Dunsden Community Orchard

A group of ten enjoyed a pleasant afternoon in the orchard recently and now we need some more volunteers to complete the work.

Sunday June 7th has been fixed. Local tree surgeon Neil Wilson of Beechwood Tree Care has very kindly offered to help get into shape some of the trees on the orchard boundary and will need a hand from around 10am. In the afternoon we will be fixing labels and maybe installing our new feature bench at the top of the orchard. Please get in touch if you can make it on the day. Refreshments should be available.

Any questions please call David on 969 3633. We look forward to seeing you on the day.

We shall next be meeting at the orchard on Sunday May 10 from 2.15pm. Please come along and join in the fun.

We shall be:

• attaching our shiny new tree labels
• guarding the few unprotected trees
• getting the bench/picnic table out of Mandy's garage and installed in the orchard (on concrete bases)
• spraying and then clearing bramble roots
• burning the bramble remains
• making sure the hornbeams in their temporary trench are thriving
• holding a short meeting to discuss the lease agreement with the parish council

There should be enjoyable tasks for people of all ages. We look forward to seeing you. Call David woodward on 969 3633 for more.

Chilterns Board come up trumps

We are delighted to report that we have received a grant of £1549.33 from the Chilterns Conservation Board. Many thanks to Kath Daly and her colleagues for their support.

Community orchards in the news

BBC Radio 4's You & Yours carried an interesting item about community orchards today. You can use the 'Listen Again' feature if you missed the programme.

Thanks to a grant from the Chilterns AONB we have made some good progress since Christmas. Some impressive labels have been ordered for our fruit trees and we have also purchased and heeled in some hornbeam trees for the boundary with the village green. Several replacement fruit trees have also been planted.

A fine new bench which will be the centre piece of a walk through the orchard has been purchased and will be installed soon. We have also been able to buy a picnic bench which will be another pleasant spot from which to enjoy the orchard.

The labels record both the name of each tree and of each dedicatee. They will be inavluable when we produce an educational booklet describing a walk around the orchard. In the next few weeks we need to hold a working party to securely install the new bench and seat and to definitively remove the brambles along the green edge.

Watch this site for more details!

We have been busy this weekend making way for the 40m hornbeam hedge we plan to plant along the orchard boundary with Dunsden Green, thanks to a grant from the Chilterns Conservation Board.

Brambles have been cut back all along the boundary, but will need spraying to really get rid of them. We have dug a holding trench ready to receive the bare root plants which will be collected from the Bristol area next Saturday. We are hoping for a few volunteers to heel in the plants from lunchtime on Saturady Febraury 21. There may also be a chance to cut back some of the ivy on the larger trees on the orchard boundary.

Places are still available on the pruning course run by Cross Lanes Orchard. If you are a paid-up member of the orchard we may be able to help with your course fee. The next course is Saturday morning, 21 February.

Please contact David Woodward if you intend to take part in either the working party or the pruning course.

Pruning:How To Prune Apple Trees Between Autumn And Spring

Not much might be shifting in the gardens, but now is the time for pruning. Gill Franklin of Cross Lanes Fruit Farm is offering half day pruning courses on the following dates:

• Saturday 31 January
• Thursday 5 February
• Saturday 14 February

The sessions start at 9.45 and run until 1 and are for a group of up to 20. Gill covers all of the basics for fruit tree care, including diseases and pruning. The cost is £46 including VAT.  Thanks to the generosity of the Chilterns Conservation Board we may be able to pay your course fees if you are a paid up member of the orchard.

Email David Woodward now for further details.