Marcher Apple Network APPLES & PEARS Volume 2 No 9 Non-members £2 Autumn 2015 Apple pruning - Swedish style See page 6 Reviving the old varieties of apples and pears in the marcher counties www.marcherapple.net www.marcherapple.net Apples & Pears Autumn 2015 Apples &www.marcherapple.net Pears Autumn 2015 MAN’s official business: Chairman’s report AGM 2015 inform and entertain us to further things? Identification refresher course We held our 21st AGM at the Cider Museum Suggestions to Ainsleigh or David membsec@ We may just be able to get Apples and Pears in Hereford on Saturday 27th June. There marcherapple.net . distributed in time for you to have late notice of were 23 members present. Andy Pillow and an ID refresher day planned for Tredomen on Ainsleigh Rice reported that our orchards had This year we tested having the AGM in early 19th September. All members are welcome been pruned and finances were satisfactory. summer before the “holiday” season, instead to attend, please let Marie Ward know if you MAN participated at six Autumn shows and one of the traditional late Autumn time. Before intend to join, [email protected] Spring event in the eight-month financial year; making any decision, Committee would like to 01497-847847. The session would be guided at the Autumn shows and regular ID sessions know what timing is preferable to members? by Mike Porter and John Savidge, looking the identity of 375 apples were considered, at apples in their habitat as well as in The about the average over the last six years. Two Harp “cutting room” and using this this more successful courses were held during February, Courses complete information for guiding identification. on winter pruning and grafting (see below). Pruning Also an application to Environment Wales had We love our apple trees! On St. Valentine ’s Day been made requesting money to cover travel last there was a pruning course at Tredomen Website and also drainage works at Paramor; recently led by Paul Davis of Dolau-hirion nursery. Much With Richard Wheeler’s kindly guidance and we heard this was granted. Membership is enthusiasm, goodwill and excitement was assistance we’ve begun to upgrade the MAN about 280, and work on the new Website generated; before we knew it, over 40 t rees Website. Progress is not rapid, slower than was discussed. Members re-elected the had been pruned by these enthusiasts. And the ripening of a late apple. But Richard’s three retiring Directors, Jim Chapman, Jackie then they came back for week-end learning- handiwork is as good. Six of about 40 pages Denman, Sir Andrew Large. They also adopted consolidation sessions too. And another 80 done: Home, Events, Nurseries, Orchards, the annual report and accounts and accepted trees were pruned. We’re most grateful. A Bromyard and Newsletters. If you look at the proposal to have accounts examined by an nice outcome was that two of the pruning party Newsletters you’ll see all back numbers of the Accountant. were just getting interested in bee-keeping; Spring News Sheet for 2008, 2010-15 and they agreed to share experiences. Apples and Pears Autumn Newsletters 1995- After the formal business, we had a scintillating 2012. So you can now read them while you talk by Paul Davis. He told us of his 20 years Grafting are on holiday. We are not adding the last two and more experience of the pros and cons Two weeks later we held our third grafting years of Newsletters to website to ensure that of different apple varieties, soils, climate course in Glasbury Hall. Again Tom Adams Membership confers some exclusivity. All this and rootstocks. As we’ve all discovered, inspired them, all 17, to feel confidant wielding wonder work with thanks to Richard Wheeler, there is no right answer but that some are the knife and selecting what they’d like to watch who is now living in Kent and to Celia Kirby for rather less likely to go wrong. Generally if a growing over the years. arranging back-number scanning of Apples combination of variety and rootstock works and Pears. at his nursery near Llandeilo with its shallow claggy soil, then it is likely to be OK in the Thanks to James wider Welsh Marches region. While he had And may I express fulsome thanks some successes and failures on MM111 and to James Bailey who has often very M116, he generally found M9, M26, MM106 kindly been willing to photocopy and M25 dependable. Disease, including documents sometimes at short phytophora, was always a risk, and soil with notice, such as News Sheets, quite good drainage and good top dressing Events list and AGM papers. We for weed suppression, are really important are most fortunate to have such for giving trees a good start. Standing water help. in winter is a “disaster”. As many of you will know Paul is an expert at pruning and emphasised how important formative pruning is for maintain good health. Several members noted their trees in the Welsh Marches region had suffered some frost damage, but Paul had not seen any in his, showing how local climate variation and timing changes. There proceeded a lively discussion for another half an hour, and later it was still heard going strong in corridors, stairwells and the restaurant. And after such a scintillating talk from Paul Davis, who can we invite next year to encourage 2 Apples & Pears Autumn 2015 I thought you’d like to see my latest friend. In my garden, both a damson and a number of apple trees have hosted aphids this year. So such a friend gave me much pleasure. And the next day it was multiplied when I saw a flock of long tailed tits on the damson chirping excitedly as if saying” thank for the nuts last winter, as tasty as these aphids”. While on holiday on Vancouver Island visiting family, I was with my 96-year old cousin who lives on her own in the house that she built with her husband 70 years ago. In her back garden, of similar age, they planted Gravenstein and Rymers (see picture on right). They’ve been prolific over the years, but now look a little tired, not least because black-tail deer have become even more common urban residents than are foxes in the UK. Stephen Ainsleigh Rice Chairman Our Spring Social Event – 25th April 2015 It really was a very sociable event at the in cider making, not only in the Marches, but to hear of modern developments: no doubt Hereford Cider Museum – MAN members also across The Pond. Luckily our event had helping our taste-buds to appreciate the meeting each other, finding out a little more coincided with a visit to Herefordshire by old flavours as well as the new. We are so detail and catching up with what’s happening two young cider makers from Pennsylvania, fortunate to have these local independent to orchards and fruit in the various parts of who combined with Tom in bringing tastes of cider makers continuing our area’s traditions. our Marches area – all very enjoyable. We their work and experimental draughts for us There was time for a bit of “keeping-us- are such a wide-spread organisation that to share. up-to-date” with Chairman Ainsleigh Rice some “Function” is needed occasionally to help and Treasurer Andy Pillow. Some of the us connect with each other and with what is Collaborative ciders from Herefordshire and the organisational changes were outlined - items happening in members’ local areas. “Angry Orchard” Pennsylvania demonstrated which will be followed up at MAN’s AGM, being a new world of cider making. Apples from held in June, this year. This year Tom Oliver, he of cider expertise, Herefordshire like Dabinett, Foxwhelp and gave us insight on what is currently happening Yarlington Mill were being combined with those Then - refreshments! Charlie Searl, one of from the Hudson Valley, MAN’s new recruits to the Committee, was New York and a Bittersweet in charge of these. Her car arrived with a concentrate from France tempting assortment of delicacies. Most to produce new distinctive members felt it was worth staying a little cider products. We tasted longer to talk whilst sampling these. Tea and 5 very different types Apple Juice from MAN orchards now took including a champagne over from cider tasting. All of which helped to perry, a special Gold Medal make MAN’s Social Event 2015 really one to awarded “Gold Rush” cider remember. and, unbelievably, a Hop Cider, which because of Our grateful thanks must go to all responsible its higher alcohol content for organising it. a higher tax has to be paid! It certainly was very Chris Porter interesting (and enjoyable!) 3 Apples & Pears Autumn 2015 Apples & Pears Autumn 2015 Marcher apples of the 1600s Much is written and known about apples and other fruit-growing from the 1800s onwards Pomonas: he lists nearly 80 varieties, some and old English have been largely kept with a through the works of Robert Hogg and with descriptions. Checking those varieties few exceptions where they are modernised to subsequent Pomonas and reference books, against those still listed today is tricky due improve sentence structure. but to discover something from nearly 200 to spelling variations in the old English and earlier than Hogg is of great interest, especially the Synonym factor; some of his list may be Today nothing remains of John Rea’s nursery, when it originates from our region. For it varieties we know today by another name.