As I write this, the rain is lashing down outside, and the temperature is ‘well below the seasonal average’, which is Met Office speak for ‘too flipping cold.’ However, we are nothing if not optimistic in the Orchard, and so I am looking forward to our Midsummer Picnic. We are holding this on Sunday 21 June, from 12:30pm. There will be story telling, a treasure hunt and art activities (suitable for young children.)
Bring your own picnic and a rug, and come along to enjoy the atmosphere of the orchard on Midsummer’s Day. This event is just £2 per person or £5 for a family group.
We will be on hand to give advice on the care of fruit trees in your own garden, and on all related topics.
I am looking forward to this event so much – bring on Summer!

We’ve got a lot happening on site soon, so if you can spare us an hour we would love to see you (and put you to work). We will have a double activity/work force on site on Wednesday 9 October 2013, at 9:30am, when we will start digging the hole for the telegraph pole, which will have the swift tower at the top of it! We need some help moving the soil onto a tarpaulin, plus help digging (using tools provided) . At 11am on the same morning volunteers are coming to build the herb garden raised bed using the BAMNuttall railway sleepers.  Any extra help here would be appreciated, again this is going to be barrowing weeds to the compost heap and barrowing soil into the orchard.

Look out for information on our next work day, where we will be preparing for hedgelaying.

We have had a donation of an apple crusher/juicer, so you are welcome  to come to Foster Rd Allotments on Sunday 29.9.13 between 10am and 12 midday to see how the set works and  bring your own ripe apples for juicing.

If you’ve got any queries, just drop us an email or a comment on this post.

Due to the weather last month, we have had to reschedule the grafting session, planned for Sunday 10 February 2013, for a later date (to be arranged). The rootstock is not ready for Sunday. But we will be holding our maintenance session, including basic pruning of the apple trees. Watch this space or our Facebook page for the new date.

The January weather has had all sorts of effects on plants and wildlife – many plants that should be in garden centres are still in waterlogged fields, yields of root vegetables and brassicas are down. Don’t forget to feed the birds and provide fresh drinking/bathing water for them – unfrozen! I learned from the lovely Winterwatch programme that a small bird such as a wren can lose half its body weight just surviving a long cold night, so they need all the help they can get. Down in the orchard the bulbs under the cherry thicket are emerging, and there are tentative signs of Spring, but we have a long way to go yet. This is the time to prune your apple trees, while they are still in their Winter dormancy – come along this Sunday and we will give you a brief demonstration, and update you about the grafting session, which we will hold as soon as possible.

Our next maintenance session will be a grafting workshop, teaching basic grafting techniques for fruit trees.

We will demonstrate fruit tree grafting, allowing participants the chance to use cuttings from the orchard’s trees to graft on to suitable root stock. The cost of £5 per root covers the costs of the rootstock and other materials. Pear rootstock and scion wood is available for anyone more interested in pears. All tools including pruning knives will be provided for use during the workshop. You don’t need to have any prior experience – just turn up and have a go.