1. Volunteers, please bring your own equipment (or share amongst the group)

For a fruit tree you’ll need:

• 1 ladder per volunteer (ideally, or you’ll be watching 1 person pick)
• 1-2 tarps
• Pails/boxes for the compost and the fruit
• 1 rake for clean up
• Gloves of you like ‘em
• If a fruit owner has equipment to share, wonderful.

For a rhubarb plant you’ll need:

• 1 sharp knife per volunteer
• Pails/boxes for the compost and the fruit

2. Be on time.

It’s so much nicer to work on the fruit together! Please communicate with the others prior to the pick if your availability has changed.

3. When on site:

• Ensure the fruit is harvested and shared safely and respectfully.
• Be safe! No fruit is worth risking injury.
• Don’t pick in an electrical storm. Rain picking is up to you.
• Always be respectful of the fruit owner’s property and the instructions they provide for the harvest.
• Clean up!
• Compost what’s not edible
• Deliver 1/3 of fruit to a charity within 24 hours
• Weigh (or approximate) the total amount of fruit collected in pounds.
• Complete the Post Harvest Information Form.
• Take a photo if possible and submit to [email protected].
• Leave the site as neat or neater than before you arrived.
• Thank the homeowner personally or leave a Thank You note.

Reminder: We are extremely proud of our volunteers and the care and respect they show fruit owners’ property and fruit.  We also care about them a great deal and instruct them to be safe and avoid taking unnecessary risks.  Please understand that sometimes, this means that parts of a fruit tree may not be able to be picked (e.g. if the fruit hangs over a delicate structure or the fruit is higher than can be safely reached with a ladder, etc.).

There are just a few kinks to be worked out in the new system before we can send around our notice of picks for next week. In order to do that, we are asking that no one fill out any Harvest Request Forms for the next 24 hours. Thanks for your patience as we get our new system up and running!

Notice of Picks should be out by the end of the day tomorrow. In the meantime, check out our facebook page for links to a few picks this weekend that haven’t been filled yet. If you aren’t registered as a volunteer yet, you must do that here before you can sign up for a pick!

Anna

Frequently Asked Questions

My fruit looks ready to harvest. How do I tell and how do I let you know?

Check out our Fruit Help page first. If it’s ready, and you haven’t already received a link for your unique harvest request page, please contact us so that we can send you one. We need at least 7-10 days notice to schedule a harvest.

What supplies do I need to pick?

Read What happens at a pick? and Pick rules for all the low down.

Can I bring my friends/family to help out?

YES. Everyone who wants to pick fruit must register.  If you are a husband and wife team or you have a friend that wants to come help at the last minute – YES they can, but they must register before picking (our insurance company says so)!

Can I bring my kids?

YES, it’s up to you. Of course many kids would be a great help and enjoy the possibly 1-2 hour experience. However, remember standing on a ladder, picking and lugging fruit are heavy work. You might not be able to keep your (littlest) kids content… You never know what you’re walking into either – if the fruit owners have a dog(s) or if the fruit tree has attracted a slew of wasps. Just some things to consider.

Process your fruit AT HOME!

Have fun and let us know how your project works out.

Homemade Electric Food Dehydrator - pdf

This file includes photos, a supply list and instructions for building an electric,  5-tray food dehydrator.  It includes a shopping list indicating the source and price of all items in Winnipeg, MB in 2012.

 Oven Dried Fruit - pdf

This file provides instructions for converting your home oven into a fruit dehydrator with the use of a 100 watt light bulb.  It includes detailed instructions for preparing and drying the fruit.

 Homemade Fruit Press - pdf

This file provides photos, a supply list and instructions for building a wooden fruit press.  Perfect for pressing apples or grapes.

Volunteers are asked to bring their own equipment: ladders, tarps, pails/boxes, rake, gloves, etc. If a fruit owner has equipment to share, wonderful.

Volunteers meet at the fruit address on time.

Volunteers begin by removing and composting any dropped fruit that is on the ground when they arrive. Once the area is cleared, the volunteers harvest the fruit.  This may take anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours depending on the type and amount of fruit and the number of volunteers.

When finished, volunteers clear the area and leave it as neat and tidy as they found it (or better!).  The volunteers are responsible for sharing the fruit 3 ways (1/3 each to the fruit owner, the volunteers and a community group unless otherwise noted in the confirmation) and depositing the scraps in the compost.

Volunteers MUST let Fruit Share know how much fruit was harvested and where it was donated, which is updated on our blog.

Fruit owners may or may not be on site.

Read Pick Rules for more details.

Note: We are extremely proud of our volunteers and the care and respect they show fruit owners’ property and fruit.  We also care about them a great deal and instruct them to be safe and avoid taking unnecessary risks.  Please understand that sometimes, this means that parts of a fruit tree may not be able to be picked (e.g. if the fruit hangs over a delicate structure or the fruit is higher than can be safely reached with a ladder, etc.).

The Prairie Fruit Cookbook:The Essential Guide for Picking, Preserving and Preparing Fruit is now available!

Get your copy at St. Mary’s Nursery and Garden Centre, Sage Herb Gardens, or McNally Robinson or by emailing [email protected].  The book is $19.95 plus GST and shipping.

A portion of the proceeds from Prairie Fruit Cookbook will be donated to Fruit Share.

For a preview click here Prairie Fruit Cookbook.

Thank you to the  Manitoba Alternative Food Research Alliance (MAFRA) for funding the development of the Prairie Fruit Cookbook.

All this growth, our experience last summer and your feedback and comments have led us to re-examine and make some changes to our daily operations and our harvest scheduling system.  Our goal is to rescue and share surplus fruit as effectively and efficiently as possible using a volunteer force.  To that end, here’s an update as to what we’re doing, where we’re at and what you can expect in the next few months.

First and foremost, we are working with a WordPress system developer to build a new scheduling system.  We’re committed to a system that will:

• be automated so it is more manageable for the volunteers and summer staff coordinating the harvests now and in the future (Aug 2012)
• ensure volunteer privacy (not having to share names and emails publicly) (Aug 2012)
• ensure fruit owner privacy (only providing detailed info to confirmed volunteers and administrators (currently done)
• provide sufficient information (date, time, postal code, size of fruit plant, number of volunteers required, and equipment recommended) to enable volunteers to choose an appropriate pick for them (Aug 2012)
• allow a predictable and manageable time frame for coordinators to receive, schedule, post and confirm picks (July 2012)
• Harvest requests from fruit owners due Wednesdays, Picks sent to volunteers on Thursdays, confirmations sent on Tuesday, picking from Tuesday to Sunday. (July 2012)
• ensure picks are equally accessible to all volunteers (currently relying on volunteer’s honour system to only sign up once per unique fruit and once per week will automate for May 2013)
• give Fruit Share volunteers involved in the planning, promotion, growth, volunteer development, community education and crab apple picking the first opportunity to picks of premium fruit (cherries, rhubarb, raspberries, grapes, saskatoons, etc.) (May 2013, based on info from 2012)
• rely on greater communication and coordination of each pick between confirmed volunteers (coordinating equipment needs, transportation, composting, donations, and reporting back to Fruit Share ) (Aug 2012)
• eliminate the need for the Doodle schedules (Doodle has served us well, but we’ve grown beyond its capabilities).

To set up this new system, we need you to re-register with Fruit Share by Wednesday August 8.

Fruit Owners re-register HERE

Volunteers re-register HERE

Not interested in volunteering anymore? Please go to our website and subscribe (top right) to receive updates on Fruit Share as we grow.

Along with the system changes, we’re also working on a new volunteer development program, website updates, fundraising ideas, several community events and workshops and an event to help us use all those crab apples. You’ll be hearing more from us soon!

- The Fruit Share Team

It’s happened again!

Your enthusiasm for rescuing and sharing prairie fruit has far exceeded our expectations.  Thank you for caring and sharing!

Here’s a quick look at our numbers as we head into our busiest season and harvest fruit throughout Winnipeg and Steinbach.