Orchard Revival

Scotland's charity for traditional orchards

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You are here: Home / Archives for pie&crumble

Variety ID – using DNA

February 1, 2021 by pie&crumble

Our friends at Fruit ID are running their DNA scheme again this year:

Identification of apple, pear and cherry varieties using DNA

Following the success of the 2016-20 DNA Schemes with over 5,100 samples analysed, our DNA Scheme is again being offered for 2021.  East Malling Research have confirmed a price to us of £27.60 plus VAT for Apple, Pear and Cherry samples. 

If you would like to participate, please take a look at the Announcement and Timetable on https://www.fruitid.com/#help where there is a Request Form to get sample bags.   There is sample handling guidance, the Scheme results from previous years, and an Introduction to DNA Fingerprinting.

Please feel free also to circulate this to anyone you think might be interested and let me know if you have any questions.

Kind regards

Peter Laws

Scheme Administrator

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Scottish Scything Festival

June 24, 2019 by pie&crumble

We’re supporting the Scottish Scything Festival at Blackhaugh Community Farm near Auchterarder, Perthshire. This is the inaugural Scottish event (as far as we are aware).

Why? Scythes are a great way to manage the orchard floor. They are much less damaging to invertebrate life than a rotary mower. And faster (and quieter) than a strimmer. Plus they keep you fit and healthy!

https://blackhaughcommunityfarm.weebly.com/scythe-festival.html

https://www.facebook.com/ScottishScything

Filed Under: Network, Uncategorized Tagged With: orchard management

Monimail apple day

October 24, 2018 by pie&crumble

Orchard Revival was at Monimail Tower Project in Fife helping with the Monimail Apple Day on 20th Oct. Thanks also to Will from Tayport Community Trust’s PLANT project for running the press this year.

In go the apples

Young juicers love the day

Plenty to store in our freezers

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Clips from BBC Radio Scotland piece

October 16, 2018 by pie&crumble

BBC piece on the Orchard Inventory here in bitsize chunks

Clips from Good Morning Scotland on 7th October 2018

Crispin (Inventory Coordinator) on some of the historical background to orchards in Scotland, how the Orchard Inventory was carried out, and hopes of an orchard revival.
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Crispin-Interview.mp3

Sue Pomeroy (Local Facilitator for the Inventory in the West Highlands) on remote orchards surveyed and crofting interest in fruit trees
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Sue-talks-about-orchards-and-crofting.mp3

Kate Holl (SNH Project Officer for Inventory) on biodiversity and benefits of orchards
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Kate-on-biodiv-use-of-fruit.mp3

Ron Gillies ( Cairn o’Mhor Winery) on making King Jimmy cider
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Ron-cider.mp3

Kate on different fruit and nuts grown in orchards
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Kate-different-fruit.mp3

Ron with a guileful plug for his cider – how far apart to plant your trees
https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Ron-2-trees-9ft-apart.mp3

All clips copyright BBC 2018

Filed Under: Uncategorized

BBC Radio Scotland piece on Orchard Inventory

October 16, 2018 by pie&crumble

The National Orchard Inventory for Scotland featured on Good Morning Scotland

Bill Whiteford interviewed Crispin (Inventory Coordinator) and then Bill along with Isabel Fraser had a discussion with Kate Holl (SNH, funder), Sue Pomeroy (Local Facilitator for the Inventory in the West Highlands), and Ron Gillies (Cairn o’Mhor Winery).

Here’s the whole 29 minute piece broadcast on 7th October 2018. More recent posts have selected excerpts.

https://www.orchardrevival.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/BBC-Radio-Scotland-Orchard-Inventory-7oct18-2.mp3

 

Or download it here
Orchard Inventory on BBC Radio Scotland 7oct18

Audio recording copyright BBC 2018

Filed Under: Inventory Scotland, Orchard Inventory Tagged With: BBC, Cairn o'Mhor, SNH

Great response from Orchard Inventory feature on BBC website

October 9, 2018 by pie&crumble

Great response from Orchard Inventory feature on BBC website

People have been contacting us from people across Scotland to the feature on the Beeb website

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-40012732

Some wanted to ensure their orchard has been included, and others to volunteer for survey work. A few have been seeking advice about varieties and planning new orchards. We’re working through those now so we get back to everyone.

Biodiversity is one of the factors assessed in the National Orchard Inventory for Scotland

We worked with a BBC journalist to develop the piece, and to try and include as much of interest as possible from what the Inventory found .  Of course the full story is contained in the Area Reports which are available to download.  However the piece gives a good overview and its gets to a very wide audience.  That has to be good for raising awareness about orchards in Scotland.

Filed Under: Orchard Inventory, Uncategorized Tagged With: #ORinventory, BBC, Orchard Inventory, volunteers

A journey into a land where the scythe still manages most grassland

September 25, 2018 by pie&crumble

How can traditional management of the orchard floor and other hay meadows improve biodiversity?

ORE Director Crispin Hayes travelled to Romania on an Erasmus + Study Tour looking at sustainable village agriculture.  In this piece he relates his experiences.

Background

Haymaking is widespread in Alba County both in the hill & mountain villages and throughout the flat low lands of Transylvania.  Orchards are also widespread though tended to be concentrated around villages.  In the south and centre of Alba County, plums dominated the orchards. The plums are made into Rakia, the local spirit drunk anytime from breakfast to bedtime.  This spirit is home produced and is a cultural indicator of the characters involved.  When aged for 20 yrs in a mulberry cask or blended with homemade walnut cordial, it is a very smooth and enjoyable drink.
In the north of Alba County for example around Rimetea, apple orchards were very much in evidence.  The wider area also grows a lot of grapes which are made into wine which has a good reputation.

Walking through an orchard up to the high hay meadow

Lots of invertebrate life

The biodiverse content of these species rich grasslands is discussed elsewhere, the focus here is management which provides the conditions for this species richness, and for the abundance of invertebrate life.  These orchard pastures and hay meadows appeared to be almost entirely managed by traditional methods; that is to say cut by scythe and the hay stacked on a traditional triangular frame or steddle, often in the field.

Use of the scythe

We engaged in mowing by scythe in Girbovita village near Aiud.  The location was a hay meadow above the village which we arrived at after walking through an orchard.  The sward was herb dominated rather than grass dominated.  We joined the farmer with some extra scythes and were given a brief demonstration before having a go ourselves.  It took some practice but it was possible to quickly cut a swath of grass.

Scything a hay meadow with young walnut trees, and an established orchard lower down.

In the experienced hands of the farmer, a clean and consistent cut about 40mm about the ground was made.  The width of cut was more than 1.5m and the cutting action creates a swath at the left-hand edge of cut.  Progress is at an incremental walk, but because the cut is wide the ground is covered at a good rate.

On another occasion, we went to rake a small very steep meadow surrounded by woodland.  It was planted with young walnut trees as a new orchard.  This location really emphasised the versatility of the scythe.  The steepness and the young walnuts would have made it impossible to use even pedestrian machinery.  However, with hand tools it was fairly quick work.

Farmer regularly hones the blade in the field. The sward is wonderfully species rich

What was surprising was not that scythe cut hay was normal in the hill villages, but that scythes were widely used in the flat wide plains as well.  In these lowlands, there is ‘pre-enclosure’ landscape of strips showing a complex landownership.  Though it was clear that some tractors were used to mow and bale hay, the majority of hay even in this mechanisable landscape, was still cut and handled by hand.  This perhaps indicates the depth of cultural significance that the scythe holds for rural Romanians.

Reflection on motor mowers vs the scythe

The Romanian experience has led to a great deal of reflection on how hay, orchards, amenity grassland, ‘rough grass’ and agricultural set aside is managed in Britain.  The tendency to use rotary mowers and in the agricultural setting mower conditioners, must have an impact on invertebrate life.  In Romania, we were able to experience what is possible with grassland management when it is more sympathetic to biodiversity.  It has been enlightening.

Not so grim. Romanian scythes have a straight snaff

Filed Under: orchard floor management, Traditional Orchards Tagged With: biodiversity, invertebrate, scythe, transylvania

Newburgh plum markets announced

August 24, 2018 by pie&crumble

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Jyll Bradley joins us for an Orchard Revival tour

May 23, 2018 by pie&crumble

Crispin took artist Jyll Bradley on an orchard tour of Fife and the Carse of Gowrie orchards recently.  We took in various walled gardens, mature domestic orchards as well as the field scale former commercial orchards of the Carse.  Jyll is researching for an installation at the Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh in 2019.  We included a couple of other sites by the River Tay that are linked its role for transport and the monastic influence so vital to the development of orchards.  

in the 1780 peach house

 

Pictured are Jyll with Head Gardener Graham at the 1780 peach house of a private walled garden.  Peaches and nectarines are still being grown today !

Filed Under: Uncategorized

What to do with old variety pears ? Make a yummy snack

October 4, 2017 by pie&crumble

old variety Hessle pears to yummy snack

old variety Hessle pears to yummy snack


What to do with those old variety pears that tend to be left on the tree ? Use them – they are fantastic! Varieties like Hessle, which have a small fruit, but there are a lot of them on a tree. Pick them and dry them in the pear equivalent of apple rings. Only they aren’t a ring as they don’t need coring.

Picking time is crucial: Picking the old varieties of pear at the right time is a trick. Don’t wait for them to be ‘ripe’ as you would a more modern variety of table pear. If you wait, the centre will typically be rotten. Pick before that stage when they have become sweet but are still crunchy.

Just slice them up (about 5mm thick slices). The picture shows a dehydrator rack (which is essentially a low temp fan oven) but you can do this in your own electric fan oven at its lowest temp, or on a cake rack over a fire or radiator. It takes about 12 hours in a dehydrator/oven, longer with other methods.

Once dry, put in an airtight jar and they will last for months – but only if you hide the jar or lock it. Otherwise they only last a few weeks because they are so bloomin’ tasty !

Filed Under: Fruit recipes, Heritage Pears, Inventory Scotland, Orchard Inventory, Traditional Orchards, Uncategorized Tagged With: fruit snack, pear, variety Hessle

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National Orchard Inventory for Scotland Talk at SLHG Pomology Day, 26 October 2024

September 9, 2024 By Hardpear

Crispin Hayes of Crispin Hayes’ Associates and Orchard Revival will be among the guest speakers at Scotland’s Garden & Landscape Heritage event , “Pomology Study Day: Scotland’s Orchards Past and Present “, on Saturday 26 October 2024 at Megginch Castle, Errol, Perth PH2 7SW, between 9.30am and 3.30pm. Crispin will be giving a talk about […]

National Orchard Inventory for Scotland Talk at SLHG Pomology Day, 26 October 2024

September 9, 2024 By Hardpear

Crispin Hayes of Crispin Hayes' Associates and Orchard Revival will be among the guest speakers at … [Read More...]

Police Scotland Advice for ‘Raids’ on Community Orchard Crops

August 16, 2024 By Hardpear

Bag of Bloody Ploughman apples and fruit picker Increasingly over the past few years, community … [Read More...]

“Pistils at Dawn” – Blossom Time Poetry Inspiration

April 24, 2024 By Hardpear

Blossom Day is nearly here, and to inspire people to celebrate this wonder of nature, James Crowden, … [Read More...]

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#ORinventory Apple Day apple wassail BBC blossom day Carse of Gowrie Christmas Clyde and Avon Valley Landscape Partnership Clyde Valley Orchards CW Hayes Associates fife diet forth valley orchards Fruit Festival fruit leather fruit tree wassail gathering heritage Highlands historic orchards inventory Jane Lewis job Local Facilitators National Orchard Inventory for Scotland opportunity orchard Orchard Inventory orchards orchard surveys pear pears and apples Perth remote orchards scotland scotlandthefruit Scottish National Orchard Inventory seasonal recipes South Lanarkshire survey area report using up a glut volunteers wassail wassailing songs Wester Ross WREN

Tags

#ORinventory Apple Day apple wassail BBC blossom day Carse of Gowrie Christmas Clyde and Avon Valley Landscape Partnership Clyde Valley Orchards CW Hayes Associates fife diet forth valley orchards Fruit Festival fruit leather fruit tree wassail gathering heritage Highlands historic orchards inventory Jane Lewis job Local Facilitators National Orchard Inventory for Scotland opportunity orchard Orchard Inventory orchards orchard surveys pear pears and apples Perth remote orchards scotland scotlandthefruit Scottish National Orchard Inventory seasonal recipes South Lanarkshire survey area report using up a glut volunteers wassail wassailing songs Wester Ross WREN

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