Lobrunner Farm: Winter

Photo courtesy of Lohbrunner Community Farm

Ah yes, winter, among other things, is pruning time at Lohbrunner Community Farm. A previous farmer here at Lohbrunner had the foresight to plant two blueberry patches, black currants, and cultivated blackberries – and as the lucky inheritors of these berries, we are now able to reap the rewards of well established mature plants – but in order to get the best yields, all these berries must be pruned each winter/early spring.

Now I love pruning. It involves a certain amount of knowledge and skill, specific to the plant you are pruning and your end goals, as well as some intuition and a whole lot of practice. It takes some thought and problem solving as you are doing it, and no two plants are alike, so you are constantly weighing the choices – this branch against that one, which direction do you want to encourage growth, opening the plant up for better airflow without taking too much away – making it a dynamic and ever-changing process.

Not to mention, it involves the process of removing and composting that which is old, diseased, or dead and no longer as useful to the plant, making space for healthy new growth that will be more productive in the years to come. And this, I always think, is a pretty good metaphor for life itself.

So from all of us at Lohbrunner Community Farm, here’s to a new season, for us – plants and humans alike – full of healthy new growth and plenty of space to thrive.