UNITY, Maine — This spring and summer, the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) will present a series of seven one-day sessions covering the theory and hands-on practice of organic fruit tree and orchard management. The workshops are designed for beginner to intermediate orchardists managing planting scales ranging from backyard plantings to larger orchards. Participants may sign up for one or more sessions.
Saturday, March 11, or Saturday, March 25, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Pruning Fruit Trees
Locations: March 11: Bar Harbor, Cumberland; March 25: Unity
Fee: $50; $35 for MOFGA members
Learn how to prune fruit trees to encourage vigorous growth, heavy fruit set and quality fruit yield; and how to collect and store scionwood.. Please bring a bag lunch.
Saturday, March 18, or Saturday, March 25, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Renovating Old Apple Trees
Locations: March 18: Freedom; March 25: Newcastle, Mt. Desert
Fee: $50; $35 for MOFGA members
This course focuses on pruning and feeding very old, nonproductive fruit trees in order to bring them back into fruitfulness. Instructors will employ various methods to demonstrate proper pruning of trees that have been unmanaged. Please bring pruning tools and a bag lunch.
Saturday, April 1, or Saturday, April 8, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Grafting Fruit Trees
Locations: April 1: Bar Harbor; April 8: Unity
Fee: $50
Learn to propagate and reproduce your favorite fruit tree varieties. Instructors C.J. Walke, MOFGA’s organic orchardist, and Jen Ries of Whiffletree Nursery in Brooks will explain how to graft, demonstrating whip and tongue and T-budding grafting. Participants will graft trees to take home and plant and will learn how to care for the new trees. Please bring a grafting knife and a bag lunch. Grafting knives can be purchased in advance from FEDCO.
Saturday, April 15, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.: Orcharding 101
Location: Unity
Fee: $50; $40 for MOFGA members
Join Michael Phillips, author of “The Apple Grower,” for a comprehensive exploration of orchard health strategies that help minimize disease and insect challenges. Enjoy lectures, discussions and question and answer periods indoors and out. Learn what health challenges to expect in your orchard and how to manage them. Please bring a bag lunch.
Saturday, May 13, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Top Grafting
Location: Thorndike
Fee: $50; $40 for MOFGA members
Learn from John Bunker how to top work new, disease-resistant, cider, dessert or heritage varieties onto your existing trees. In this workshop you will see how a professional top grafts and you will be able to try top grafting on your own. Please bring a bag lunch and a very clean and sharp grafting or utility knife.
Saturday, June 24, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Summer Orchard Care
Location: Cumberland
Fee: $50; $35 for MOFGA members
Join C.J. Walke, MOFGA’s organic orchardist, as he discusses organic methods for growing tree fruit. Walke will discuss soil and nutrient requirements, explain organic pest control and provide ample time to answer questions about cultivating fruit trees organically. Please bring a bag lunch.
Saturday, August 5, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.: Bud Grafting
Location: Monroe
Fee: $50; $35 for MOFGA members
Bud grafting is a great way to start your own fruit trees as well as many ornamentals. Budding is grafting individual buds from this year’s new growth onto rootstock already set in the nursery. This class will be taught by Seth Yentes of North Branch Farm, an orchardist and fruit tree grower for FEDCO. Please bring a bag lunch.
For more information and to register, please visit mofga.org/events.
–MOFGA
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