Quid pro quo
As the cider world struggled with the notion of The Ciderologist without a moustache, and as the citizens of the Forest of Dean tried to deal with the impact of a volcanic eruption on the very brow of May Hill, instead of dealing with the finer details of our impending brand change to PECK+BUSHEL, we ran away from these crises and took refuge in an orchard.
By no means a peaceful or tranquil orchard, the melody of the day was provided by the steady thrum of traffic on the Tewkesbury road, also known as the A4019, fully 25 metres away, with the harmony supplied by the M5, possibly a kilometre distant. Not peaceful, not beautiful … but definitely important. This small orchard - less than half a hectare in size - is owned by the Gloucestershire County Council and houses most of the 90+ varieties of apple that were thought, at the time they were planted, to come from Gloucestershire (more recent DNA testing has revealed that some are duplicates of other varieties, reducing Gloucestershire's count to about 70). The orchard was planted about 20 years ago by Alan Watson, for two reasons; to help ensure the survival of these varieties, many of which are rare, bordering on endangered; and to be a resource for nurseries, orchardists and pomoligists from which to take scions, to graft new specimens. Applause to the Council for providing the land, even more so to Mr Watson for collating the trees - a job that must have taken a lot of time and even more persistence - and for planting them.
A row of apple trees - or a hedge?
The good news is the orchard is still there and almost all the trees have survived; the genetic diversity is intact. The less good news is that the contractor responsible for looking after the orchard has done a very good job of mowing the grass but a very poor job of looking after the trees. Brambles run amok - some trees are swamped - and every tree is throwing out watershoots aplenty. If someone did want scions, she or he would struggle to find suitable wood; the trees don't have sufficient energy to invest in so many shoots, so each grows by just a few inches each year. In extremis they might be usable, but far from ideal.
We've written elsewhere that orchards can be - should be - a partnership between Nature and humankind. In return for a little love and attention, particularly in their early lives, fruit trees will deliver bountiful fruit, year after year, with little or no input from us, just harnessing the sun, the wind, the rain, whilst providing refuge for the myriad creatures that live in and around fruit trees.
We haven't been keeping our side of the bargain, certainly not in this orchard, so timecto make amends. Where we provided an extra pair of hands to clear away the debris, Martin Hayes, orchardist and friend, applied his knowledge and experience to restore some order. One could almost hear the trees breathe a sigh of relief as excessive growth was removed, so light and air can once again circulate freely through limbs and branches.
If a volunteer is worth ten pressed men, then we did the work of 20 people - actually, probably just 10 given we were there for a little less than 4 hours - but we've made a start at keeping our side of the unwritten contract struck when Alan planted the trees all those years ago. What was a jumbled jungle is now, recognisably, an orchard once again. Every fruit tree has a right to expect just a little love and attention, every now and then. It’s a simple equation that applies to much of life; something for something, nothing for nothing. Quid pro quo.
P.S. In one of those odd little coincidences that crop up from time to time, a few weeks after visiting this orchard in Uckington, we helped to plant some fruit trees in Avening, near Tetbury. Several years ago, Alan Watson had planted some trees there too; they’re still alive, but overgrown, almost abandoned. They, too, have now been pruned and form the centrepiece of Avening's new community orchard.