SEASONAL PRUNING AND TRAINING

with JUDY KEATS

Saturday 23 March 2024 - 9:30am to 12:30pm (3 hours)
*Rain date 13 April 2024

This workshop with Judy Keats is a seasonal session on how to care for your fruit trees as the summer winds down. Make the most of your summer harvest and sharpen your skills for helping your trees get a jump on the colder months that loom ahead.

Join us for this rare single-session opportunity to learn about and gain in-depth experience with methods for caring for your fruit trees. Help make the most of the time of year and help keep your trees in the best shape to continue thriving successfully for seasons to come!

What to expect:

In this workshop, we will focus on pruning techniques for stone fruit, pip fruit, citrus, and sub tropical tree varieties. The timing is also 'ripe' to train new wood, reduce canopy overcrowding, and help minimise loading on trees so that the quality of your fruit can improve at the same time that risks from pest and disease are reduced.

Our food forest at Kelmarna will be your outdoor laboratory to practise identifying and using appropriate tools as well as understanding tree morphology and the fruiting habits of various trees. Judy will both guide you through demonstrations and you will have the opportunity to get hands-on to try pruning actions and implement strategies for improving tree health and performance according to foliar programmes and in harmony with understory species in your orchard zone.

Tickets include: Guided instruction, and access to tools and resources for all practical activities onsite.

Due to the requirement of fine weather for pruning, a rain date is set for this workshop. In the case of bad weather, the workshop will be held on 13 April instead.

What to bring:

Essential:

a refillable water bottle (to stay hydrated).
weather appropriate gear (to keep comfortable).

Recommended:

a notebook and pen (to take notes, if you like).
a pair of gloves (for the practical tasks, if you like).
a pair of protective glasses (for the practical tasks, if you have them).

Judy Keats is a permaculture & regenerative agriculture practitioner, and community garden mentor and advisor, with considerable experience establishing, coordinating, and teaching in community gardens across Auckland. Judy is passionate about well-being for people and caring for the environment in which we dwell. She believes that by observing our plants and our changing climate, we can gain insight and a closer connection to the health of our gardens, which is key to the success and optimal yields of a sustainable food system. She is committed to working with communities to foster knowledge and experience towards mastering resilience.

At Kelmarna, we strive to make education accessible for everyone. So, where possible, we offer a 35% discount on our workshops to valid Community Services Card holders. If you book one of these tickets, please email us a copy of your valid Community Services Card, and remember to bring it along to the workshop. Please note that this option does not include Super Gold Card holders.

We look forward to seeing you on the farm soon!

Kelmarna Community Farm Workshops Program.