Organic Orchard Floor Management Field Day with Brix

Join us for an inspiring and educational Field Day at Atoms to Apples! This field day will focus on Organic Orchard Floor Management, exploring innovative and practical ways to reduce weed populations while supporting tree health, soil vitality, and ecological balance. 

Host Rami Aburomia of Atoms to Apples and Organic Fruit Growers Association Coordinator Chris McGuire will lead a presentation on management strategies and how weeds work on the orchard floor before touring Atoms to Apples to see the organic orchard floor management in action. Marie Raboin from Dane County Land Conservation will present on cost share programs for orchard floor management. Rami will show results of an organic herbicide trial using OMRI listed herbicides for managing weeds and suckers. 

After the Field Day, join us down the road at Brix Cider in downtown Mt Horeb for a social hour to keep talking about organic orcharding! Thanks to Brix Cider for sponsoring this Field Day! 

This event is free, but consider making a donation to Marbleseed! We greatly appreciate your support (especially during this time of federal funding upheaval). You dollars go directly to help fund our farmer hosts and allow us to continue to offer these events for free or low-cost to our community

Agenda: 
1:00- 1:30 PM: Registration and Refreshments
1:30 PM – 3:00 PM: Managing the Orchard Floor Organically Presentation & Cost Share Presentation 
3:00 – 5:00 PM: Tour of Atoms to Apples to See Practices in Place. 
5:00 PM: Social hour at Brix Cider - 119 S 2nd St, Mt Horeb, WI 53572 

Presenter Bios: 
Rami Aburomia - It took us more than 3 years to find a suitable location for our family and Atoms to Apples. I had worked at another orchard for 10 years before planting trees on our east facing slopes. Therefore, I had some idea what to look for: beautiful sloping land with good soil and the potential for encouraging beneficial flora and fauna. In apples, variety is truly the “spice of life,” that’s why we have over 65 varieties that ripen over 12 weeks. The varieties we grow allow us to always have fresh apples available through the season and great storage varieties into winter. When someone asks me “what is your favorite apple?”  My reply is “for which week in the fall?” For more information on Atoms to Apples check out their website- https://www.atomstoapples.com/ 
 
Chris McGuire is the coordinator for the Organic Fruit Growers Association (OFGA), where he brings together organic fruit farmers and researchers to share knowledge, test new ideas and techniques, and promote organic fruit growing in the Upper Midwest.  Together with his wife Juli, he also operates Blue Roof Orchard in southwest Wisconsin, where they raise 3.5 acres of organic apples for sale to eaters, grocery stores, and food processors. For more information on the Organic Fruit Growers Association check out their website- https://www.organicfruitgrowers.org/ 

This Field Day is supported through the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program, a program of the USDA Organic Transition Initiative administered by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service National Organic Program. 

If you have any questions about the event, please reach out to Tay Fatke at 888-906-6737 Ext. 724 or tay.fatke@marbleseed.org. Interpretation is available upon request, please email registration@marbleseed.org if you need interpretation or have any questions about registration. 
 

Social Hour at Brix Cider after the Field Day!
119 S 2nd St, Mt Horeb, WI 53572