Terry and Carole Chowning moved back to Clark Fork in 2006, purchasing the home that Carol spent her teenage years in, right across the highway from a small stretch of property that butts up against a trailing edge of Howe Mountain, an area that was home to the Whitedelph silver mine. An adit of the mine was visible on the face of the mountainside, but the rest of the property was marshy and overgrown, with thick underbrush and those ubiquitous cottonwood trees. Nonetheless, Carole loved the view and the mountain, and eventually Terry bought it for her. That began a process of clearing and planting, and today that stretch of once overgrown land is home to Annie’s Orchard, the couple’s thriving business/retirement plan.
“Terry’s had a plan the whole time,” Carole laughed one day as she sat behind the counter of the newest addition to the orchard—the antique store. Focused and driven, Terry started the orchard by offering landscaping material, expanded it with a coffee stand, and then built a gorgeous “trading post” to house studio apartments and office space available for rent, along with the antique store.
Why antiques? “We had all this stuff,” Carole said, and added that both she and Terry have a deep appreciation for history and the everyday objects left to us from previous generations.
But back up to the landscaping business, which they call Majestic Landscaping, as it’s still growing as well. Today the couple offer dirt (organic garden soil and compost, blended garden soil, and peat moss), several types of sand, decorative bark and more types of rock than you can shake a stick at—plus a boom truck if you need some help placing a gorgeous hunk of some of the local belt rocks. You can also get cedar fencing and garden beds, and even firewood. There’s equipment to rent as well.
If the place doesn’t send you running home to work on your yard, grab a cup of coffee and visit the new antique store (they’ll sell on consignment, too, so stop by if you have antique items for sale), or just enjoy the peaceful beauty the pair have created out of a former wasteland. Hundred year old apple trees (supplemented by new trees when old ones die) dot the park-like setting, calling you to sit, put up your feet, and rest a spell before getting back home to carry out all your new landscaping ideas.
Annie’s Orchard is located on Hwy. 200 just west of Clark Fork. You can visit them online and learn more at AnniesOrchard.com
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