Project Overview
We developed and implemented a 3-day intensive course covering all aspects of apple orchard production and business management. The Midwest School for Beginning Apple Growers was taught by successful orchard owners focusing on their own production and business management experiences, mistakes and successful practices and by university specialists in fruit production. The target audience was people in the Midwest who have recently started or are considering starting an apple orchard business. Upon course completion, 41 beginning apple growers were exposed to information and strategies to better understand the production, price, financial, legal and human risks of starting an apple orchard business, and the majority indicated that they became more familiar with the strategies and resources they can use to minimize these risks. Within twelve months of the course, over 1/3 of the participants sought additional training in orchard management. At least 8 of the participants have now made more informed decisions about whether or not to start an orchard business (this number is less than anticipated because we had higher numbers of people in the class who already had orchard businesses than originally expected).
Number of Participants: 41
PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS
There are no promotional materials available for this project.
EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS
There are no educational materials available for this project.
REPORTS & EVALUATIONS
There are no reports or evaluations available for this project.