Millers enjoying "fruit" of their labor
n Jane and DuWane Miller have been growing and selling fruit for over 17 years.
Eric Clark
News Editor
When Jane and DuWane Miller moved from California to Hillsboro in 1986, gardening was just a hobby. But the duo decided to take their hobby to a "whole new level," and make it blossom — literally.
The Millers constructed what is now referred to as the Miller Orchard, an orchard that features peach, apple, pear, plum, cherry, black berry, pecan, and walnut trees and is located on North Ash Street.
According to the couple, in the beginning skeptics brought their doubts to the table early on.
"They (people in Hillsboro) said it wouldn't work, and that it couldn't be done," Jane said. "We had been doing the same thing, on a much smaller level, out in California. We thought it would work here, and it has."
DuWane said he thought of the idea to build the orchard on his many days driving a semi-truck prior to retirement.
The duo was involved with a gardening club when they lived in California, and the two were even featured in a 1983 issue of Organic Gardening magazine.
"We like being outdoors, and we like doing things with our hands," Jane said. "We decided to do (gardening) because our kids were all grown up and out of the house, and we didn't need the back yard anymore. We got into the garden club because it sounded interesting, and DuWane kind of found it therapeutic."
Despite their love of the orchard and its "fruits," the fruitful couple said poor health and age continue to hamper their ability to care for the orchard.
"It's really time consuming," Jane said. "I tell people, 'We're retired, but now we're just tired.' It's just not as easy as it was once before."
The Millers just finished their busiest time of the year, selling what was left of their peach crop after a hard freeze earlier in the season.
From now until late October, when the couple closes for the winter, the duo will be selling their apple crop.
The Millers said they make enough money each year to break even after all of their expenses are taken into account. But the couple said going hungry is never an option.
"I'd say if we starved, it'd be our own fault," Jane said.
The love of growing fruit continues to motivate the duo, but the reality of their own mortality continues to grow in their orchard of concerns.
"There's going to come a time when we won't be able to do this," Jane said. "We don't want to quit or leave the house, but we know we can't go on forever."
For the time being, the couple plans to continue their business with hopes that their daughter and her husband will someday take over the Miller Orchard.
"We'll keep on keeping on," Jane said. "People seem to appreciate our fruit. They say 'thank-you,' and that means a lot."
