Having your own homesteading orchard can indeed be a lot of work to get started. However, once you get it established it bears fruit and pays for itself in spades. The savings in total labor cost and the ability to trade bumper crops of fruit for other things your orchard and garden may not be able to provide is even more valuable than the orchard appears on paper.
Other Books by Eric Beuning
Modern Rustic: Greenhouses and Gardening