Good Fruit from the Ground Up: Session video recordings can be found below.
These videos are now available to anyone on our NAFEX YouTube channel.
Bonus materials, such as selected speaker presentations and how-to files, can be downloaded free from our Conference Google Drive HERE.
The content provided here is intended for educational use by NAFEX members only and may not be distributed or reproduced in any way without the express permission of the North American Fruit Explorers.
Please note: The opinions expressed within the conference sessions are solely those of the individual speakers and participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of the North American Fruit Explorers organization.
THURSDAY, NOV. 10
(Two Sessions)
SESSION 1
2 pm PST / 5 pm EST
NAFEX 2022 Annual Meeting and Member Show and Tell
Join us for our brief Annual Meeting followed by a fun and informal session where members are invited to share tips, creations, successes and failures in your orchard or fruit farm. Annual meeting agenda includes board elections, 2023 look ahead, and other topics of interest. Bring a story to share!
Kris Heeter, NAFEX President
SESSION 2
4 pm PST / 7 pm EST
Growing High-Yield Fruit Using Espalier Methods
It’s possible to grow abundant fruit in smaller spaces and with manageable heights using classic Espalier training and pruning methods. This decorative, usually two-dimensional form, offers high yields of high quality fruit on a plant or plants that can be free-standing, decorating a wall or fence, or even creating the fence itself! Author Lee Reich will describe which fruit plants work best and share techniques that create and maintain espaliers that look good and yield especially delectable fruit.
Speaker:
Lee Reich, Author (New York)
FRIDAY (morning), NOV. 11
(Two Sessions)
SESSION 1
9 am PST / Noon EST
Backyard Orchards for Homestead and Community
Growing fruits can be both enjoyable and rewarding. In this session, we’ll look at how to create successful backyard orchards for home, market and community by learning from our speakers’ successes and initial failures. These lessons can help you fast-track your dreams of picking fresh fruit straight from your backyard and sharing it for fun, profit or community benefit.
Speakers:
Zen Kai, Tiny Urban Farm (Georgia)
Tonia Lordy, Home Orchard Education Center (Oregon)
SESSION 2
11 am PST / 2 pm EST
The Dirt on Building Healthy Soil
Good fruit starts from the ground up. Join Jeff Lowenfels, the author of the popular Teaming With Microbes/Nutrients/Fungi/Bacteria book series to learn more about building healthy soil for more abundant and disease-resistant fruit crops.
Speaker:
Jeff Lowenfels, Author (Alaska)
FRIDAY (afternoon), NOV. 11
(Two Sessions)
SESSION 3
2 pm PST / 5 pm EST
Managing Pests and Diseases with Minimal Inputs
Healthy fruit trees and shrubs can better defend themselves from pests and diseases, but it requires good planning and management, whether you have a few trees or a larger commercial orchard. We’ll look at management strategies including orchard sanitation, how to add value with imperfect fruit, and how to measure leaf brix to determine the health of your plants.
Speakers:
Tom Murray, SLO Farm (Oregon)
Dr. Tom Dykstra, Dykstra Laboratories (Florida)
SESSION 4
4 pm PST / 7 pm EST
Permaculture Orchards: Polycultural Design and Regenerative Practices
Let’s talk about how to integrate microbes and companion plants into your orchard that will have added benefits such as food, medicine, carbon sequestration, and more. We’ll explore what works and what doesn’t, whether to include animals, and the realistic costs and benefits.
Speakers:
Robert Frew and Juan Carlos Arango, Sobremesa Farm (Indiana)
Erik Hagan, Savanna Institute
SATURDAY, NOV. 12
(Two Sessions)
SESSION 1
9 am PST / Noon EST
Reconstructing the Apple Family Tree
Apple identification is both an art and science. We’ll look at traditional methods of apple ID and newer genetic testing methods that are reconstructing apple pedigrees and yielding surprising results.
Speakers:
John Bunker, Apple Historian (Maine)
Nick Howard, Fresh Forward (Netherlands)
Cameron Peace, Washington State University (Washington)
SESSION 2
11am PST / 2 pm EST
Keynote: Grassroots Apple Breeding: How Small Scale Growers Are Rebuilding Apple Diversity
Join Steven Edholm of Skillcult as he demystifies apple breeding and selection for the common person, moving toward improved quality and variety. We’ll look at how to regain genetic diversity and counter the current, narrow industrial apple breeding and food paradigm. He’ll erode common myths about breeding apples and other fruit and share why plant breeding is the pinnacle of our agricultural heritage. Learn simple methods to breed, select and classify new apples on any scale, as we chart a path forward for broader grassroots fruit breeding.
Speaker:
Steven Edholm, Skillcult (California)
Good Fruit from the Ground Up was sponsored by: One Green World, Copenhaven Farms, Edible Landscaping, Orchard People, and Southern Cultured Orchards and Nursery
Questions? Please email us at admin@nafexmembers.org.