Master Gardener/Gleaner Pruning Demo

Late winter is the best time to reshape the wild limbs in apple and pear trees and get rid of "the Three D's" according to Master Gardener,Gleaner, and PTHS Garden co-manager, Doug VanAllen. The next time to trim back is in the summer to encourage fruit growth.

"That timeline doesn't apply to stone crops," Doug reminded the group, "Cherries, prunes, and peaches should be reshaped after they produced their summer fruit."

About 16 people learned how to recognize and cut "water sprouts", where to make a "heading" cut, what's a branch collar and why should they care at the recent Master Gardener sponsored event. The home orchard owner also benefited by having her large and older trees trimmed up -- pruned up trees make it easier for the PT Gleaners to harvest the apples in the fall which are then donated to the schools and food banks. It's a Win, Win, Win, Win, Win, Win for the community.

Learning while doing classes are a great way to gain skills while meeting interesting people. As a side benefit participants also go home with new ways to cook up or preserve fruit -- recipes are always swapped as participants settle into the work groove.

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Get on the PT Gleaners* list to learn about the next orchard management or picking opportunity.

They keep track of over 160 trees in backyard orchards. If you have a plum, peach, fig, pear, Asian pear, or apple tree that could be added to the list for yearly picking, please contact them atptgleaning@gmail.com. 

The PT Gleaners also maintain theBlue Heron Orchard. https://sites.google.com/site/blueheronschoolorchard

and makesApple Sauce for the schools.

* also known as the Quimper Community Harvest.