Saturday was a warm, almost Spring day in Central Iowa.  So what did we do?  Head out to the fields!

Last year our very first Aronia field yielded very little fruit.  It was originally planted almost 10 years ago.  Woody decided it was time for a pruning.  You see, Aronia Melanocarpa is native to the area and is very hardy perennial shrub.   Our son, Kendall, cut back the nearly 200 bushes from over 6′ to about 6-10″ inches.   We expect them to send up straight new shoots this spring.  They won’t have fruit, but they will be preparing for another several years of production.

Now we just have to clean up all those branches we cut off and raked to the aisles.  Meanwhile, it looks kind of like a war zone!