Exciting news!
LUSH Valley is pleased to announce that we will be offering several ways to work with you to improve the health and fruit quality of fruit trees in the Comox Valley. Through educational opportunities and pruning services, our goal is to increase the value of the local fruit harvest by promoting proper fruit tree care.
Well maintained fruit trees are easier and safer to harvest which increases the effectiveness of time spent harvesting – a real boon to LUSH Valley’s hard working Fruit Tree Program. At LUSH we view the fruit trees of the Comox Valley as part of our community’s orchard and we are working hard to ensure that this incredible resource and bounty is enjoyed by anyone who is interested.
Prune-Along
Our popular Prune-Along Program is back for a second season this year. The Prune-Along program pairs tree care experts with participating tree owners to teach the basics of tree care. Each Prune-Along session will be tailored to meet the needs and goals of the homeowner and will focus on the essentials: creating an ideal tree shape for ease of harvest, optimizing sun penetration and air flow to increase fruit quality, and pruning to promote vigor. This program offers an opportunity for tree stewards to gain the skills to keep their trees healthy and productive for years to come which will hopefully ensure the fruit is of high quality and easy to harvest. The program is intended for tree owners/stewards who have the physical ability to maintain their trees, but lack the technical skills or knowledge.
Pruning Services
Pruning services are also available for those tree stewards who don’t have the interest or capacity to participate in a prune-along session. As with the prune-along program, we won’t be using ropes or chainsaws to perform the prune, so these services are best utilized to small to medium sized trees.
Details:
These programs will run through February and March 2021. Tickets are available through eventbrite. The pruning season is a short 2 months, during a time of fickle weather. As such, only a limited number of prune-along sessions or pruning services are available this season.
Each session will be tailored to the needs and goals of the tree steward and will focus on the essentials of tree care.
Sessions are offered in 2 hours blocks and cost $150.
LUSH will provide all the necessary tools and ladders for the duration of the class.
Tree Eligibility:
For safety reasons we only work on orchard ladders not exceeding 12ft – no rope work or tree climbing. Therefore excessively tall trees may not be appropriate.
All cuts will be made with hand saws, any tree requiring major saw work will need the assistance of a professional arborist.
For more information and to register for a Prune Along session visit Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/
To inquire about becoming a Prune Along Facilitator, or for more information, please email Kate at harvestlead@lushvalley.org
