312: Angels Dressed Like Bears | Michael Phillips 1957-2022

Tribute to Author and Orchardists Michael Phillips

I spoke with his long time friend Alan Surprenant of Brook Farm Orchard in Ashfield, Massachusetts on a cool March day a little over two week's after the unexpected passing of Michael Phillips. The two men met originally at a New England Organic Farmers Association (NOFA) conference that was being held at Hampshire College and they soon became fast friends. It was Alan who first contacted me with the news of Michael's unexpected passing and I knew he'd be perfect to speak about the life of one of America's premier apple writers and teachers.

Michael's book placed in tribute to his passing a few days earlier at the 2022 Berkshire Roundtable

Michael died in his orchard in the Lost Nation area of New Hampshire on February 27, 2022. He was in the process of writing his fourth book and building out a Speakeasy where friends could gather to sip cider on his land that he shared with his wife Nancy and where they raised their daughter Grace.

I expected to talk a bit more about Michael with Alan, but we kept rolling back to talking about orchard care, a topic that was close to Michael's heart and certainly his life's work. It was fitting because both men held in common the work of helping homeowners and budding orchardist learn the basics of orchard care. For Michael it was his full time work writing books, consulting and presenting on the topic. He was the anchor of the Berkshire Roundtable, which is a yearly meetup of apple growers and more recently cider makers.

Alan Surprenant

Pay tribute to Michael Phillips by Planting a Tree

Michael Phillip's Books

• The Apple Grower A Guide for the Organic Orchardist (2005 revised edition)
• The Holistic Orchard Growing Tree Fruits and Berries the Biological Way (2012)
• Mycorrhizal Planet How Symbiotic Fungi Work with Roots to Support Plant Health and Build Soil Fertility (2017)

Contact Info for Michael Phillips Books and Network

• Website: http://lostnationorchard.com/index.php
• Link to In Memorian to Michael Phillips http://lostnationorchard.com/memoriam.php

Contact for Alan Surprenant

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Brook-Farm-Orchard-1616011222000571
• Instagram: @brookfarmorchard
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