Winter Pruning
By Jutta Thoerner UCCE Master Gardener
“I am new to this area and used to gardening in a different climate. Where can I find good resources?” Nina, Atascadero.
You came to the perfect organization. The MG mission is to educate the public. One of our most popular outreach events is the free Advice to Grow by Workshops or ATGB which are held every 3rd Saturday of the month located in the Garden of the Seven Sisters, at 2156 Sierra Way in San Luis Obispo. The seminar topics vary from month to month. We aim to have our topics correspond to the season, current pests, diseases and relevant research. In the spring, we often have seminars for starting a vegetable garden or, during the drought, many of the topics included tips on how to deal with the drought. Popular seminars include starting seeds, Mediterranean plants, gopher control, pesky pests and pruning. For example, on Jan 16th, the Winter Pruning Workshop is a hand on demonstration in our fruit and nut orchard in the Garden of the Seven Sisters, starting at 10 am. The garden provides ample seating and lots of shade under a pergola for those extra sunny days. Besides offering terrific free education, we as MG's, love to hear questions from the audience, which are always good learning experiences for all involved. The seminars last for 2 hours and often cover multiple topics. After the presentations are over, there is time to take a tour of the garden; guided tours are available with prior notice. Besides the speakers, we have many MG volunteers who attend and help with set up and clean up. These helpful folks can be spotted by their name tags and they can answer your questions while touring the garden.
Because we are here to educate and serve the public, we also hand out a questionnaire after the workshop and welcome your input. We want to offer topics that are the most important to the San Luis Obispo County gardeners. So why not make a New Year's resolution that will benefit you and your garden by attending our monthly ATGB seminars in 2015? See you in the Garden!