WSU Clallam County Master Gardeners and the Olympic Orchard Society will be hosting a workshop from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday, July 9, on tips to maintaining your orchard in the summer months.

The class will be at the Master Gardener’s Woodcock Demonstration Garden, 2711 Woodcock Road, Sequim.

The workshop begins with information on how to optimize productivity of your orchard trees. Pat Volk will focus on pruning and training fruit trees. He also will give tips on thinning fruit set in the early summer months.

The workshop continues with James House discussing the best techniques to irrigate an orchard.

The talk concludes swith Bob Cain speaking on pests and diseases that are common to orchards on the Olympic Peninsula and effective control measures.

Volk, House and Cain are all members of the Olympic Orchard Society and have years of experience maintaining orchards at their own home.

Volk is a past president of OOS and has been maintaining his orchard in the Dungeness Valley since moving there over 10 years ago. He has taken a special interest in training espalier fruit trees.

House is the president of OOS and has over 30 trees in his home orchard. He has a great passion for growing fruit and is growing over 50 different varieties.

In addition to being a member of the Orchard Society, Cain also has been a Master Gardener since 2009. He has been experimenting with the health and vigor of numerous apple, pear and peach varieties at his home orchard and at the Master Gardener Woodcock Demonstration Garden.

The cost of the workshop is $15 per person. Students will be provided with WSU Extension publications on orchard care to take home and reference during upcoming growing seasons.

Contact the WSU Extension office at 565-2679 to register. Class size is limited so call soon to reserve your spot.