I know two trees doesn’t make an orchard but you’ve got to start somewhere.  Here are the preparations for planting the third tree.  The planting pits for the three apple trees I planted today were surprisingly easy to dig.  Two spits down the soil is still deep, dark and workable with a little clay and few stones.  Each tree is getting a good helping of bone meal forked into the bottom of the hole and a few handfuls of chicken manure pellets mixed into the soil for backfilling.  The bare-rooted trees (from Rogers of Pickering) have wide, well-branched root systems so they should be off to a good start.