Category: Apples

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Apple Pruning Workshop

15 January 2023

Join us for an opportunity to get “up close and personal” with apple trees and gain valuable hands-on experience of the whole pruning process. This workshop will be led by our apple expert Andrew Lear, the Appletreeman. It is ideal for complete beginners, and for those wishing to refresh skills.

The day will run from 10:30am to 2:30pm at the Barn. 

Andrew will go through the different methods of pruning and the reasons for it. You will also be shown all the tools you will need and have their safe use and maintenance explained to you. You are welcome to bring along what you normally prune with, including loppers, secateurs and sharpening tools for Andrew to comment on.

Andrew will be demonstrating on the veteran James Grieve and espaliers in the Walled Garden and other trees in the neighbouring allotments.

There will be ample time to ask questions and become completely confident with techniques. Bring photos of your trees for individual advice. Andrew will also be happy to briefly answer questions on apple tree pests, diseases & disorders.

Wear warm cloths, gloves and strong footwear and please bring some lunch. The Barn will provide hot drinks and some sugary treats such as cake to keep your strength up! Donations to cover costs are welcome.

For more information on Andrew, see his website https://plantsandapples.com/about/

If you’d like to sign up for the workshop please email thefarorchard@thebarnarts.co.uk before 11 January 2023.

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Plenty? A Festival Exploring More and Less

Thanks to everyone who came along to the Plenty? event at the Barn on 22/23rd October. As well as being a traditional harvest festival with apple pressing and juicing, the event explored ideas around how we can work together to live with less to keep planetary ecosystems healthy and sustainable into the future. There was music, film, installation, participatory activities, exhibitions, workshops and talks exploring these themes. https://www.thebarnarts.co.uk/article/plenty

We were there with The Far Orchard Zone, talking about the project and exploring how we might create new networks of care with an ecological focus.

Below: Apple pressing at the PLENTY Festival.

Images Grant Anderson

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The First Apples!

Even though the apple trees were only planted in April some of them have produced apples this year and existing trees have had a bumper harvest. Thanks to all The Far Orchard hosts for sending photos in.

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The Pollinators

With apple trees in full bloom, we’ve been trying to snap some of the pollinators at work.

Apple trees requires pollen to be transferred from the male part of the flower to the female part of a different but compatible variety of apple tree. This is called cross pollination and must happen at bloom time. Without the transfer of pollen to a compatible tree nearby, there wont be any apples! We’ll be asking all our tree hosts to look out for other apple trees nearby to make sure their trees are in pollination range. We’ll be mapping all the trees and planting new trees in any gaps.