Expert gives talk on fruit tree grafting

Published 9:53 am Wednesday, March 16, 2016

This month’s Fruit Club meeting will start early at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 17, at the Bainbridge Grange Hall, Madison Ave. NE.

This month’s club meeting is the annual fruit tree grafting event led by Darren Murphy, a member of the Western Cascade Fruit Society and Peninsula Fruit Club for nearly 15 years.

In addition to hands-on instruction, the club will have available a large selection of heirloom and more modern apple, pear, plum, and cherry scion wood cuttings and small rootstocks (up to 2 feet long) for grafting.

Members and non-members/guests can also bring bare rooted or potted fruit trees (e.g., Costco specials for example) for grafting their own multi-variety trees. There is a small fee for club provided rootstock ($3 to $5) depending on variety/size, with scion wood free for club members and $1  per cutting for non-members.

There will also be a plant sale (based on member donations) to help raise funds for the club. Members are encouraged to bring their extra seeds, vegetable starts, flowers, berry plants, and fruit trees for sale to other club members or non-members/guests. Mason bee tubes will also be available for those aiming to improve their pollination this spring.