Although Johnny Appleseed might have made planting and growing fruit trees look easy, you have to have the necessary knowledge about soil needs and the maintenance fruit trees require. But once you’ve taken the time to learn about having your own orchard, the benefits are innumerable. Not only will you benefit from the fruit harvest, but trees forestall erosion, they provide oxygen and remove carbon dioxide, they offer places for birds to nest, and later in life, they provide fuel for our wood stoves. An orchard is not like a garden that lasts three months; an orchard is a promise for the future.