WASSAIL PARTY 2015

Limpsfield Community Orchard

PRUNING MASTER CLASS

 By Jan Lambourn our very own Fruit Expert.

 Saturday January 17^th 2015 from 10-30am (coffee and apple cake will be available)

As Friends of the Orchard, do join us to learn the correct method to prune top fruit (Apples and Pears)

We will be able to brush up on formative pruning and then move on to actually tackling our own Orchard trees which are now old enough for maintenance pruning.

Do apply quickly as numbers are limited for the class. 

We will be giving priority to anyone who has worked in any capacity for the Orchard, and also taking into account those who have been before.

  

In addition during the afternoon we would like to have an opportunity to see some of your fruit trees at home, and advise on their pruning.

Further details from Helen 01883 713160 or helenellson205@btinternet.com

WORKING PARTY DATES

• Saturday        November 22nd at 10-00
• Wednesday   November 26th 10-00

We want to finish tackling the bramble which has spread rather dramatically this year. Also each tree site needs a gentle weed, and each tree stake and tie needs to be checked to be sure that the trees are safe during any gale force winds this winter.

Anyone is welcome to come along.....bring your own tools....secateurs, gloves, a rake, border fork and a small weeding fork plus a bag for the weeds. I like a kneeler too.

There will be coffee as usual at 11-00 so do come even if you don't feel like weeding!

Wet Working Party

  We had a working party on Sunday 2nd November,  when we had 10 keen volunteers who worked on the brambles along the bank to the west, and made good progress until the rain beat us. But there is still plenty to do....look out for further dates over the next few weeks. More bramble bashing, weeding round the trees and generally putting the Orchard to bed.

WATCH THIS SPACE

Stress busting work party

I read in the paper that gardening is the latest cure for STRESS!! We know too that it also provides an excellent outdoor workout…..
So come and join us at the Community Orchard and DE-STRESS by helping us to clear bramble and cut down the old foxgloves. There will be some weeding around the trees too. And a bonfire possibility if not too wet (here’s hoping!)
 We are trying a Work Party this time on a SUNDAY….so do join us at 10-00 on Sunday 2nd November. As usual there will be coffee/bix/cold drinks etc
So do try to bring a few tools; kneelers, grab bags, hand forks, border forks, rakes, gloves and secateurs etc A saw or lopper might be useful for the larger stuff.
Children would be welcome too…..it would be a pleasure to see them.  We are hoping that a Sunday morning might be a better time for some of you with busy Saturdays (football/ballet/shopping/DIYetc etc)
With good wishes

Helen and the Orchard Team

OUR FIRST HARVEST

A couple of weeks ago we had a really successful morning in the Orchard to celebrate our first harvest with about 40 people there picking and tasting in the sunshine! We are delighted with the crop this year…..nice and clean with the only damage seen from birds.
Now many more apples are ready to pick so please do go up and sample the delights of organically grown fruit, fresh from the tree. Take your children and show them that apples come from a pretty tree and not from the supermarket!
Today I took a basket of Sunset apples to Limpsfield School for them to try, and another super selection is in the Memorial stores for customers to sample.
In the Orchard there are some Sunset which are ready now plus any of the other apples. The Herefordshire Russet need another week or so. They will then be able to be picked and stored as they should last until after Christmas.
Happy Harvest to you all

Helen and the Orchard team

Open Morning/Apple Tasting

FRUIT TASTING and some fruit to take home!

Further information from Helen on 01883 713160

helenellson205@btinternet.com

It is with great pleasure that we can start to plan towards picking and tasting the fruit at the Orchard. Some of the apples are really looking marvellous and are still growing well. There are different harvest dates for all the fruit….. some we can pick and eat and some will store for a longer or shorter time. So we have decided to have an
 
Saturday 13th September from 10-30 to 12-00

Do come along if you can….there will be tastings of the apples which are ready, and a chance for you to see what wonderful progress we have made since the trees were planted on that freezing cold day in November 2010. Coffees and apple cake too of course!

Summer 2014 Update

I have just been to look at the trees to see how the fruit is progressing. I can’t tell you how exciting it is to be able to see such a wonderful crop. Many trees are laden with fruit which is all growing well and staying mainly disease free. Not all trees have fruit but approximately 14 out of the 26 apples are cropping well, and 2 of the pears (Beth and Doyenne de Comice) so we will definitely be able to have a tasting party in September. The fruits all ripen at different times with Katy (an eater which does not keep) being the earliest (August) through to Laxton Superb (dessert apple ready in September/October) and Lord Lambourne. The Herefordshire Russets are absolutely laden ….even though they were well thinned. Beth, the pear with the most fruit, should be ready to pick in late August.

So ….an exciting time. Especially for those of us who were at the very start when Mark Richards showed us the site. An area of weed infested abandoned land which was made available for us by the National Trust, and which we have transformed into this productive and beautiful Orchard. A very big thank you to all the orchard “workers” and also to our Friends who are keeping us solvent.

I can see that the route through the Grub Street Woods is well used and the new path which had to be made during the winter floods is standing up to traffic well. I hope you are all enjoying the new seats both in the woods and the Orchard itself. A perfect place to take friends and relatives for a short walk and a picnic.

In July we were included in the judging for the RHS Limpsfield in Bloom competition. We had been busy making sure the Orchard was looking at its best, trees weeded, hedges cut and everywhere litter free. But of course the judges look at all aspects of the Orchard including community participation, use by the children from Limpsfield School, bio-diversity and the use of the site at all times of the year. I was so proud to be able to show the judges round on your behalf and show them the fruits of our labours.

I’m also very pleased to see that we have got several new Friends of the Orchard. So welcome aboard and we hope that you’ll be able to join us for the occasional working party and of course the special day later on when we can start the harvest!

Helen Ellson and the Orchard Team

REMINDER

Just a reminder that there is a Coffee Morning on Saturday 12th July starting at 11-00 so we’d love to see you there.

There is a good set of fruit, both apples and pears, and if you’ve not been up recently you could see our new bench and picnic table.

There will be a working party from 10-00 to 11-00 followed by coffee/cold drinks and a general look round. We can show you how we have thinned the fruit, and you will be amazed at the growth on some of the trees.

Helen and the Orchard Team

UPDATE: 26 June 2014

We have thinned the fruit today…pears not so good although there is some fruit on the Conference and Doyenne de Comice. Apples….good fruit set on James Grieve, Herefordshire Russet, Lord Lambourne and Sunset. Others mostly have small amounts but of good quality.  The Orchard is pretty well disease free so far apart from some early rust on the pears and some fungus on George Cave.

Sadly although there was magnificent blossom on the Mirabelles there is little fruit and nothing at all on the Damsons…….but on the whole good progress.

The whole site is looking magnificent with foxgloves flowering superbly. The hedges are making good growth….and we have done some light trimming on the laurel too.

THERE IS TO BE A COFFEE MORNING IN THE ORCHARD FROM 11 TO 12 ON SATURDAY 12TH July…..all are welcome.

NEXT WORKING PARTIES

We thought it would be nice to make our Working Parties a bit more social….so we are planning two dates when we can work for an hour or so and then break for coffee when hopefully some of our Orchard Friends will come along to meet up and see what we are up to!
On Wednesday 18 June and Saturday 12 July we will be meeting in the Orchard at 10-00am for some work, followed by coffee for everyone at 11am.By then hopefully there will be some foxgloves out and you can see how well the fruit has set. There have been many compliments recently about how good the Orchard is looking, and this is true!
Do try to come if you can…..we would particularly like to meet some of our newly joined Friends.
If coming to work you’ll need to bring tools for weeding, and for trimming the laurel at the front a bit. We need to start getting ready for Limpsfield In Bloom judging which is on Friday 18 July.

With good wishes to you all from
Helen and the Orchard Team

Limpsfield Community Orchard

Grand Opening of Limpsfield 
Community Orchard Trail

  

On Saturday 12 April people gathered in the sunshine at St Peter’s Church in Limpsfield, to see Mr Nick Skellett CBE cutting the ribbon marking the start point of the Limpsfield Community Orchard Trail.

The Trail, which has been many months in the planning, starts at the Church in Limpsfield, runs along through the High Street turning left opposite Sylvan Close. It then follows an existing way marked path through the beech woods and over Limpsfield Chart Golf Club, over Grub Street and into the woods. On the way there is an additional way marked route leading to the National Trust Air Raid Shelters where there is an excellent view over Oxted and the North Downs. The path continues through the woods belonging to the National Trust, eventually emerging into the Orchard.

The Community Orchard project which was started in 2010, is looking at its very best now with blossoms and bluebells everywhere. The Orchard committee, (Helen Ellson, Graeme Waller, Peter Jarvis, Lorna Ball and Jennie Ephgrave) and many volunteers have worked hard clearing the site, planting 30 apple and pear trees and over 250 hedging plants to create a beautiful site which now through a generous grant from Surrey County Council is graced with two further benches and a picnic table. Money was also raised for the Trail by Serenity Beauty Salon in Limpsfield whose owner Frankie had the original idea for the Trail.  “I wanted to encourage people to walk up to the Orchard as it is such a fantastic addition to the village” she said.

An explanatory leaflet with a map is available in the Limpsfield Memorial Stores and St Peter’s Church. So if you’ve never visited the Orchard now is a perfect time. Follow the way marked Trail and discover a little more about the village of Limpsfield and the local area.

Friends of the Orchard are welcome. Further information from Jennie on 01883 716523.

 

Flooding Jan 2014
Just to remind us of the servere flooding st the beginning of the year and the new path we had to make for the Wassail....

Spring Update March 2014
Dear Everyone,

I am writing this while the rain is again pouring down. You will not be surprised to know that the Orchard and the surrounding area have really suffered during this exceptionally wet and windy period.

However, going back to spring and summer in 2013, we had good blossom and a reasonably good setting of fruit with 2/3rds of the trees bearing fruit. Sadly the eventual harvest was very small and so we are pinning our hopes on to a good season in 2014, especially after the successful Wassail which was held in January. Having our very own Wassail Master (Ed Heaver) and his team has made a huge difference and I know how much the children enjoyed the evening. The bonfire in the wettest conditions was a tour de force thanks to our bonfire guru Ian Green. There were over 170 people attending and indeed this year we even made a modest profit. Due to the localised flooding in the area approaching the steps in the Grub Street woods, a new path had to be constructed using logs and chippings. This path is standing up to regular use remarkably well, and we are most grateful to the team who rallied to our call for help.

Since the Wassail, the rains have continued and the area nearest to the A25 is badly flooded now and there is a degree of worry for the health of the pear trees in that area. With their roots currently underwater, they are at risk of death by drowning and we might have to resort to digging a drainage ditch to direct the water though to the ditch in the allotments. Regretfully, one of our Bramley apple trees has been badly affected by canker and will have to be replaced, partly because it will never make a strong productive tree but more importantly because canker can spread from tree to tree.

There has been a lot of behind the scenes work on the Limpsfield Community Orchard Trail which is being funded by a grant from Surrey County Council and a fruitful fundraising event which was held by ‘Serenity’ Beauty Salon for us and Limpsfield in Bloom. The monies have enabled us to purchase 2 oak benches (one in the Orchard and another where the bluebells are at their best in the Grub Street Woods) and a picnic bench. In addition the path has its own way-markers and roundels indicating the route, and a splendid leaflet, describing what can be seen along the way, is in production. The trail starts at St Peter’s Churchyard and continues along the High Street, turning left opposite Sylvan Close along the existing footpath leading through the beech woods to the Golf Course, and thence into Grub Street Woods and into the Orchard. Along the way a detour can be made for a visit to see the National Trust Air Raid shelters. THE GRAND OPENING IS TO BE HELD ON SATURDAY 12^TH APRIL AT 11AM outside St Peter’s Church.

We had a stall at the Limpsfield Fete and were delighted that Jan our fruit guru was able to come and answer fruity questions! Later a summer picnic in the Orchard was much enjoyed. We had a treasure hunt for the children and a fiendishly difficult wild flower identification competition for the adults.

We are delighted that the number of our Friends continues to grow.  Everyone reading this will have contributed to the Community Orchard in one way or another and without you all the dream could never have been realized. So, how exactly do Friends help?

Firstly, many of you join us on our workparties for clearing, weeding, manuring etc; secondly, our annual Wassail party needs an army of volunteers to make it a success, from making the flaming torches to baking apple cakes; thirdly, we have Associates on hand for specialist tasks or advice, such as our RHS fruit expert; our local National Trust Rangers; local craftsmen and others who have designed leaflets, or held fund-raising events.

Lastly, we are indebted to those who donate to our funds. Although our on-going costs are modest, we do have some essential annual expenses which cannot be avoided, and if you have not done so already we would invite you to consider making an on-going annual donation by setting up a Standing Order.  The modest sum of £10 per annum (or more!) from everyone would help to give us the security to ensure that we leave a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy.  

Just e-mail Jennie, jenephgrave@btinternet.com, or phone 01883 716523, and she will give you the Orchard Bank Account details.

Of course, a donation in any form and at any time is always gratefully received too!

We (the committee) are dependent on support from you all and really appreciate the encouraging comments we get from people who use the Orchard regularly. There are many dog owners, families with small children and local residents who visit the Orchard to observe the seasonal changes and the progress of the trees. It remains a peaceful spot, and it can only get better as the trees mature and become consistently fruitful.

With good wishes to you all

Helen and the Orchard Team