NW Fruit (Western Washington Fruit Research Foundation)

We will be covering growing blueberries and our blueberry net structure we use at the Fruit Garden in Mount Vernon. More information to come.

Click here to find an updated version of our Best Varieties handout.

Our next Webinar will be Saturday March 6th at 10 am.

There has been a change to our schedule for the webinar tomorrow. The schedule will be as follows:
10:00 am Selection of Fruit Trees for the Home Garden
10:30 am Annual Membership Meeting followed by a break
10:40 am Short video on how to collect and store scion wood
10:45 am Presentation on Grafting
12:00 pm Selection of Rootstocks
Q & A With Bob & Sam

You can still register for this webinar by clicking here.

Below is the schedule. You may watch any or all of the presentations you are interested in watching.

10 am  We will start with a short video on how to cut and store scionwood. Then Bill Davis will give a presentation on grafting followed by a Question & Answer time.

11 am We will have our Annual Membership Meeting to elect Board members. Non-members may attend the meeting, but not vote.

11:20 am  Bob Baines – A Beginner’s Guide to Selection of Fruit Trees for the Home Garden.

11:40 am Sam Benowitz -  Rootstock Selection.

Finally we will have a question and answer session where you can ask your questions about growing fruit with Bob Baines and Sam Benowitz.

Please click here to register for the webinar, which is free to all but we have a limited number of slots available.

We have received news that Dr. Bob Norton, who was the the supervisor for Washington Sate University’s Research Station at Mount Vernon for 30 years starting in the early 60’s, passed away yesterday. Dr. Norton was a frequent speaker at out Winter Field Day. We will have an article about Dr. Norton in our June newsletter.

We are pleased to announce that we will begin a series of educational webinars for 2021. In March our Winter Field Day with Annual Membership Meeting will take place during the webinar, since we are unable to have it at a regular event, so we encourage members to attend. The webinars are free for non-members as well as for members, but members have first opportunity to reserve attendee slots. Check here for more information including the schedule through June. We will also be sending emails to update our members about our plans.

Only current members will receive the emails so when you get your newsletter later this week ( of the 2nd of Feb) check next to the black arrow on the back to see if your membership has expired.

We will be making scion wood available through Seattle Tree Fruit Society

Our Fruit Garden Designer, past president and long term board member, Kristan Johnson, passed away this month on November 17th.

Kristan was hired by WWFRF in 1997 to design the Fruit Garden and he ended up designing the basic layout of the entire WSU Volunteer Display Garden area. That same year he began to serve on the board of directors of WWFRF, and later served as president for 6 years. As the Fruit Garden designer and chair of the Fruit Garden committee, he guided the development of the Fruit Garden through the years and even personally moved many of the plants that were transplanted from the WSU plots so that they would remain available for public viewing after the WSU tests were competed.

Kristan had boundless enthusiasm, energy, and a multitude of ideas which he channeled into projects such as the Fruit Garden self-guided tour signs and the unique espalier Welcome sign. He will be greatly missed by all of us.

We are making plans for next year and all we can tell you right now is that our Winter Field Day with Annual Membership Meeting will take place online. We are hoping to be able to make scion wood available and we hope to have a series of educational online classes with the audience able to ask the instructor their questions at the end of the class. Check here for more information in early January and we will also be sending emails to update our members about our plans.

The email was sent to current members about 10 days ago. If you are a current member and have not signed up for a time slot coming this Saturday the 10th, and cannot find the info email please send an email to info@wwfrf.org if you wish to get another email sent to you.

We are still working out the details, but those of you with current memberships will receive their emails with information about how to get a time slot for the Apple and Pear Pickup day by Thursday, September 24th. October 10th will be one day set aside for picking up fruit, beginning at 10 am to 1 pm or maybe a little later.

Sorry about the delay. This is something entirely new for us so it is taking us a little more time than expected to work out the details.

Thank you.