Wassail bonfire

We have just had a successful couple of hours in the Orchard gathering wood for the Wassail bonfire.....the large pile is covered now so hopefully the wood will be dry enough to make a good blaze when we come to build the bonfire on Sunday 20 January 2019.  We also collected pine cones which we take home to dry thoroughly, and these make the base of the fire together with dry kindling and candle ends (+ a few other secret ingredients tucked in by our magical bonfire builders).

We were pleased to have some families helping. Also we had our two Duke of Edinburgh students giving us a hand too.....so many thanks to everyone who helped.

We look froward to seeing everyone at the WASSAIL.

 

WASSAIL 20 JANUARY 2019

Community Garden in Hurst Green

On 8 December we met at the new Community Garden in Hurst Green (behind the shops) to help planting the first apple trees in the area of ground which is going to be developed for all things EDIBLE. There is a very sturdy fence so these trees (all eaters) are going to be grown as cordons.......we will be able to watch the trees progress and learn how to manage pruning on cordons which is mostly done in the summer. 

The apples chosen include a graft of Herefordshire Russet which is one that we grow very successfully at the Community Orchard.

NEW BARRIER GATE CONSTRUCTION

TOP: Theo, our Duke of Edinburgh volunteer, constructing the gate under Michael's supervision  BELOW LEFT:shows Thomas, Michael's grandson, pretty pleased with his work too., BELOW RHT: shows the finished gate in place

These pictures show the construction of our new barrier gate on to the A25.....the last rather smart wicker ones were sadly stolen.
This one is built to a new design by Michael Whyte and his two young assistants entirely out of recycled materials. The construction will allow it to be slid across but hopefully not easily to be lifted out. We need to be able to provide a barrier to the A25 when we have any groups of young children at the Orchard.

Working Party 3 October 2018

Today we had an excellent working party in the Orchard leaving it tidy and ready for the winter. Twelve keen orchardeers trimmed the hedges, weeded round the trees and pulled out a year's growth of bramble. There was a lot to do but the work was completed quickly with such a keen and speedy workforce.  The grass has taken a terrible bashing with the drought but it does seem to be improving now.

The crop has been somewhat disappointing this year but there still some good Herefordshire Russets which are still ripening on the trees and the last apples to be picked are the Newton Wonders.....these will improve in flavour well into November and should store until February.

Do watch out for the notice about the Wassail.....20 January 2019. We need to ensure a good crop for next year by frightening off the devils.

APPLE HARVEST 2018

Over the weekend and again on Wednesday 26

September we spent time in the Community Orchard harvesting some of the apples and tasting them.  The sun shone on both occasions and the Orchard itself is looking very good now that the grass has started to grow again.

A lot of the apples are small this year (due to the drought and extreme heat) and sadly a higher percentage than usual have had disease (scab and brown rot) and many have had bird damage which means that many fruits will not store well.

However many are good. The Bramley Seedling have cropped well for the first time this year. The Newton Wonder , another culinary apple, also is cropping well....these will be picked later as they should be ripe mid October and hopefully will store

Of the eaters, Sunset and Herefordshire Russet proved to be very popular as did Fiesta and Ellison's Orange. Other apples were brought too for tasting....in particular Jupiter (parents Cox's Orange Pippin and Starking) and Bel de Boscoop (Dutch D/P) were delicious.

We will continue to pick as the fruits ripen....some apples will go to St Peter's Church for the Harvest Festival, and a group of children from Limpsfield Primary School will come to pick and taste too. Some apples store well, some are frozen or used in cakes and puddings of course but this year we are trying dried apple and pear.....a dessicator makes this a very easy process and they should last well into the New Year

...some of the Committee

visitors from Hurst Green Garden Club and LODHS

Herefordshire Russet

WORKING PARTY: WEDNESDAY 3RD OCTOBER

We badly need a good go at some of the hedges in the Orchard....and weeding round the tree sites to get everything straight for the winter. There is quite a lot to do....weeding on the area which is under the picnic table too!

After such a dry year grass growth has started up again .....but there are many bare patches. Perhaps we'll get some wild flowers fillings the gaps.....

Anyway.....usual plan.....EARLY start at 9.30am on Wednesday 3 October .....work till 11am then coffee/apple cake (if you are lucky!) and if there's more to do we will continue after that. Please bring your own tools.....

 

EXTRA JOBS.....please have a look at this list and see if you can help.....

• Rebuilding compost heap which is sadly collapsing....we might need some more pallets....the ones in use are rotting badly. The compost can be put all round the hedges
• Rebuilding wood pile which is designed to be a home for stag beetle larvae which take up to 5 years to develop and hatch
• Moving logs along the path into the area which is a fairy ring (logs) for children......there are some already to be moved! AND we now have a wheel barrow.
• Checking the tree guard supports.....some need replacing for sure

After the work party we'll need a bonfire too.....on another date probably

Looking forward to seeing LOTS of you there!

Helen and the Orchard TEAM

SUNDAY 23 SEPTEMBER: TASTING AND EARLY HARVEST

Come and join us for 

TASTING AND EARLY HARVEST...... 

SUNDAY 23 SEPTEMBER FROM 2-30 pm 

There will be coffee/tea and apple cake so do come along. 

A chance to see how we are doing and taste several different varieties of apples

This year has been very unusual for its growing conditions.....very cold spell followed by good blossom and set.....then the 8 week+ dry and extremely hot period which made me think every tree was fighting to stay alive.....

HOWEVER.....all is settling down...

Katy is ready now (end August) .....do go up and sample them

Damson.....ready to pick (this is the tree behind the Bug House at the back of the Orchard)

Mirabelle all picked .....enough for 4 lbs of jam....some of which will be available at our Tasting afternoon.

Other trees.....Pears....only Buerre Hardy this year ...but there should be plenty in due course

Apples....

Sunset....pretty small this year

Herefordshire Russet....plenty but again small

Bramley, Arthur Turner  and Bountiful....all cookers....some good size fruit. Newton Wonder (also a cooker) cropping for the first time....small fruits but with great flavour....they store well and can be eaten as dessert fruit into the New Year. We'll be picking these much later.....

Fiesta, Meridian, Lord Lambourne, Ellison's Orange.....moderate crops but enough for tasting.....

PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION

THE GLORIES OF THE LIMPSFIELD COMMUNITY ORCHARD 

September 2018 / September 2019

RULES

1.            Entry is FREE and prizes will be presented.

2.            The picture must have been taken between the dates above.

3.            The winning picture will be the one which best illustrates the title of the    competition as above.

4.            The competition is for prints only.

5.            The maximum size of the print is A4 (29.7cm x 20.1cm).

6.            Each entrant may enter up to three pictures. Each one will be judged individually.

7.            There will be three age categories: a) 10 years and younger, b) 11 years to 17 years, c) 18 and over.

8.            Prints will be accepted up to October 1^st 2019.

9.            Please put your name, address and telephone number on the back of the picture and the category a) b) or c).

10.        By entering the competition you kindly give your permission for your photographs to be used for publicity purposes for the Orchard.

11.        The judge’s decision is final.

BLOSSOM VIEWING DAY 2018

On Saturday 5 May we enjoyed a Blossom Viewing at the  Orchard. The flowers were truly at their best and we were delighted to welcome so many visitors.....some who'd never been there before. We are delighted this year that some trees (Newton Wonder) almost under the canopy of the Copper Beech, have got plenty of blossom which we've not had before.  Fingers crossed there's no frost and we get a good set. The next job will be thinning the fruit which will be at the end of June, after the "June drop" 

You're not too late to make a visit .....blossoms should be around for another week to 10 days. Sit awhile and enjoy!

Limpsfield School

This picture shows the children at Limpsfield School who won prizes  this year, in the Annual Poetry Competition, sponsored by the Community Orchard. Each year the children who visit the Orchard regularly are asked to write about apples and pears and how they feel about seeing them grow!

The winning poems are laminated and hung on the trees for everyone to see.

Working Party 21 April

This picture shows the group who gathered at the Orchard on the very hot morning of 

21 April to weed the tree sites and spread wood chip. There was a lot to do but with ten of us working for over 3 hours, getting hotter and hotter, we managed to finish the job.....much rewarded with coffee and apple cake.

The tree shown in blossom is Buerre Hardy, a delicious pear, truly a gourmet fruit. Lets hope the blossoms become a plentiful crop in due course.

DATES FOR THE DIARY

•  Working Party....Saturday 21 April from 09-30 (weeding the tree sites and moving wood chip)
• Unveiling the new Bench and Blossom Viewing Sunday 22 April......2-30 to 4-30 (+ tea and apple cake of course!)  
•  Blossom Viewing Saturday 5 May 10-30 to 12 midday (+coffee and apple cake)

So do get these dates into  your  diary.....and we look forward to seeing lots of you there......

SATURDAY 21 APRIL FROM 9.30AM

We have now got the date for our next Working Party..... 

Saturday 21 April  from 9.30am

• Weeding each tree site
• Mulching each tree site with wood chip
• Applying special rotted manure to the 2 new trees (Pixie and Ashmead's Kernal)
• Mulching around the new bench
• Checking the ties/supports etc
• Checking the tree guard supports
• Checking (and reducing) the wire around the trees to ensure it is not damaging the trees at all

So lots of nice stuff to do........we'll try to get started at 9.30 and will break for coffee at 11am so if you'd rather come just for a chat that's fine too!

WORKING PARTY

We are very grateful to Stuart Rimmington who has kindly donated a lovely load of wood chip for use round the trees later on this year. We'll be moving it around the Orchard on  Saturday 21 April from 9.30am  during our next Working Party.....so do come along to help if you'd like.

Annual Pruning Masterclass - 10 February 2018

We were pleased to be able to prune the fruit trees in the Orchard on a dryish but very cold day. It was a perfect time to have a good look at the trees and to note any problems. Canker is still problematical in some cases......and we had to prune out some damage seen on a couple of trees (Laxton Superb up by the benches and James Grieve in the middle of the site) The rather frightening canker noted on the trunk of Arthur Turner (a cooker right beside the Bramley Seedling) seems to be drying up and healing itself. This does happen sometimes so maybe we'll be lucky.
We started the formative pruning necessary on the 2 new trees (Ashmead's Kernal and Pixie)  Otherwise in the maintenance pruning we were looking for branches growing too tall or wide and anything crossing or rubbing. There look to be already plenty of fruit buds especially on the pear trees which all did so well last year.
We were pleased that 9 "learners" attended.....some who were already Friends of the Orchard, but in addition, four were from Hurst Green Garden Club.

The 2018 pruning team with Jan Lambourn our tutor/orchard guru, fourth from left.

Apple Trees for Sale

NEW BENCH

On 30 January we had had a new bench installed in the Orchard. Very kindly the Special Projects Group which are part of the National Trust Limpsfield Task Force agreed to install the bench which matches the other benches in the Orchard (from Norbury Wood Products at Leatherhead...part of the Surrey Wildlife Trust)

We are delighted to have this new addition as it will enable us to view the blossom from above with the sun behind us.....so imagine this one late afternoon in May......with the blossom heavy on the trees and the bees buzzing lazily......oh to dream! I am sure it will be well used whatever the weather.....

PRUNING MASTER CLASS

PRUNING MASTER CLASS  

with  

Jan Lambourn 

our very own Fruit Expert.

Saturday February 10^th 2018

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 the basics and then move on to pruning our own Orchard trees which are quite diverse, ranging from 2 year old feathered maidens, to those of 8 years old which require ladder work.

Do apply quickly as numbers are limited for the class. We will be giving priority to our Orchard Friends, and anyone who has worked in any capacity for the Orchard, and also taking into account those who have been before. We generally meet at about 10am for coffee and a chat then Jan will give a short talk about pruning top fruit in general and then we’ll get started on our own trees.

For further details and to book (by 1^st Feb please) contact Helen

01883 713160 or helenellson205@btinternet.com

WASAIL: SUNDAY 21 JANUARY