A message from the Director: |
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Hello everyone! We hope you are enjoying this rare and incredible spring season! With cooler temperatures, no late frost, and an even smattering of rain, this has been one to remember. More fruit has set in the orchards than we have ever seen, peaches, apple, pear, and even plums! |
This summer is shaping up to be a breeze, by mixing up more fermented plant brews to spray on developing fruit, getting out under the shade of some of the more mature orchards, and bringing more irrigation systems online at various orchards, we hope to see an abundant year. |
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We are especially looking forward to having more time to work on projects like improved signage for all orchards, new steward classes, lining up Fall Orchard Installations, and more. We hope you can join in with a community orchard near you! |
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| Cheers, Chris Smyth Common Orchard Project Director |
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After over a year of partnering with community food waste programs like Queen City Commons and working to process food scraps and wood chips, the compost program at Common Orchard Project is ready for the next step: selling the finished compost! |
We are selling bags of finished, screened compost, perfect for adding to raised beds, house plants, and your own potting soil blends. Each 5 gallon (0.7 cubic feet) bag is $8 and represents a community effort towards reducing our carbon footprint, diverting waste from landfills, and creating a sustainable way to manage food waste. Your purchase of Common Orchard compost helps continue this community effort. You can order compost and arrange for pick-up from the Camp Washington Perennial Farm at the link here.
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If you have extra or unwanted spring chickens, consider donating them to the Common Orchard Project! We are expanding our agricultural efforts at our Camp Washington Perennial Farm, starting with filling up our mobile chicken tractor. This design, called a chick-shaw, rotates chickens across fresh grass, keeping pest pressure down, and tilling the ground to prepare the land for future berry plantings. |
We are looking for up to 30 chickens to fill the tractor. If you’d like to contribute a few birds to our chick-saw, please reach out to Common Orchard Director Chris via email: chris@greenumbrella.org. |
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Wondering where you can find our orchards around the city? One of our fantastic volunteers recently helped us update our online map! Visit the link here to see Common Orchard Project public orchards in your area. |
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Common Orchard Project Director Chris Smyth received an Earth Day 2024 Environmental Award from the Greater Cincinnati Earth Coalition for demonstrating “outstanding dedication to caring for the environment”! We’re honored to have his work and the work of the whole Common Orchard Project recognized by our fellow climate advocates. “Like the trees we plant, we are dedicated to this place, and its abundance, for a very long time. Thank you for recognizing that, and we hope to see you outside this summer!” - Chris
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Schools are a perfect place to host fruit trees, getting to passively educate students on where fruit comes from while also hosting a diverse understory of herbs, flowers, and beneficial plants for local wildlife. This spring, we worked with the Green Schoolyards Action Network and Taking Root to plant 3 more school orchards at Carson Elementary, the Academy of Multilingual Immersion Studies (AMIS), and Woodford Elementary - bringing our total of school orchards to ten in the Cincinnati area! These 3 new orchards at schools do not yet have a steward, so reach out to Chris if you are interested in volunteering to support an orchard.
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Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities |
We need help from our volunteer network through the summer leading into autumn’s orchard installations. Common Orchard Director Chris sends out volunteer request emails to the network as volunteer days are announced. Volunteer days are need-based and occur when projects crop up at Camp Washington Perennial Farm and the occasional orchard site. |
Want to add your email to the volunteer network and be alerted when new opportunities arise? Sign up for the mailing list here. |
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Next Steward Training Class: August 5 |
Take the next step in your orchard care journey: attend our New Steward Training on Monday, August 5! This free class will cover orchard basics and beginning ecology: tree growth & structure, fungus & pests, and biological diversity. This class is for anyone caring for community gardens with fruit trees and new/beginning volunteer orchard stewards. Learn more and RSVP here.
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| - June 13: Green Drinks with Green Umbrella
- Stay tuned for more information: Fall Food Fest at Urban Artifact in Northside on September 19
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Try This: Birds for Pest Control
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You might not like the caterpillars, larvae, and other pests that can damage your fruit trees, but there’s someone in your backyard that does: a bird! Lots of bird species love eating bugs, and attracting the right kind of birds to your trees can do wonders for natural pest control. For example: the Eastern bluebird (pictured here) loves eating insects! |
To attract more birds to your backyard, plant hedgerows of native and food-producing plants; keep cats indoors; choose natural pesticides and fertilizers instead of commercial chemical alternatives; and provide clean water sources via a bird bath or bowl. |
Learn more about bird-friendly yards here. |
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Green Umbrella leads cross-sector collaboration to accelerate climate action across Greater Cincinnati. |
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