buckets of apples, pears, plums, etc. that make life great when you need to keep the pantry and root cellar stocked.

The most valuable thing I can tell you is this: Patience and a willingness to listen to those who have succeeded will yield success.

Oh, and random internet videos are almost always ALWAYS wrong and lead to utter failure.

My recipe for success so far has been simple: find a supplier of bare root trees from the region you live in. You want trees that are a fraction of the cost of a fully grown 8 foot potted tree that are already adjusted to the climate where you live.

Never grow just one tree in isolation from others of the same species. Pollination is your friend. Know which trees need cross-pollination from non-hybrid species and which to avoid planting together.

I'm already writing this article like a list - because there is so much to cover and my mind is full of tips from my recent and past experiences - so let's simply number things and make this a genuine list:

1. Source trees locally

2. Ensure you have enough trees for pollination

3. Always dig the holes deeper and wider than you are told (for most bare roots 3 ft by 3 ft is the minimum. If you have a friend with an excavator you can dig an entire orchard grid in a morning.

4. DON'T OVERWATER. I recently had a bare root tree source show me their website which contained no fewer than 4 entirely different sets of instructions for soaking the roots of bare root trees before you plant. Some (please don't listen to every internet video you see) would say overnight or 24 hours. That is a horrible idea unless you like drowning your trees. Some say 2 hours, some say 4-6 hours. I've even seen 12 hours. Each tree species is different. The single best thing you can do is get your trees in the ground immediately and water them there - conservatively.

5. Compost/Amend soil only if you have to. There are many ways to add nutrients for your new trees. Some will tell you to use fertilizer pellets, compost, manure, rabbit pellets, the list is endless. If your soil is well draining and rich already you risk your trees survival with too much fertilizer/amendment. Be conservative.

6. Remember that your trees will grow. If you plant a semi dwarf tree that grows 12-16 ft tall the canopy will be about the same width if it is healthy. Stake out a grid and plan your little trees strictly to it. It may not seem important yet, but it will when they are bigger.

7. Back to not overwatering trees. Trees like rain. Rain isn't always a 500 year flood. The best way to water a tree is gradually. Think slow rain over longer period of days. If you have a puddle of water sitting at the base of your tree for days after you water then you are likely drowning it.

8. Prune your tree. Starting with sappers. Sappers are the stems that grow from the base of your hybrid trees if you plan the graft below the soil level. Those sap nutrients and water from where you want it (up the trunk to the top and branches). Trimming/Pruning will help your tree get stronger. A wild tree most likely will have a weaker root base.

9. FENCE NEW TREES. I have used everything from poultry netting (chicken wire) to welded wire in a loop. You can use old tires to form a base. Deer and other wildlife like to especially eat the apical buds (the tip top of your young tree) and drive you to madness. You can also plan trees inside a garden fence, but remember to plant only on the north side of your garden if you do. You want the sun to reach your garden from the south.

10. DON'T UNDERWATER. For the first 2-3 years just expect to water your trees a minimum of every week unless you live in a place where the ground has constant moisture already (if you have a spring or artesian well this is a distinct possibility). During dry months double the water frequency. Best plan is to talk to a local nursery, forester, botanist, gardener to find out what works.

11. Keep an eye out for diseases and insects. There are many ways to rid your stand of nice trees from these. Nothing is worse than losing an orchard five years along because you stopped paying attention to your trees.

12. DOGS. GOATS. CATS. PIGS. Almost any animal you are very proud of on your homestead can become your arch nemesis with newly planted trees. Consider yourself duly warned.

13. When you water your trees don't just aim the hose at the tree base. You want your tree roots to grow outward. That means they must find water somewhere besides right under the tree to be healthy.

14. Do pick your tree's fruit each year when they are ripe. Instead of pouring more and more nutrients and water into a now over ripe fruit they can divert it to the branches and roots to prepare for winter.

15. Sunlight is everything. You may have a great orchard spot picked but how much sunlight will actually fall on that location?

16. Never plant black walnut trees next to fruit trees. Black walnuts and some other species will kill your orchard. Again consider yourself warned.

17. DO make money from your surplus fruit. Not only can you divert that money where you need it, you can even donate a few bushels of fruit to someone who desperately needs food and doesn't have it. Again more reasons to have an orchard.

18. Protect your orchard from fire. A cleared road around any orchard down to mineral soil is essential for fire prevention (and it helps access your trees for maintenance).

19. If a fruit tree dies and you smoke food to preserve it consider using wood chips from the dead tree. Apple wood for food smokers is expensive.

20. Most fruit tree wood is dense. You can make great things from it.

I will add to this list as I get time. There are endless tips for planning an orchard, and you should never stop learning from those who do it right.