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To train volunteers to care for urban orchards EarthWorks has offered classes covering specific horticultural topics, as well as courses of six to twelve sessions that explore all of the steps necessary to create and maintain a healthy urban orchard. Below are all the important and relevant materials from our horticultural training manual, which was developed by Alana Dudley and edited by Bill Taylor.
The manual contains information collected from a variety of sources and is designed to help anyone start and maintain an urban orchard, no matter how big or small. The chapters are divided by topic and ordered so that you can easily refer to them as you develop your orchard. Some of the information in the articles may contain specific details that are more relevant to the New England area, but we have made every effort to include information about other climates as well. For any additional location-specific information, consult the Resources & References section, where you will find other nationwide horticultural information.
- Soil Testing and Site Selection
- Soil Testing
- Results and Interpretation of a Soil Test
- Good Gardening Practices to Reduce Lead Risk
- Plant Selection
- A Brief Guide to Site Analysis and Plant Selection
- Soil – What Is It?
- Preparing Soil For Planting
- Planting
- Spring Planting
- Fall Planting
- Planting Instructions
- Plant Labeling
- Weeding, Watering, and Mulching
- Site Calendar
- Weeding
- Mulching
- Watering
- Volunteer Positions
- Site Log Form
- Compost & Soil
- Compost
- Organic Soil Amendments and Mulches
- Soil Nutrients
- Beneficial Insects, Pests, and Organic Controls
- Pests and Beneficials in the Orchard
- Nature's Balance: Good Bugs and Bad Bugs
- Insect Identification and Life Cycles
- Attracting Good Bugs
- Orchard Diseases
- Diseases in Fruit and Nut Plants
- Urban Orchard Pest and Disease Control Practices
- Common Orchard Diseases
- Plant Structure and Growth
- General Structure
- Extent of Root Growth
- Types of Buds
- Bud Differentiation
- Plant Growth
- Fruit Development, Ripening & Harvesting
- Bearing Age
- Fruiting Habit
- Fruit Development
- Pollination
- Fruit Harvest
- Pruning and Shaping
- Pruning and Shaping Defined
- Reasons for Pruning Orchard Plants
- Know your Plant
- When to Prune
- Pruning and Shaping Methods
- Basic Steps in Pruning
- Making the Cut
- Growth Habit and Common Pruning Approaches
- Propagation and Grafting
- Sexual Propagation
- Asexual Propagation
- Grafting Techniques
- More Resources
- Urban Orchards Recommended Books
- Resources on Edible Forest Gardening and Perennial Polycultures
- Mail Order Nurseries
- Plant Catalogs
- Sources of Insect Traps
- Additional Articles that you may find useful:
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- Soil Lead Levels – Interpretations and Recommendations
- A Checklist for Smart Tree Shopping
- Compost: Nature's Black Magic
- The Biology of Composting
- Grow Your Own Fertilizers: Cover Crops and Green Manures
- Vermicomposting & Building a Worm Composting Bin
- Common Pests of the Urban Orchard (in the Northeast) and Their Organic Controls
- Diversity, Pests, and Diseases
- Disease Resistant Varieties (table)
- The Birds and the Bees and Fruit Set in Tree Fruit
- How Limbs Prune Themselves
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Roxbury, MA 02119
Ph: 617.442.1059