Perfect, the beauties grow and there is not a cloud in the sky.
The Orchard is in her, ” enjoy the process”, ritual. The waiting gives time for joy in the observations and the work. This is watering time. This is the Orchard’s TLC time when cherries gain size and flavor. The ground around each tree is tended. The area is kept moist. Attention is on the trees while we patiently let them develop their natural, crisp, sweetness.
Clean air, great soil, and perfect water provide the essential ingredients to produce prime sweet cherries.
Yes, we are all interested in the expected Ripening Date. Today, our guess is July 18, 2025
Read below for instructions to visit.
This is our evidence that the Orchard’s environment is in good order. These fragile creature are happy here.
Flathead Lake is Glorious
There is no sleep now
The Florescent Glow In the Evening Sun.
INSTRUCTIONS
Call 406-871-5499 for Appointment, Instructions, and Directions
We will be open from 8 am until 1 pm
Wear walking shoes that cover your feet, not sandals.
Bigfork, Mt. Call Farmer Dan For Appointment around July 15. 406-871-5499.
We are excited, the weather is fabulous as of June 19. Here is a poem for your inspiration. Read the poem, it will lift your anticipation towards a fine summer.
Knee – Deep in June,
James Whitcomb Riley
Tell you what I like the best -- 'Long about knee-deep in June, 'Bout the time strawberries melts On the vine, -- some afternoon Like to jes' git out and rest, And not work at nothin' else!
Orchard's where I'd ruther be -- Needn't fence it in fer me! -- Jes' the whole sky overhead, And the whole airth underneath -- Sort o' so's a man kin breathe Like he ort, and kind o' has Elbow-room to keerlessly Sprawl out len'thways on the grass Where the shadders thick and soft As the kivvers on the bed Mother fixes in the loft Allus, when they's company! ... March ain't never nothin' new! -- April's altogether too Brash fer me! and May -- I jes' 'Bominate its promises, -- Little hints o' sunshine and Green around the timber-land -- A few blossoms, and a few Chip-birds, and a sprout er two, -- Drap asleep, and it turns in Fore daylight and snows ag'in! -- But when June comes - Clear my th'oat With wild honey! -- Rench my hair In the dew! And hold my coat! Whoop out loud! And th'ow my hat! -- June wants me, and I'm to spare! Spread them shadders anywhere, I'll get down and waller there, And obleeged to you at that!
The Crops
The Cherries are in June Drop and on their way to Straw. We are watering like mad and mowing. Dan has been clearing pathways and tending the grass that keeps the cherry trees moist.
Peaches, Pears, Plums, Grapes, Apples all look good. Each crop has particular needs. We are fertilizing with all kinds of compost, kelp, and other specific nutrients. We will know our approximate Harvest Date around, “middle of July”.
Our Water
In April we upgraded our good well. Our pressure tanks were twenty years old. They fizzled. The genius family, Zavala’s, excavated a deep area near our well in the South part of our property.
The greatest well man, Fletcher helped us pull out the old pipe and pump. We installed a glorious and new stainless steel pump. We dug out a massive amount of soil to make an underground area for a fancy and new concrete fault. It acts like an old pump house, but it is now all underground. It was a fascinating experience and exercise. Much of the new installation was accomplished in pouring rain.
We are satisfied because we know our great water is the basis for every success that we have.
Grinding the Branches After Pruning
Around The Orchard
These 2025 Spring photos are a glimpse at the preparations here for maintaining a great season for everyone. Dan has taken these photos. He is passionate about his video and photography. The Rock photo is a Dan project: grape terraces. Dan has been designing and building various orchards for great people who want to add orchards in our Northwest Montana Valley.
Concerned thinking has been happening here. Acceptance is growing. Peace of Mind needs more fertilizer. Beauty is here, she consistently arrives. Farmer Dan says, “Quell worry and fear. Crease the forehead but pucker the lips into a smooch and a smile.”
We will stealthily tell our story: It began last fall when the green cherry leaves hung onto their trees longer. We waited for the leafy golden colors, waited, waited. The cherry buds grew. The buds became fatter and swelled. Baby cherries are born in the fall and then they gestate. The trees went to sleep. It was a restless sleep.
The trees awakened during some December milder temps. Then, January slammed our area. The freezing numbers were lower than we have experienced here.
Throughout this valley, we heard: “Minus 30 degrees, minus 40 degrees, minus 16 degrees.” Everywhere, “below zero.” Our buds were killed.
Our Adulation for this cherry is great. You will understand because this is the only cherry on its tree. We call it a “Singleton.
Yes, we are concerned for each of our customers. We have all been fortunate, We have enjoyed more than abundant crops over nearly 20 years. We have all polished off hundreds of thousands of pounds of cherries.
Our trees remain healthy and we care for them now. This year, we have zero sweet cherries for anyone.
We are sorry for our customers, for our families, and for our own jam pot. There are problems in many crops around the U.S.
Our apples, plums, and pears are ready. The 2023 weather has given us a beautiful and long growing season. We will be open for apple picking during the next few weeks.
Call Farmer Dan if you would like to visit the orchard. 406-871-5499.
Our branches are bending low, heavy with many different varieties of apples. The apples are delicious, crisp, and good for eating or baking. Guaranteed, our historical Macs make the best pies and deserts.
Our best applesauce making technique: Use a roasting pan. 1. Wash apples, peel apples, then chunk them into pieces. Simply, use a knife to cut the apple pieces into a roasting pan and toss the seeds and core into the compost. Any chunk is the right size! 2. Add a little sweetener and cinnamon, if you like. 3. Add a small amount of water, a few tablespoons. (enough to kick off a bit of moisture and steam. 4. Roast in the oven until the apples are tender, we like a few browned, savory tips.
There you have it, the most delicious applesauce without watching the pot or fighting hot spots and burning pot bottoms. To preserve: We jar the applesauce, add a lid, and put into the boiling water canner for ten minutes.
To make things really easy, we sterilize clean jars from the dishwasher in the oven, Place the jars on a cookie sheet and bake the empty jars for ten minutes in 350 degree oven. Boil the lids. You will have great applesauce throughout the year until next season. Homemade is far better than any purchased jar.
Practicing Patience is required during this pre-harvest time in 2023. At the East Shore of Flathead Lake, our Montana weather teases with a rotation of warm days and cool days. Knock on wood, we have not had hail.
We understand you all will want to hear, quickly, about our upcoming harvest. In our orchard, we like to give some of our trees an extraordinary space for growth. This photo is of a special Lambert tree that survived historical winters when the entire area lost their trees. Enjoy this photo while you read our particulars.
The harvest will probably begin the last week of July. This is nearly impossible to predict. Today, June 25, 2023, from our current observations, we will guess, last week in July for our start. If you want to come to the orchard, call 406-871-5499 from July 24 until we finish around approximately August 19. Call a day, or two, before you want to visit. We will pick during mornings. 8:00 am. -1:00 pm. You must call and talk with Farmer Dan. We look forward to a fun season.
In the orchard, we need to know each tree as an individual. They begin to ripen at various speeds. Eventually, they come together to make our crop. We are seeing various phases and colors now. When growth is achieved, we stop irrigation to develop flavor. The trees tell us what to do. We work to have the best cherries we can produce.
The cherries today: “straw”, is the name for this phase. The name describes the color and growth period.
We made some New Work Here for Us
During this waiting time, we have planted the new peach trees. The blueberries are in the ground. This new work will produce fruit in the next seasons. Here is a photo of Farmer Dan with just one of our new blueberries. These plants are astonishing. We are excited about our new peaches and blueberries. There are 90 new peach trees and many blueberries.
Our cherry season will begin AUGUST 1, 2022. Our cherry season will last through AUGUST 15. The past, late, spring has brought us a beautiful crop. Farmer Dan has pruned each tree for beauty and easy picking. The ORCHARD has been tended, watered, and nourished like a garden.
Enjoy our serene, clean orchard. An exquisite time to relish the outdoors and clean air. We are a family owned orchard.
CALL 406-871-5499 for an appointment.
We cannot ship cherries during 2022.
Prime sweet cherries, peaches, plums, pears, apples, berries, events. Located in Montana at Flathead Lake, Yellow Bay.
Getmans' Orchard and Vineyard 