Stina began farming at Booth Canyon Orchard in 1995, reviving 3 acres of  30 year old pear trees.  In 2000 John and the dogs joined the farm, and Stina and John bought another 5 acres of apples.  The following year, we cut down and grafted the old apple trees to 25 different varieties of apples.   A few years later, we grafted some of the old D’Anjou pear trees to 10 heirloom varieties of pears.  In the ongoing quest for the best tasting fruit, we continue to plant promising varieties of all sorts of tree fruit, and ruthlessly remove trees that don’t measure up. 

In former lives, Stina has been a geologist, wilderness ranger, environmental educator and forestry researcher.   Farming satisfies her need to be working outside, at something tangible and real.  She finds it a challenging balance of muscle and mind, working with living things. 

John is settling down to farming after working in Africa, carpentering, river guiding, ski bumming, and lastly, running a CPA practice.  He revels in the daily reminders that we are not in control; nature really runs this show.

We both love the seasonal nature of farming, that allows us to ski and travel in the winter.  The intensity of spring and fall work brings its own pleasures of growth and then harvest.  We usually find a few days in the height of summer, between irrigation sets, to go hiking in the mountains, kayaking at the ocean, or rafting a river.