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Join Our Spring Kickoff + Get Involved in the Garden 🌷

Spring Kickoff March 18th<!–



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Orchard Happenings and Updates
🐝In March🐝
Hi all! This past month our bees have been active, some of our fruit trees are in full bloom, andΒ we have been pruning fruit trees and grape vineyards! We are about 80% finished, and this coming Saturday will be our FINAL workshop on fruit tree and grape pruning. If you are interested in hands-on learning, please stop by Weaver Creek Park this Saturday, March 7, from 10-2pm.

Stay tuned for more info as we get up and rolling for another Jovial year!

Here is a look at our upcoming Calendar!

  • March 7 (10am–2pm) – Seed Starting, Tool Care & Pruning Workshop;
    Last chance for hands on grapevine and fruit tree pruning.
  • March 14 (10am–2pm) – Seed Starting, Milkweed Planting, Cold Stratification, Seed Scarification workshop
  • March 21 (10am–1pm) – Annual Spring Fling Open House: Meet the teamΒ and learn about this year’s plans. (See more below)
  • March 28Β (10am–2pm) – Community Potluck and sowing milkweed. Join us at the orchard at 10am to sow milkweed seeds andΒ 1pm for a potluck!
  • April 4thΒ (10am–12pm) – Easter Egg Hunt Event! Snacks:Β Activities & fun for the whole family! (See more below)

Sign up for Garden Classes & Volunteering Here:Β https://www.volgistics.com/appform/1996763259
Β 

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New Volunteer Waiver & Platform

We’re excited to announce our new volunteer platform, Volgistics! This system will help us manage waivers, schedules, and communication, as well as track volunteer hours and measure the impact of our programs.

Current Volunteer Hours:Β 
Tue-Thurs 10am-12pm & 12pm-2pm
Saturdays 10am-2pm (starting with the garden class)Β 

Sign Up Here!

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Creamy Coconut Curry Lentils

A healthy dish with spicy or mild options!

(photo by Beth Moncel and BudgetBytes)


Tree Pruning (again!)
It is the best time of the year to prune trees..Well.. actually..Β 

The best time of the year to prune fruit trees is when they are dormant. Given the warm weather we’ve experience, our trees are already at bud burst. We have a few apricots full of flowers and it is March 5th with snow coming tomorrow! …Oh Colorado weather.

Remember the 4 D’s.
The first thing to do when pruning a fruit treeΒ is to removeΒ Dead, Disease, Damaged, and Deranged branches.

Deranged meaningΒ branches which are sticking into other branches at strange angles or that could possibly rub the bark off of another branch.

Check out this resource from Oregon State University for a really good write-up about this whole process:Β 

Know your tree type
Dwarf fruit trees for example benefit from slightly different pruning techniques than nondwarfs which can grow up to 40 feet tall.

Keep structural branches intact and prune for the right ‘shape’.
Different types of fruit trees benefit from different overall shapes. For example, a vase shape is often used for stone fruits like Peaches; while a central-leader shape is often used for Apples and Pears. Check out the link above for photos.

Did you know?
Most fruit trees we plant have grafted unions between two different trees. The top is aΒ fruit bearing variety, bred for tasty or productive fruit, and is often joined together with a different variety used as a “rootstock”. The rootstock is often a variety bred for disease resistance or to confer some other benefit.

Why Prune?
Pruning can increase fruit production and fruit quality, prevent large branches from breaking later on in a tree’s life, and help prevent disease and fruit rots from taking hold.

Techniques

  • Open the canopy for airflow.Β Encouraging airflow in the canopy can reduce disease and improve fruit quality.
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  • Aim toΒ keep branches that have 45-60 degree angles; these are stronger and can bear more fruit than branches with tighter angles.Β 
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  • Prune out Watersprouts and suckers. Watersprouts are thin branches that stick straight up and grow vertically; they can grow very quickly over a year. Suckers are similar but grow from the rootstock of a grafted fruit tree.

Additional Information from trusted education based resources.

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