Central Coast Chapter Meetings & Other Events
Our Newsletter Keeps Everyone Up To Date. Send Us Your Photos & Events! Let others know what's going on by sending your articles, photos, and event info to: crfgccnewsletter@gmail.com. Please submit your items by the 15th of each month for inclusion in the next newsletter.
January Meeting: Saturday, January 10th, 2026
Annual Pruning Workshop
What You Learn:
​A pruning workshop teaches you why we prune, pruning basics, and formative pruning of new trees.
Techniques: How to make proper cuts (removal, reduction, heading) to avoid damaging the plant, using the three-cut method for large branches.
Timing: When to prune different types of plants (e.g., winter for fruit trees).
Purpose: To manage size, remove dead/damaged wood, improve health, encourage flowering, or shape for aesthetics.
In the classroom segment we will discuss when to prune, how our pruning techniques vary between different varieties of fruit trees and maintaining size and shape of our trees. We will discuss spring and summer pruning, especially of Prunus varieties, to avoid spreading disease by pruning during wet winter weather and to control growth of other varieties. In the hands-on segment in the orchard, we will focus on annual pruning of mature trees. We are asking attendees to bring both pruners and loppers for hands-on practice.
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Additional Information:
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The public is welcome! Please bring a friend.
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Rain will not cancel the classroom portion of this event.
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Restrooms will be available.
Schedule:
(Note: these times are approximate and may change slightly due to actual time needed.)​
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12:30-1: Set up crew
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1:00-1:30: Socializing and refreshments. Bring a snack to share and your own water.
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1:30: Chapter business meeting
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1:45-3:00: Pruning lesson and demonstration. Our guest speaker Larry Hollis will give a pruning lesson for 45 minutes in the classroom. Larry would like to ask attendees to read this article prior to the meeting:
https://www.davewilson.com/home-garden/backyard-orchard-culture/
Then, weather permitting, we all walk to the orchard (approximately 1,000 ft from the classroom), where we can ask our pruning questions and practice pruning.
Bring:
Hand clippers and wear appropriate shoes and clothing for outdoor activity. You will need to sterilize your pruning tools in the orchard before using them to prevent spreading diseases. Spray bottles of isopropyl alcohol will be provided for this purpose. Also bring snacks to share.
People are welcome to bring garden tools that need sharpening. Marv and Walt will sharpen them for a donation. If you want your tools to be sharpened, please take clean tools to the orchard. Tools that are not clean will be turned away.
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Don’t bring pets! Please remember your “Best CRFG Manners While Visiting Homes, Nurseries, Growers, etc. We never bring pets to meetings or tours and we never even ask if we may!”
Location & Parking:
Cal Poly Crops Science Classroom 17-101/102, corner of Highland Dr and Mt. Bishop Rd in San Luis Obispo.
No parking permit is needed on Saturday.
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The H1 lot on Mt. Bishop Drive is the only option for parking. Due to construction, parking will no longer be available at the Crops Unit.
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Warning: DO NOT PARK along the side of Highland Drive nor Mt. Bishop Rd as people have done in the past. The Cal Poly Police will ticket you!
Directions:
1. In San Luis Obispo, take Santa Rosa St. (aka Hwy 1) to Highland Drive.
2. Turn east onto Highland Drive.
3. Turn left at Mt. Bishop Rd.
4. In approximately 900 feet, you will see the H1 parking lot on your left. Park in the parking lot and walk back down Mt. Bishop Rd.to the Crops Unit at the corner with Highland Dr.
The Festival of Fruit is Coming in 2026!
The Orange County Chapter is thrilled to announce the 2026 Festival of Fruit celebrating the Year of Eugenia and her Sisters will take place on Saturday, June 13, 2026.
Mark your calendars for this exciting event to be held at the Titan Student Union at Cal State Fullerton.
Beautiful garden tours and commercial visits will be offered prior to the festival date, so plan to arrive a few days early to take advantage of these special activities.
More details will be announced by the Orange County Chapter as they develop.
Other Future Chapter Meetings & Events
Please note that these future meetings are subject to change. Recheck this page closer to the date of each event.
More information about these events, including address details and times, will be provided here closer to each event.
All meetings are on Saturdays unless otherwise noted below.​
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February 28, 2026 Meeting: Annual Scion Exchange & Grafting Demonstrations
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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March 14, 2026 Meeting: Annual Propagation Meeting
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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April 11th, 2026 Meeting: Russee's Home Garden
Chapter member Russee welcomes visitors into his garden, sharing his deep expertise in plant cultivation and care.
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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May May 9th, 2026 Meeting: TBD
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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June 13, 2026 Meeting: Festival of Fruit at Cal State Fullerton
We will not have a local meeting in June.
All members are encouraged to attend the Festival of Fruit!
More details will be announced by the Orange County Chapter as they develop.
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July 11, 2026 Meeting: Annual Fruit Tasting in the CRFG Orchard
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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August 8, 2026 Meeting: TBD
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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September 12, 2026 Meeting: TBD
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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October 10, 2026 Meeting: TBD
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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November 14, 2026 Meeting: TBD
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
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December 12, 2026 Meeting: Annual Potluck & Plant Exchange
Members only.
More details will be listed here closer to the date of this event.
CRFG Demonstration Orchard Workdays
Be sure to check here the morning of each workday for rescheduling or cancellations.
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Orchard cleanups usually involve removing weeds, spreading wood chips, pruning trees, raking leaves, mending fences, cleaning the kiosk, reorganizing tools in the tool shed. It's also a good opportunity to chat with your fellow CRFGers, learning and sharing helpful hints for growing your fruiting plants.
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Sat Jan 3rd, 2026: 9am - 12pm (cleanup for Annual Pruning Mtg)
Sat Mar 7, 2026: 9am - 12pm (Pre-Spring cleanup)
Sunday July 5th, 2026: 9am - 12pm (cleanup for Annual Fruit Tasting Mtg)
Sat Nov 7th, 2026: 9am - 12pm (end-of-year cleanup)
We Have Pheromone Loops For Sale!!!
Pheromone loops are available and are plentiful! Codling moths are key pests of apples and pears. Pheromone loops deceive the male moth, thereby helping to disrupt the mating cycle. Place 2 to 3 loops in the top third of your apple and pear trees. Petals should be about 90% off and small fruit is setting before you loop your trees!
Please contact Terri Monell at 805-546-8981 (landline) or 805-440-5818 (cell) if you are interested. Terri is available to sell loops ONLY until April 24th and then again from May 1st on.
Meetings
Our meetings are usually held on the second Saturday of the month, with the exception of the February meeting which is held on the fourth Saturday. (The February meeting is the annual scion exchange and grafting workshop.) In general our group gathers initially for refreshments and socializing, followed by the meeting. This is not always the case though, so check this web page or our newsletter for details on each meeting.
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Most of our meetings are open to the public. We encourage the public to join us and learn with us!
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Please read our "meeting manners" below prior to attending. No pets at any meeting, please.
Our Best CRFG Manners While Visiting Homes, Nurseries, Growers, etc.
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We never bring pets to meetings/tours and we never even ask if we may!
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We do our best to use public facilities or our own restroom before the meeting.
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We do our best not to ask to go inside the hosts’ home.
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We never pick fruit, flowers, foliage, weeds, seed pods and we never even ask.
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We do our best to car pool and park with great respect to our host and the neighborhood.
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We never talk when our host is talking. We do our best to stay up close when given a tour.
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We never “take over” the tour and tell everyone how we do it at our home!!
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We have thoughtful questions but try not to ask questions that embarrass our host.
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We do our best to help our host feel good, feel appreciated. We clean up our mess.
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We stay on the path, with our host …and never go walking around on our own unless given permission by the host.
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At the end of the tour, we make a special effort to thank the host. We “gather up” and have some sort of “closure” to the tour.
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We even write thank you notes when we get home, especially if we asked a lot of questions, were impressed, were surprised, were treated well. We write thank you notes even when we are not the leader.