Aug 9, 2012

Michigan horticultural open house coming soon

The Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Center (NWMHRC) Open House will be held Thursday, Aug. 23. Concurrent educational sessions for tree fruit and wine grapes will begin at 3 p.m.

Featured speakers for the tree fruit educational session will be George Sundin, Michigan State University Department of Plant Pathology, who will give an update on fungicide and bactericide trials conducted at NWMHRC in cherries and apples. Rufus Isaacs and Doug Landis will be on hand to talk about the importance of pollinators, native plants and how to enhance adjacent plantings to bolster pollination in orchards.

They will be joined by beekeepers and pollination specialists for a roundtable discussion on how growers can improve pollination in apple and cherry orchards. For those interested in wine grapes, MSU’s Paolo Sabbatini and Duke Elsner will present the latest information on pruning and training wine grapes in a season that has been terrific for growing grapes. The educational sessions are free and open to all who would like to attend.

The afternoon sessions will conclude with a social hour and local wine tasting to begin at 5:15. Dinner will follow, and will feature locally produced foods; dinner cost is $15 per person. To reserve tickets for the dinner, call the Leelanau County Extension office at 231-256-9888 or email [email protected]. Reservation deadline is Aug. 22.

For more information, call 231-946-1510.