Pruning the Edible Forest Garden March 31

Hands on- Fruit and Nut Tree Pruning

A day long exploration of the science and practice of ecological tree crop management for diverse yields.

Willow Crossing Farm

Johnson, VT

SUNDAY, March 31

Click Here to Register

10 am – 4 pm

Join Tree Farmer Keith Morris for a day of hands-on practice with fruit and nut tree pruning, in a diverse permaculture forest garden setting.  Spend the morning in the large yurt learning the science and ecology of how trees lose limbs and ‘heal’, and explore the deep traditions of how humans beings observe and interact with this phenomenon.

We’ll synthesize a variety of pruning ideas, strategies, and techniques to help you develop your own philosophy, understanding, and confidence to go out and work with trees in your landscape in a regenerative and yielding way.   After lunch and some hot cider we’ll go outside to explore one of VT’s oldest permaculture designed food forests- a reforestation of old pasture and hayfield in the floodplain of the Lamoille River.

We’ll briefly tour ‘Productive Buffers’, wildlife corridors, and stop to work in zones of Plums, Apples, Peaches, Pears, Berries, Vines, Hazelnuts, Walnuts, and more– driven by the group’s interest, and discussing pruning techniques for trees both young and old. We’ll look at and evaluate previous years of pruning decisions and ensuing consequences, and explore some natural tree injuries and healing responses, helping participants to better understand the implications of our pruning decisions over varying periods of time. We’ll finish the day practicing with different tools to cut wood cleanly- with an eye towards maximizing production, fruit quality, ease of future maintenance, and minimizing pest and disease pressure.  We’ll also set the stage for top-working, multi-variety grafting, species changes (i.e.. Peaches on Plum roots), and other forms of propagation.  In preparation for our April 7  Grafting Workshop and Scionwood Exchange We’ll also prune mature, bearing Hazelnuts and manage black locust, walnut, butternut/ buartnut, pecans, and more for nuts, firewood, high-value lumber, succession, aesthetics, and other long-term aims.

We’ll pass around, demonstrate, and allow you to trial favorite tools, including pruners, saws, pole saws, etc.; speak to their selection and maintenance, and discuss hygienic practices to promote orchard health and reduce cross-contamination.

This workshop kicks off our series for 2018!  

Please enter your email in the box on the right hand side of the page, or ‘like’ us on Facebook to get the calendar and details for our other offerings such as:  fruit tree grafting (April 7), nursery plant sale, natural beekeeping workshop, nut production, diverse understory planting, spring development for gravity fed irrigation, natural building, compost heat, season extension, earth oven construction, stone masonry, and more. Our Nursery Plant Sale pre-orders are open now, with plant pick ups scheduled to begin April 23.

Our 2018 Permaculture Design Certification Course will be offered July 22- August 3, and they are filling quickly.  Applications for our Advanced Permaculture Design / Build /Grow / Teach internship, and APDC guided portfolio development will now be accepted on a rolling basis!

Event is $40-60 suggested donation/ sliding scale, including warm or cold cider during lunch and a round of hard cider tasting (21 and over) afterwards.  No one will be refused for lack of funds.

*We are looking for photographers or videographers to help document the event, or create a short educational video.*

Please pre-register, and dress to spend the day outdoors.

REGISTER HERE!

We’ll need your email address if you’re planning on coming because the weather will determine where we’ll have people park.  Feel free to bring your *clean, sterile, and sharp* pruners and saws.

Felco’s F 13s- the pruner of choice for large hands, or thick branches

Keith Morris has been collecting and experimenting with rare fruit and nut trees for 20 years, and teaches ecological design throughout the northeast.  He has worked to help create resilient, diverse, socially just, and economically viable food systems around the world since 1996. Please spread the word to potentially interested friends and networks. Thank you for your support of our work!

Thanks, Keith and Crew Willow Crossing Farm www.willowcrossing.org

For rideshares, conversation, or sharing with facebook friends- please visit the event page here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/270680720016950/

You can view some photos from last years event HERE.

Open Sessions: Dave Jacke!! Monday July 21

We’re honored and excited to announce an evening presentation with Dave Jacke- author of ‘Edible Forest Gardens’ and the northeast’s most recognized permaculture pioneer-

FREE and open to the public.

Ecological Culture Design: A Holistic View

Monday, July 21

Willow Crossing Farm

Johnson, VT

Nature operates based on a set of foundational laws and principles by which all systems must abide, or they fail. These principles have much to teach us about how to organize human societies. Fundamentally, permaculture aims to design complete cultural systems that consciously mimic ecosystem properties, principles, patterns, and processes.

 

Ecologically, culture functions as the primary adaptive mechanism of our species, and it is culture, as a whole system, that we must redesign. What is culture? How might we approach the design of cultures as whole systems in an ecological context? We can design systems that minimize stress and competition, and maximize cooperation, harmony, productivity, and diversity, while allowing each community member to remain true to their intrinsic nature. We’ll get into some ecological nitty gritty and imagine how we might use what we learn for our own purposes.

Dave will join us with extra special guest and Gap Mountain Permaculture co-founder Doug Clayton!

 

This is the first of a series of events which will be open to the community over the next few weeks as we host people from all over the country (and world) for our 7th Annual Permaculture Design Certification Course.

We’re so excited to continue of tradition of sharing our most excellent guests and bringing folks in to share in the experience of one of the nation’s most highly regarded Permaculture Courses!

 

All evening lectures are FREE and start at 7:30, donations to support farm reforestation and ecological regenerations are gratefully accepted and shared with our guests.

ALL ORGANIC FARM-SOURCED DINNER is served at 6 pm, and available by reservation only for a sliding scale fee of $12-20.  We are happy to meet the needs of vegetarians, vegans, wheat intolerant, ethical omnivores, and localvores.

To join us for dinner, please contact Head Chef Emily Wheeler by phone or text message at

(802) 505-8882

For questions or driving directions, please contact Keith@ProspectRock.org or call (802) 734-1129

 

WEDNESDAY, JULY 23-  LISA DEPIANO

Will speak on Community Scale Permaculture and Permaculture Economics and share her experiences as a leading activist and empolyee-owner of a diversity of regenerative businesses.

 

MONDAY, JULY 28- MEGHAN GIROUX of VERMONT EDIBLE LANDSCAPES

 

Interested in attending the course?  Please call to see if there are any last-minute cancellations.

Next year’s is already beginning to fill!       It will be July 19-31, 2015.

 

Thanks for SHARING this with your friends, interested networks and listservs, and on social media!

 

Please ‘like’ us on Facebook, and add your email address on the right hand side of this page to be kept in the loop of other events.

 

 

Nuts for the Northeast- NOFA VT Winter Conference, Sat. Feb. 15

Hardy Organic Nuts for Farms and Yards

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Keith Morris at

NOFA VT 32nd Annual Winter Conference

3:45 – 5:00 pm

Silver Maple Ball Room, Davis Center UVM

     Since the dawn of time, nuts have been some of the most important food plants for human beings.  Nut trees and shrubs offer some of the most nutrient dense foods, provide habitat, show the potential for a ‘carbon-negative’ and flood resilient agriculture, and are economically valuable for a variety of products in addition to nuts themselves.

Join with grower and international farm designer Keith Morris to explore the fascinating ecology and mythology of a few nut trees particularly suited to growing on farms and in neighborhoods throughout in the northeast.  We’ll focus of hardy proven nuts, and introduce some of the breeding, trailing, and hybridizing happening at Willow Crossing Farm in Johnson, VT to select for disease resistance, organic production, high quality timber, oils, medicinal properties, and to migrate some important nuts typically grown in warmer regions.  Participants will leave with a deeper understanding and appreciation of some trees commonly found in towns and hillsides, and be introduced to promising less common nuts.

Keith Morris is the founder of Willow Crossing Farm and is Professor of Permaculture Design at the University of Vermont.  As a grower, builder, and designer, he has created ecologically regenerative and economically viable food systems in New Zealand, Colorado, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Quebec, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Nigeria, Ghana, Denmark, and the Netherlands- working regularly throughout New England and in New York City.  He has spent over 20 years developing permaculture with farms, towns, schools, indigenous peoples, squats, activists, and in solidarity with exploited populations.

Willow Crossing Farm is Vermont’s longest established permaculture research and education facility, and a debt-free ‘financial permaculture’ working family farm.   We host one of the most diverse collections of tree crops in the northeast, offer farm-based dining and educational opportunities to the local communities, and host annual events that attract people from across the country and a surprising variety of international students. We grow a variety of fruits, nuts, berries, and vines in an organic nursery; experiment with new crops, techniques, and regenerative farm infrastructure; manage production to create wildlife refuge and pollinator sanctuary; and have been focused on developing ‘productive buffers’ to reforest floodplain and riverside banks with marketable production.

 

Also- subscribe to our blog (just enter your email above to the right) to receive announcements about Farm Tours and to view our fruit, nut, and medicinal plant collections, view the listing for the Spring Nursery Sale, and other related workshops and conferences.

_____________________________________________________

Stay tuned for details about our February Pruning Workshop, March Grafting Workshop, Farm Dinners, and other upcoming events.

__________________________________________________________

Our 2014 Summer Permaculture Design Certification (July 20 – August 1) is filling fast- please be in touch if you would like to reserve your space!

This is Vermont’s oldest independent Permaculture Design Certification Course, with the most highly regarded PDC and teaching team in the Northeast.  Prospect Rock Permaculture has largest body of PDC alumni/ graduates in the North America!  We hope you can join us.

Its almost full!

__________________________________________________________

With the Happiest Wishes for your New Year, and Warm Winter Blessings, 

The Prospect Rock Permaculture Family and Crew

 

Welcome to Prospect Rock Permaculture

Welcome!       -Please be patient as our website is under construction.  

We apologize for any dead links or blank pages- feel free to enjoy what is up, and check back soon as we continue to revise and add content.

Be in touch via comment or email if there’s anything in particular you’re looking for and can’t find online.                    

We welcome your feedback and suggestions as we reformat our online presence.

Stay tuned for more photos, video, and designs coming up soon!

Some sample photos and Designs

 

Prospect Rock Permaculture is a growing edible forest garden, ecological homestead, and education center in Johnson along the Lamoille River. We combine reforestation, wildlife refuge, and ecological restoration with food production and community building, while educating about and experimenting with sustainable techniques and ways of building. We grow seed with High Mowing Organic Seeds, keep bees and wild craft medicinal plants for Honey Gardens Apiaries, grow fruits, nuts, and berries with Elmore Roots Nursery, and also work researching and educating about biodiesel. Be in touch for updates about classes, workshops, tours, and internship or apprentice opportunities.