Dunsden Community Orchard

Despite the recent drought, our trees are surviving, although some still need watering. It is hoped to arrange a working party towards the end of October (more details later). Interesting events in the next week or so include the Henley Show Ploughing Match at Dunsden and a chance to visit the Crosslanes Fruit Farm at Mapledurham.

The ploughing match starts at 9am this Sunday October 4, with the blessing of the plough. Besides heavy horse and tractor ploughing competitions, attractions include birds of prey, ferret racing and craft and trade stalls. Parking is free.

Crosslanes Fruit Farm at Mapledurham is open from 10am to 5pm on Sunday October 11. There will be advice on all aspects of fruit growing, competitions for children, and sales of produce, including apples from amongst the over 60 varieties grown at Crosslanes.

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.

Thanks to the Co-op Community Fund we have received a grant of £500 to put towards the cost of planting trees and a wooden bench which it is hoped will be the focal point of the walkway through our orchard. The Fund provided a plaque which we hope to fix to the orchard gateway at our next working party, which is planned for Sunday 14 September at 2.30pm. To encourage a good turnout on the day (when we will mainly be weeding around the trees), cider will be provided. Please put the date in your diary now and come along and enjoy an hour's enjoyable work with other local people.

A reminder that you will find us at Binfield Heath Flower Show at Holmwood this Saturday from 2pm. There will be some early apples to taste and we will be able to answer your questions about the orchard. 

We will soon have some attractive embroidered polo shirts for orchard supporters. These are available at £10 each for members or £12.50 for non-members: a good reason to sign up for membership if you have not done so already. Just download the leaflet and post off the form to set-up an annual £5 or £10 standing order. Your support is much appreciated. 

A fund-raising quiz night is also planned, thanks to the generosity of Beth Timms, who has been organising these popular evenings for some time. The evening starts at 7 for 7.30pm in Dunsden Village Hall on Saturday October 11th. A light supper and an entertaining evening is promised, all for under £10! Tickets from Beth Timms

 

Apple Day this year is on October 21st. Although our orchard is not yet sufficiently well-establshed to host its own Apple Day, you can get an idea of the kind of things that are possible at such an event by following this link.

Shropshire Apple Trust in Ironbridge sells its own design of apple presses, and expects to make over 200 gallons of apple juice at event that is enjoyed by several hundred people.

Volunteers from Dunsden community orchard will at the Binfield Heath Flower Show on Saturday 23 August and at the Henley Show Ploughing Match in Dunsden on 5 October so we look forward to seeing you then.

Thanks to the generosity of Richard Butler, Branch Manager at Travis Perkins, Playhatch we were able to re-instate access from Tagg Lane to the orchard last weekend. Travis Perkins donated two drainage pipes and have promised some fencing, so now we will be able to get a bowser into the orchard to prevent any more trees from dying. Volunteers will be needed to maintain the watering rota.

Tree sponsorship is proving a big success - a big thank you to all that have supported us so far - and we are also inviting people to become members of the orchard. Just download the form available here.

Most of the trees are thriving, some more trees have been planted, and a final batch is due in the autumn. We will soon be posting a new map of the orchard which will show which trees have already been sponsored. 

The current dry weather has been taking its toll at the orchard. We are hoping for heavy rain as a small number of trees seem to have perished in spite of attempts to save them. Watering is difficult as the site does not have its own supply, but it has been possible to get a hose across the road from the village hall. A bowser has been promised, but if anyone has a very large (500l+) tank it would also be very useful. If you think you might be able to help, please email now.

Our tree sponsorship scheme is proving very successful. Some 15 trees have been sponsored and commemorative labels will be attached in the next few weeks. The special certificates provided with each tree adoption are also proving very popular. If you want to sponsor a tree the time is now, before the variety you want is taken!

A working party may well be arranged for later this month - more details in a future story.

After several working parties in chilly conditions it is very encouraging to be able to report that almost every tree has survived and is now in leaf - and some have even been flowering. The grass has also been growing rapidly in the recent warm weather. At last night's planning group (minutes) further work was scheduled including drainage in Tagg Lane. Full details from working party co-ordinator timcoul[at]live.co.uk who will be happy to hear from potential volunteers.

We will also shortly be launching our membership scheme and a chance to adopt-a-tree - a great way for you and your family to learn about a traditional local fruit tree variety for a very modest donation.

We are also seeking grants to fund further tree planting, hedging and the creation of a living willow arch.

The community orchard hopes to be at the Binfield Heath Flower Show on Saturday 23 August and at the Henley Show Ploughing Match in Dunsden on 5 October so we look forward to seeing you then.

What do you think? We welcome your comments on our orchard project.

As you will have seen from this week's Standard, more than twenty orchard enthusiasts, young and old, had a great day working together at the orchard last Saturday. Holes were prepared and around a dozen trees were planted with 120 8' poles being driven into the ground to make enclosures to protect the trees from deer. 

The younger ones had tremendous fun bailing water from the holes dug last week, and the older ones enjoyed barrowing in topsoil, planting and enclosure building. Everyone enjoyed Tim and Judy's flapjacks.

We still have most of the trees to plant (they have just been heeled in so far). Will you join us this Saturday, 22 March anytime from 10am onwards?