Join the TreeEO of The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation and orchard expert Cem Akin at the largest orchard in the City, Hilltop Urban Farm, to learn how to prune a variety of fruit and nut trees, how to apply dormant oil for pest and disease resistance, and spring tree care methods. Pruning edible trees is critical to promote maximum fruit production, desired tree size, proper spacing and airflow, and to prevent diseases from spreading. 

Registration is limited to 50 participants. This workshop is free but we appreciate donations, which all go back into Tree Pittsburgh's Giving Grove program and allow us to plant fruits and nuts that provide nutritious food to those who need it. For workshop or program questions or to learn how you might plant an orchard in your community, or volunteer, contact Kimberly at kimberly@treepittsburgh.org

Cem Akin is author of the "The Home Orchard Handbook: A Complete Guide to Growing Your Fruit Trees Anywhere", available also locally through the Carnegie Library system. Cem has created charitable programs and planted thousands of trees on five continents—in jungles, deserts, and in between. With degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, including a Master of Science in Public Policy, and further studies at Cambridge and Cornell, his career in the nonprofit sector has resulted in precedent-setting policy changes and direct benefits for communities in the fields of environmental and animal protection. 

Cem co-founded The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, an award-winning international charity dedicated to planting fruit, nut and medicinal trees to alleviate world hunger, combat global pollution of the environment, strengthen communities, and improve the surrounding air, soil, and water. Their programs strategically donate orchards, training, and aftercare where the harvest will best serve communities for generations -- including public schools, city parks, community gardens, food banks, low-income neighborhoods, Native American reservations, international hunger relief sites, and animal sanctuaries. Follow the Foundation on Instagram and Facebook, and check out their YouTube for videos of their projects.

Their mission is to plant and help others plant a collective total of 18 billion fruit trees across the world ––roughly 3 for every person alive–– and encourage their growth under organic standards. Major accomplishments include planting, on average, more than 60 orchards and distributing tens of thousands of fruit trees to communities around the world, every year, along with training and education.

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Past projects, to name just a few, include helping restore an ancient culture of orchard keeping with the Hopi Tribe in Arizona through a multi-year program; helicoptering thousands of trees to the Havasupai Tribe at the base of the Grand Canyon to create the first town in the world where virtually every family has fruit trees in their backyards. We were also invited by the Ugandan federal government to plant 65,000 trees in local villages annually; creating sustainability for El Salvadoran families whose entire income is generated from our program and trees; creating a source of life-saving nutrition in orchards for food pantries serving homeless populations around the country; and being asked by the governor of California to create a demonstration orchard on the capitol grounds to serve as an example and inspiration for sustainability.