Orchard Management: Cider Fruit Production - 2 Alternate Dates: June 23rd and July 28th.

Both sections will be held at WSU NWREC, 16650 State Route 536, Mount Vernon, WA 98273 from 9:00am - 4:30pm

Registration Fee: $75 per person

This one day class offers the basics of tree fruit production with emphasis on cider and dessert apple varieties. Expert orchardist Gary Moulton will discuss topics on rootstock, nutrient management, pest management, irrigation, orchard layout planting, pruning, and harvest techniques. The class coincides with Cider Production: Principles & Practices but is open to anyone interested in learning about the essentials of orchard management. The format of the class will be a lecture and discussion followed by an optional tour of nearby Red Barn Cider and orchard.
 
Registration fee to attend the class is $75/person. The fee includes snacks, light lunch, and all lecture materials. Fee is waived for participants attending the Cider Production: P&P course.
 
Instructor Gary Moulton started in 1980 with the Fruit Horticulture department at the WSU Research Station in Mt. Vernon. In 1991, he took over management, direction, and leadership of the program. He holds a Master’s from WSU in Plant Pathology specializing in fruit diseases, and a Bachelor’s in Pomology/Fruit Science from Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo. He has authored several WSU Extension publications and produced a widely regarded video on pruning fruit trees.

To register visit the NABC website.

Cider Making - Principles and Practices 06/25/12 - 06/30/12

Mount Vernon, WA
Registration open to the public

The Northwest Agriculture Business Center is bringing internationally recognized cider production expert Peter Mitchell back to the Skagit Valley to lead another of his popular and intensive week-long classes in cider and perry production. Mitchell has over 26 years of practical experience in hard cider production. He is a certified UK and USA cider competition judge and an award-winning producer in his own right. If you have wanted to develop your skills in hard cider and perry making, this is the course to attend. "Cider Making-Principles and Practices" will be held at the WSU Northwest Research and Extension Center in Mount Vernon, WA.

The course will run 8:00am - 5:00pm daily, June 25 - 29, 2012. Mitchell will cover technical industry foundations such as the cider market, business opportunity, orcharding, production methods and management, and quality control. The class will provide practical processing and laboratory work along with lectures. The week will also be filled with cider making workshops and a field-trip visit to a commercial cider house.

The format and content of the class is suitable for beginners, new businesses and existing producers (large & small-scale) alike. In addition to the week long program is an optional Certificate in Cider and Perry Appreciation by the National Association of Cider Makers'. This certification is designed for individuals who wish to gain a recognized formal industry qualification, the only one of its kind.

Registration is open. http://www.agbizcenter.org/node/58

Cider Summit NW Portland, June 23rd 2012

Details to be available soon. Check back later either here or at the Ciders Summit NW website.

Mark your calendars and stay tuned for updates and information.