Master Pruner Series and Certification

Each year PlantAmnesty expert instructors teach pruning techniques in our twelve-part Master Pruner Series. Topics include: artistic pruning, fruit trees, landscape renovation, Japanese garden pruning, ornamental vines, pruning roses, and species-specific tutorials. This series provides students with a solid base in the science and practice of selective pruning. Students are given access to a broad range of pruning information at each two-hour presentation. 

For a full description of the program, including class descriptions, schedule and fees, see our Full List of Classes and Workshops.  Classes are open to master gardeners, landscapers, gardeners, horticulture students as well as the general public. Students may complete Master Pruner classes individually or complete the entire series. 

Two Ways to Take Classes

PlantAmnesty holds classes on the second Sundays of each month (except August and December) in the Brig at Magnuson Park (6344 NE 74th Street, Seattle 98115). Preregistration is not required. Just arrive a few minutes early and pay at the door. Cost: $25 per class, $20 for PlantAmnesty members, $5 for horticulture college students and native Spanish speakers. Join PlantAmnesty at any Magnuson Park pruning class and you will receive the following new member benefits: your first class free, an informational two-hour pruning DVD and a discount on future classes! The Master Pruner series is available two ways:

  1. The ProHort Program of the University of Washington Botanic Garden’s Center for Urban Horticulture offers the the Master Pruner Series on weekdays each winter. Preregistration is required.  Click here for details.  For a printable flyer, click here.

To receive a Master Pruner Certificate of Graduation, students are required to attend all twelve lectures (at either location) and three workshops provided by PlantAmnesty. A graduation ceremony is held each fall. Seminars attended at either location count towards the Master Pruner certificate, but the programs are administered and priced separately by the host organizations. 

Workshops

Workshops are designed for home gardeners, landscape professionals, and students enrolled in the Master Pruner Series.  Complete details and materials are sent to students a few weeks prior to each workshop.  Do you know a yard that needs an Extreme Makeover? We are on the look-out for renovation workshop sites. 

Click here for 2019 site requirements.

altSpring 2017 Renovation Workshop

Upcoming Classes and Workshops 
 

  Rehabilitative Pruning for Previously Mal-Pruned Plants    CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, March 10, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St
                 (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

 

 

Learn the three most common forms of mal-pruning (tree topping, over-thinning of trees and shrubs, and inappropriate shearing) and how to fix trees and shrubs that have been mal-pruned.

Taught by Christina Pfeiffer

Spring Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop    WORKSHOP

 SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!!

  When:    Saturday, March 23, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   TBD
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                  Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

Experts in the field will demonstrate the basics of fruit-tree pruning in small groups, followed by plenty of opportunities for attendees to give it a try.
This workshop is held at an orchard in Greater Seattle. *Prerequisite—You must attend the Fruit-Tree Pruning lecture to be able to attend this workshop (previous years classes can be applied for the prerequisite).

   Pruning Art or Pruning Atrocity?    CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, April 14, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

The three main forms of mal-pruning: tree topping, inappropriate shearing of trees and shrubs, and over thinning. We compare and contrast mal-pruning with bona fide examples of pruning art: pollarding, cloud pruning, topiary, pleaching, and coppicing.

Taught by Christina Pfeiffer

Spring Garden Renovation Workshop    WORKSHOP

 SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!!

  When:    Saturday, April 27, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   TBD
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                   Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

The Renovation Workshop is a popular hands-on all– day event that features a rare 3:1 student-teacher ratio and real world experience. Students learn pruning and creative solutions for the overgrown garden as an entire yard is renovated during the class. Topics discussed are pruning, transplanting, and landscape maintenance. The group will move through an overgrown landscape while instructors give on-the-spot evaluations of plants and demonstrations of pruning. Workshop participants cycle through different zones to learn what the landscape has to offer.

   Japanese Garden Pruning    CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, May 12, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

  Creating and maintaining a Japanese Garden requires a high level of
  pruning skill and dedicated annual maintenance. This class covers
  the pruning of Japanese maples (upright and weeping), bamboo,
  cloud pruning pines and tamamono shearing.

  Taught by Pete Putnicki

 

 

Japanese Garden Pruning Workshop    WORKSHOP

 SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!! SOLD OUT!!

  When:    Saturday, May 18, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   Kubota Gardens
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                  Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

Two experts in the field, Don Brooks of the Kubota Garden and Pete Putniki of the Arboretum’s Japanese Garden, will cover the basics of Japanese pruning, followed by an afternoon of live pruning demonstrations in small groups with opportunities for students to give it a try! *Prerequisite—You must attend the Japanese Garden Pruning lecture to be able to attend this workshop (previous years classes can be applied for the prerequisite).

  Tree Pruning I   CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, June 9, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

   This is the science and biology behind the pruning of trees.
   Get the inside story on how trees grow and survive to become the
   longest-lived, most massive species on the planet. Famous
   arboriculturalist Dr. Alex Shigo taught us that all pruning wounds
   trees. Find out how to minimize that damage and work with the
   tree’s natural defenses.

   Taught by Bess Bronstein

 

Five Easy Plants to Prune   CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, July 14, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

This class covers basic cuts, basic plant habits and what Cass Turnbull called the “pruning budget”. It also covers five plants that are relatively easy to prune and are discussed: nandina, ever-green azalea, lilac, camellia and yew.

Taught by Mary Machala

 

    Summer Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop    WORKSHOP

 

  When:    Saturday, July 27, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   TBD
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                  Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

Experts in the field will demonstrate the basics of fruit-tree pruning in small groups, followed by plenty of opportunities for attendees to give it a try.
This workshop is held at an orchard in Greater Seattle. *Prerequisite—You must attend the Fruit-Tree Pruning lecture to be able to attend this workshop (previous years classes can be applied for the prerequisite).

How to Prune and Renovate the Overgrown Garden   CLASS

  When:    Sunday,September 8, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

PlantAmnesty's most popular class, an introduction to pruning and landscape renovation

Taught by Keith Dekker

 

   Fall Garden Renovation Workshop    WORKSHOP

 

  When:    Saturday, September 21, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   TBD
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                  Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

The Renovation Workshop is a popular hands-on all– day event that features a rare 3:1 student-teacher ratio and real world experience. Students learn pruning and creative solutions for the overgrown garden as an entire yard is renovated during the class. Topics discussed are pruning, transplanting, and landscape maintenance. The group will move through an overgrown landscape while instructors give on-the-spot evaluations of plants and demonstrations of pruning. Workshop participants cycle through different zones to learn what the landscape has to offer.

Renovation Workshop in Spanish   WORKSHOP

 

  When:    Friday, October 4, 2019 -- 10am - 3 pm
  Where:   TBD
  Fee:        $85 for PlantAmnesty members; $95 for non-members
                  This workshop sells out quickly. 
                  Call PlantAmnesty at 206-783-9813 to pre-register
               

The Renovation Workshop is a popular hands-on all– day event that features a rare 3:1 student-teacher ratio and real world experience. Students learn pruning and creative solutions for the overgrown garden as an entire yard is renovated during the class. Topics discussed are pruning, transplanting, and landscape maintenance. The group will move through an overgrown landscape while instructors give on-the-spot evaluations of plants and demonstrations of pruning. Workshop participants cycle through different zones to learn what the landscape has to offer.

*Spanish workshop includes a 2 hour lecture with a native Spanish speaker.

   Difficult Plants to Prune   CLASS

 

 

  When:    Sunday, October 13, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                                                                                   horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

This class teaches how to prune Rhododendron, Hydrangea, Callicarpa (Beautyberry), Viburnum bodnantense and Abelia. Included in this class are basic pruning techniques, common pruning mistakes and corrective pruning.

Taught by Ken Tuomi

 

Tree Pruning II   CLASS

 

  When:    Sunday, November 10, 2019 -- 10am - noon
  Where:   Sand Point Magnuson Park; 6344 NE 74th St (The Brig)
  Fee:        $25/class; $20 for PlantAmnesty members; $5 for
                horticulture students and native Spanish speakers

 

This is the HOW TO class for pruning trees (not fruit or nut trees). How to prune a tree limb, how to find the branch collar, pruning young and mature trees, pruning standards, crown restoration and the basics of tree risk assessment are covered.

Taught by Bess Bronstein