Team Members include...
Local Heritage Tree Owners
Three sites on Franktown Road in west Washoe Valley where some of the first Mormon settlers and other pioneers homesteaded and bought property in West Utah Territory (later Nevada Territory) after 1857. There were several apple, pear and other fruit tree orchards planted in this area of the state and a few of the original trees are still here. We have enrolled 13 trees in this area. Some of these sites lost homes in the Little Valley Fire (fall 2016), but many fruit trees survived and this project is helping to restore them to production and to prove the varieties of apples growing here.
The McCleary Ranch in Southwest Washoe Valley (formerly the family ranch of Nevada Governor Robert List, circa 1920’s) is a 500 acre working ranch developing sustainable business model that includes the 22 remaining heritage apples trees, a CSA produce garden, horse boarding, hay production, sheep grazing, and vacation rental of an historic 1935 home built by Lord Wellesley, Earl of Crowley, who came to Nevada from England.
It's about the trees! The CHCM project is seeking owners of heritage apple groves that constitute trees that were planted 75 or more years ago in their current location, and are in need of horticultural services. These owners must be willing to consider participating in a multi-year renewable agreement to receive volunteer horticultural care of their trees (pruning, Integrated Pest Management, and cultural practices) and to abstain from using chemical pesticides or fertilizers on the property. IN exchange for CHCM services, tree owners agree to contribute a portion of the crop produced from their trees to CHCM, each year. To learn more, please contact the Project Manager here
CHCM Personnel
Bill Murphy-Sharp - Project Manager
Bill and his wife Donna Murphy-Sharp have been developing Tea House Gardens, a Nevada Certified Producer of eggs and produce in East Washoe Valley since 2009. They operate a one-acre site with gardens, free-range chickens, bee hives, fruit trees, berry patches, and two dogs. They use permaculture, IPM, and other sustainable methods in this work. Bill acquired an interest in making sweet apple cider from his grandfather (an Iowa farmer), and has nourished that interest when working in commercial orchards and peddling local produce for a decade throughout the Northwest. Bill and Donna have been making and sharing their joy of cider making with family, friends and neighbors in Washoe County since 2002.
Michael Janik- ISA Arborist
Michael is a Certified Arborist with the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), maintains a Nevada Nursery Dealer license, and a Nevada Pesticide Applicator license. He has a backyard collection orchard with over 100 varieties of apples and dozens of other fruit varieties that he has or is currently testing for suitability for the Great Basin. He owns and operates www.michaelsapples.com and publishes a monthly e-newsletter with information of all aspects of home fruit tree production and gardening tips. He has been a Master Gardener Volunteer since 1996. He has gardened in Nevada since 1982 and is a beekeeper.
Beth McCleary, Ranch Owner
Beth owns and runs the McCleary Ranch where she has 22 old apple trees that are enrolled in the project. She pursues the symbiotic approach to growing local food and appreciates the integrated pest Management (IPM) methods being used to restore her old trees.
Ryan Sharrer, Advisory Commitee
& Volunteer
Ryan is the Nursery Manager at the Nevada Division of Forestry, Washoe State Tree Nursery on Eastlake Blvd. at the North end of Washoe Valley, NV. Ryan has been in the nursery business for 10 years and is an arborist, a banjo player, and serves on the Project Advisory Group and helps out as a volunteer.
Three new site owners with tree sites in western Washoe Valley have enrolled
for Spring 2017
watch for photos...
CHCM Volunteers
Project volunteers learn how to properly restore, care for, and harvest from trees at our heritage sites. To learn more about being a volunteer, please click here.
This project website, and all associated material, is supported in part by the Nevada State Department of Agriculture. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Nevada State Department of Agriculture, Plant Division or the State of Nevada.