In collaboration with Pennard Plants.
Join us at The Old Vicarage in Leigh-on-Mendip for a dedicated masterclass exploring how to grow, shape and maintain warm-climate and early-fruiting varieties under cover. Set within our kitchen garden which has a glasshouse and a polytunnel, the session draws on the rich fruit collections established here in collaboration with Pennard Plants over the last six years. With citrus, figs, grapes, pomegranates, apricots and early soft fruit growing side by side, guests can see exactly how protected fruit behaves at each stage of development and how structure, airflow and microclimate influence cropping.
This course runs on Thursday 14th May 2026. If you cannot make this date, we would be pleased to recommend related sessions in our fruit and polytunnel series - see the course listings for details.
Led by celebrated plantsman Chris Smith of Pennard Plants, this one-day workshop blends clear theory in the classroom with hands-on practice in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel. You will explore how warm-climate fruit responds to heat, humidity and shelter, why certain trees and soft fruit perform dramatically better under cover, and how to work with the distinctive rhythms of citrus, figs, grapes, apricots, pomegranates, persimmons and early-cropping berries. Expert tuition is suitable for complete beginners as well as those wishing to refine their protected-growing skills.
Every guest will leave with a goody bag and a young fruit plant selected to suit their own growing conditions.
Spaces are limited to eight guests to ensure plenty of time for individual guidance during the practical sessions.
What You Will Learn
The heritage and principles of protected fruit growing
The evolution of glasshouses and polytunnels and how they shaped warm-climate fruit cultivation
How protected structures influence heat, airflow, humidity and cropping reliability
Why certain fruit behaves differently under cover
Glasshouse skills and citrus mastery
How to read glasshouse conditions including light, temperature, airflow and humidity
Detailed citrus care including feeding, fruiting behaviour, shaping, pruning and repotting
Identifying and managing pests such as scale, red spider mite, mealybug and mildew
Practical approaches to assessing citrus plant health
Working with heat-loving fruit trees
How to prune, train and care for pomegranates, persimmons, apricots, peaches and nectarines
Using protection to prevent peach leaf curl and improve apricot cropping
Grapevine management including pruning sequences, tying-in and ventilation
Fig management and fruit-set assessment
Soft fruit and early cropping under cover
How to grow figs, grapes, early strawberries, blackberries and early raspberries in tunnels
Watering, feeding and humidity strategies to support ripening and prevent disease
Training, tying-in and growing-on techniques for young fruiting plants
Variety selection and long-season planning
Heritage versus hybrid varieties and how they differ in flavour, resilience and reliability
How heat, humidity and shelter affect fruit size, flavour and texture
Choosing early, mid and late cultivars for staggered harvests
How to build a fruiting calendar from April to October
Selecting varieties to suit small, medium or large protected spaces
Diagnosis, problem-solving and seasonal care
Early identification of issues such as red spider mite, magnesium deficiency and botrytis
Understanding temperature stress and its effect on fruit and growth
Comparing healthy and stressed plants
Immediate interventions versus long-term improvements
Hands-on skills you will practice
Tying-in, light pruning and fruit-set checks on multiple fruit types
Potting-on and managing young fruiting plants
Tool handling and knowing when to intervene
Who This Course Is For
Ideal for gardeners of all levels. Whether you are new to protected fruit growing or keen to refine your approach, this course gives you the confidence and practical understanding to get the best from fruit trees and soft fruit grown under cover.
Masterclass Details
Date: Thursday 14th May 2026
Time: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Location: The Old Vicarage, Leigh-upon-Mendip, Somerset
Pricing: £210 per person. A 10% discount is automatically applied at checkout when two or more guests book together.
Buying this as a gift? Let us know on the registration form at checkout and we can create a gift package for you, either emailed or posted to you directly.
Includes: Tuition, all refreshments, seated lunch prepared from the garden, practical demonstrations in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel, a goody bag including heritage seeds from Pennard Plants that can be sown in early summer, and a fruit plant to take home.
Need accommodation nearby?
While this particular course is not residential, we would be delighted to recommend a few local places we know well and consider to be of a good standard. Simply note this in the ‘Additional Information’ section at checkout and we will send our suggestions.
Your Hosts
This course is hosted by Neil Crump, Founder of Asterion and Co., at The Old Vicarage in Leigh-upon-Mendip, a beautifully reimagined 16th-century farmhouse surrounded by a richly varied garden created in collaboration with experts including Pennard Plants.
Our guest team and gardening staff will be on hand throughout the day to offer guidance, hospitality and insight, bringing Asterion and Co.’s heritage-inspired learning philosophy into every corner of your visit. You will also meet our much-loved house ducks, Daedalus and Xenodice, who add gentle mischief and charm to daily life here.
Having spent the day in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel, the afternoon concludes with a gentle tour of the wider grounds, taking in edible-ornamental beds, a formal rose garden, sweeping lawns, herb borders, a gravel garden and wilding areas. You are then welcome to enjoy an optional game of pétanque on our dedicated gravelled play area, surrounded by sculpted topiary and the calm of The Old Vicarage gardens.
About Pennard Plants
Pennard Plants, founded by award-winning plantsman Chris Smith, is celebrated for its extraordinary range of heritage edibles, rare cultivars, mature and young fruit trees in every form and time-honoured growing wisdom. Based in the Mendip Hills, the nursery holds one of the largest collections of edible plant varieties in the country and is known for its practical, generous approach to helping growers build confidence.
For anyone wishing to carry the spirit of the day back into their own garden, Pennard Plants’ beautifully curated mail-order range is available to explore on their website.
In collaboration with Pennard Plants.
Join us at The Old Vicarage in Leigh-on-Mendip for a dedicated masterclass exploring how to grow, shape and maintain warm-climate and early-fruiting varieties under cover. Set within our kitchen garden which has a glasshouse and a polytunnel, the session draws on the rich fruit collections established here in collaboration with Pennard Plants over the last six years. With citrus, figs, grapes, pomegranates, apricots and early soft fruit growing side by side, guests can see exactly how protected fruit behaves at each stage of development and how structure, airflow and microclimate influence cropping.
This course runs on Thursday 14th May 2026. If you cannot make this date, we would be pleased to recommend related sessions in our fruit and polytunnel series - see the course listings for details.
Led by celebrated plantsman Chris Smith of Pennard Plants, this one-day workshop blends clear theory in the classroom with hands-on practice in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel. You will explore how warm-climate fruit responds to heat, humidity and shelter, why certain trees and soft fruit perform dramatically better under cover, and how to work with the distinctive rhythms of citrus, figs, grapes, apricots, pomegranates, persimmons and early-cropping berries. Expert tuition is suitable for complete beginners as well as those wishing to refine their protected-growing skills.
Every guest will leave with a goody bag and a young fruit plant selected to suit their own growing conditions.
Spaces are limited to eight guests to ensure plenty of time for individual guidance during the practical sessions.
What You Will Learn
The heritage and principles of protected fruit growing
The evolution of glasshouses and polytunnels and how they shaped warm-climate fruit cultivation
How protected structures influence heat, airflow, humidity and cropping reliability
Why certain fruit behaves differently under cover
Glasshouse skills and citrus mastery
How to read glasshouse conditions including light, temperature, airflow and humidity
Detailed citrus care including feeding, fruiting behaviour, shaping, pruning and repotting
Identifying and managing pests such as scale, red spider mite, mealybug and mildew
Practical approaches to assessing citrus plant health
Working with heat-loving fruit trees
How to prune, train and care for pomegranates, persimmons, apricots, peaches and nectarines
Using protection to prevent peach leaf curl and improve apricot cropping
Grapevine management including pruning sequences, tying-in and ventilation
Fig management and fruit-set assessment
Soft fruit and early cropping under cover
How to grow figs, grapes, early strawberries, blackberries and early raspberries in tunnels
Watering, feeding and humidity strategies to support ripening and prevent disease
Training, tying-in and growing-on techniques for young fruiting plants
Variety selection and long-season planning
Heritage versus hybrid varieties and how they differ in flavour, resilience and reliability
How heat, humidity and shelter affect fruit size, flavour and texture
Choosing early, mid and late cultivars for staggered harvests
How to build a fruiting calendar from April to October
Selecting varieties to suit small, medium or large protected spaces
Diagnosis, problem-solving and seasonal care
Early identification of issues such as red spider mite, magnesium deficiency and botrytis
Understanding temperature stress and its effect on fruit and growth
Comparing healthy and stressed plants
Immediate interventions versus long-term improvements
Hands-on skills you will practice
Tying-in, light pruning and fruit-set checks on multiple fruit types
Potting-on and managing young fruiting plants
Tool handling and knowing when to intervene
Who This Course Is For
Ideal for gardeners of all levels. Whether you are new to protected fruit growing or keen to refine your approach, this course gives you the confidence and practical understanding to get the best from fruit trees and soft fruit grown under cover.
Masterclass Details
Date: Thursday 14th May 2026
Time: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Location: The Old Vicarage, Leigh-upon-Mendip, Somerset
Pricing: £210 per person. A 10% discount is automatically applied at checkout when two or more guests book together.
Buying this as a gift? Let us know on the registration form at checkout and we can create a gift package for you, either emailed or posted to you directly.
Includes: Tuition, all refreshments, seated lunch prepared from the garden, practical demonstrations in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel, a goody bag including heritage seeds from Pennard Plants that can be sown in early summer, and a fruit plant to take home.
Need accommodation nearby?
While this particular course is not residential, we would be delighted to recommend a few local places we know well and consider to be of a good standard. Simply note this in the ‘Additional Information’ section at checkout and we will send our suggestions.
Your Hosts
This course is hosted by Neil Crump, Founder of Asterion and Co., at The Old Vicarage in Leigh-upon-Mendip, a beautifully reimagined 16th-century farmhouse surrounded by a richly varied garden created in collaboration with experts including Pennard Plants.
Our guest team and gardening staff will be on hand throughout the day to offer guidance, hospitality and insight, bringing Asterion and Co.’s heritage-inspired learning philosophy into every corner of your visit. You will also meet our much-loved house ducks, Daedalus and Xenodice, who add gentle mischief and charm to daily life here.
Having spent the day in the garden, glasshouse and polytunnel, the afternoon concludes with a gentle tour of the wider grounds, taking in edible-ornamental beds, a formal rose garden, sweeping lawns, herb borders, a gravel garden and wilding areas. You are then welcome to enjoy an optional game of pétanque on our dedicated gravelled play area, surrounded by sculpted topiary and the calm of The Old Vicarage gardens.
About Pennard Plants
Pennard Plants, founded by award-winning plantsman Chris Smith, is celebrated for its extraordinary range of heritage edibles, rare cultivars, mature and young fruit trees in every form and time-honoured growing wisdom. Based in the Mendip Hills, the nursery holds one of the largest collections of edible plant varieties in the country and is known for its practical, generous approach to helping growers build confidence.
For anyone wishing to carry the spirit of the day back into their own garden, Pennard Plants’ beautifully curated mail-order range is available to explore on their website.
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