New Orchard Workshop (January 27th)
This is our introduction to orcharding! If you can only make it to one class, this class will give you an overview of the most important parts of starting an orchard - how to plant a fruit tree properly, what maintenance you’ll need to do over a year, and the worst pests and diseases to look out for. If you plan on attending the rest of the series, we’ll cover all these topics in greater detail.

New Orchard Presentation

Native Plant Starter List

Orchard Planning (February 3rd)
Once you plant them, fruit trees can live for 50+ years, so it’s important to plan your orchard well! In this class, we’ll go over how to see if your site is suitable for fruit trees, what can be planted in Indiana (zone 6a), how to map out your orchard, how to select varieties of fruit trees that work well for you (including discussions on disease/pest resistance and rootstocks), and where to buy your trees and shrubs.

Orchard Planning Presentation

Recommended Varieties and Nurseries

Planting and General Maintenance (February 10th)
In this class we’ll go over how to plant a fruit tree to set it up for a long and healthy life! This will include the different ways you can buy and store fruit trees, how to put it in the ground, and the maintenance you’ll do over a year, such as how to mulch trees properly, how much to water, and what thinning is. Pruning we’ll cover in a class all on its own.

Planting and Maintenance Presentation

Tree Spacing handout

Pests and Diseases (February 17th)
Fruit trees unfortunately are targeted by a number of pests and diseases. In this class, we’ll go over how to diagnose your problem, some of the common pests and diseases in our area, and what to do about them.

Pests and Diseases Presentation

Dormant Pruning (February 24th)
Pruning is one of the most important but also one of the most confusing parts of maintaining a fruit tree! In this class, we’ll talk about all the principles of pruning on all types of fruit trees at all stages of life and go out into the orchard to see those practices in action.

Pruning Presentation

Pruning Handout

Holistic Sprays (March 3rd)
Due to the high amount of pests and diseases, many orchardists choose to spray their fruit trees for tree health and for marketable fruit. In this class, we’ll talk about our holistic spray recipe and schedule that follows organic principles and how to understand pesticide, insecticide, and fungicide labels in the store.

Holistic Sprays Presentation

Grapes (March 10th)
Grapes are a great part of a diverse orchard! In this class we’ll go over everything grape related: varieties of grapes, how to plant and plan a vineyard, pruning, and common problems.

Permaculture and Native Orcharding (March 17th)
Fruit trees thrive in a healthy and biodiverse ecosystem! In this class, we’ll talk about how to build a biodiverse orchard that improves tree and ecosystem health all at once. We’ll cover fruit tree guilds, the plant and shrub species that can be incorporated into your orchard, and how to build an entirely native orchard or integrate natives into your orchard.

Small Fruits and Berries (March 24th)
In this class we’ll go over all the small fruits that don’t grow on trees, including raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, gooseberries, and currants. We’ll discuss the planting, maintenance, propagation and common problems of each.

Link to Previous Classes and Other Orchard Resources