Spring Orchard Tour

Tour Description

This tour will highlight the wonderful Welland Orchard in spring. Spend some time enjoying all the beautiful fruit tree blossoms and learn about some of the many unique varieties of trees and vines we have at Welland including 100+ heritage apple varieties, plout, medlar, pawpaws and more!

The tour will involve moving around the orchard including over some uneven ground at a relaxed pace while looking at and learning about many of the features on site.

Our aim is for you to leave feeling excited about community orchards and filled up with lots of fun facts about fruit, as well as tips and tricks for caring for trees.

Getting here

As there is limited parking available at the orchard, please bike, walk, bus or carpool if possible. We are located right on the galloping goose, and you are welcome to bring bikes into the orchard to lock them up safely.

If you are driving, there are 8 parking spots located at the end of stancil lane, 1 of which will be reserved as accessible for the duration of the workshop. Please be mindful of our neighbours and do not park in the large driveway on the south side of the street. Additional parking can be found along the street on High St and Eaton Ave.

About the Instructor

River (they/them) works for Lifecycles Project as the Welland Orchard Coordinator, as well as running their own landscaping business, Nightingale Gardens. They are passionate about increasing the resilience of urban and suburban landscapes through utilising plants native to these territories, increasing food security through integrating edible perennials and fruit trees into the landscape, and helping to increase connections to land through making gardening more possible and accessible.

How to Register for this Event

This tour is in person only. Please dress appropriately for all types of weather, as the workshop will be hosted outside in the orchard.

This tour is available on a sliding scale basis. Please pay in alignment with your financial privilege to help us continue to offer tickets in this way.

LifeCycles Project Society is always working to learn more about, and breakdown, barriers that may exist in accessing our programming. We understand providing sliding scale tickets is by no means an exhaustive look at systems of oppression that exist for people. We welcome your ideas and feedback as we work to continue learning.

Please contact us if you are no longer able to attend but hold a ticket so we can make your space available to someone else and work to process your refund.

You can also register for the event by calling our office at 250 383-5800 or via email by contacting [email protected]

Accessibility

Access from the parking area off Stancil Lane is through a latching unlocked gate. There is a gravel/dirt path sloping downward from the gate that leads to a wide flat grassy area with picnic table seating. If you are coming from the Galloping Goose entrance, which also has a latching unlocked gate, you will find a gravel/dirt path that slopes upward to the wide flat seating area. The steepness of the path varies throughout the Orchard and is steepest at the top of the Orchard closer to the Stancil Lane entrance, and at the bottom between the Galloping Goose trail and the Orchard entrance. The pathway from the Galloping Goose to the entrance to the Orchard has several sharp turns.

The Orchard has a single-stall gender-neutral composting toilet facility on site with ramp access and transfer bars which will be open during the workshop. The composting toilet is located below the flat area and toward the Galloping Goose entrance. Hand sanitizer is available inside the toilet.

The tour will be held outside rain or shine, please dress appropriately for the weather. This tour will involve a mix of sitting on picnic benches and moving around the orchard, including over uneven ground.

There is access to potable water on site. Please bring your own water bottle.