Description

In an age of supermarkets, fast food and fresh fruit being readily available out of season, self-sufficiency can seem like a pipe-dream. The “convenience” of being able to buy cherries in the middle of winter, or apples in spring (when in fact they’re months out of season) has made it seem normal to eat produce that’s travelled half way around the world. We’ve forgotten the ancient skill of planning our garden so it will provide us with home-grown food all year round. Reducing your food miles starts at home!

Too many gardeners buy fruit trees without knowing the variety or when it matures, and then end up with a glut of fruit in the middle of summer, but no fruit to eat in spring or autumn—sound familiar?

This course will teach you how to plan for a long harvest by choosing exactly the right varieties for your situation. It starts with understanding your family’s fruit eating habits so you know what you’re aiming for. It then shows you how to choose the right varieties to grow.

Making each tree as productive as possible, and preserving seasonal bounty all complete the picture to make sure your family has access to home-grown, organic fruit all year.

What’s included in this course:

• Unit 1: Fruit self-sufficiency may be easier than you think (article)
• Unit 2a: Catalogue your fruit trees (activity)
• Unit 2b: Fruit tree garden planner (resource)
• Unit 3: Plan your home orchard (article)
• Unit 4: Become a no-waste warrior (article)
• Unit 5: Grow a years supply of fruit with just a few trees (video)
• Unit 6: Write a plan to reduce your fruit waste (activity)
• Unit 7: Blueprint for fruit self-sufficiency (video)