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Heartland Cafe Owner Offers 'Rent A Tree' Program at His Michigan Farm

By Benjamin Woodard | June 5, 2014 6:50am | Updated on June 5, 2014 8:42am
 Heartland Cafe Owner Tom Rosenfeld owns Earth First Farms in southwest Michigan.
Heartland Cafe Owner Tom Rosenfeld owns Earth First Farms in southwest Michigan.
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Earth First Farms

ROGERS PARK — Heartland Cafe owner Tom Rosenfeld wants part of his 49-acre Michigan farm to be yours.

For $60, he'll rent you one of his 3,200 apple trees for the season.

He takes care of it, you pick it.

"We write your name on it," said Rosenfeld, who has operated Earth First Farms in Berrien Center, Mich., since 2005.

Ben Woodard explains how you can rent an apple tree in Michigan:

Each tree, depending on variety — Paula Red, Empire, Jonathon, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious — can produce 80 to 120 apples, or two to three bushels.

Rosenfeld said most of his tree renters drive 100 miles from Chicago to pick their tree every year.

For many, it's a way to reconnect with nature, he said.

"It's definitely for the experience," he said. "I don't know what it is. People have an emotional connection to apples."

Earth First Farms also offers an apple delivery service throughout the year as different trees ripen.

Each 10-pound delivery allows customers to "taste your way through the season," Rosenfeld said.