Blog

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

    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 the National Orchard Inventory for Scotland.

    Other speakers include:

    David Atkinson, Falkland Estate

    Roger Humphry, Carse of Gowrie Group

    Andrew Lear, Appletreeman

    Colin Wren, National Trust for Scotland

    The day includes talks, a light lunch, and guided walks of the orchard at Megginch, which comprise over 1,400 trees in the two National Collections housed in the Orchard, led by owner Catherine Drummond-Herdman.

    COST: £30.00 – SGLH Members / £40.00 – Non-members.

    BOOKING: The study day poster (below) includes payment details. The deadline for booking is 11 October 2024.

  • Police Scotland Advice for ‘Raids’ on Community Orchard Crops

    Police Scotland Advice for ‘Raids’ on Community Orchard Crops

    Bag of Bloody Ploughman apples and fruit picker

    Increasingly over the past few years, community groups and organisations across Scotland are experiencing dismay and anger over an assault on a valuable and much-loved community asset – the community orchard, or more specifically, the orchard fruit crop in the autumn.

    Reports have been circulating across Social Media and in local orchard networks, that people have been picking the trees bare of their crops, regardless of whether the fruit is ripe. Community members have witnessed vans parked in or by orchards, with trays of fruit in the back, and the owner/occupants in the process of stripping the trees. In some instances, they have been asked not to pick all of the fruit, and to leave some for the rest of the community. Sadly, the requests were ignored, and the fruit disappears without anyone else getting a chance to bake even a fruit pie.

    Community orchards are held dear by many communities. Volunteers give freely of their time for days, weeks, months, and even years to nurture the trees, and involve their community in celebratory events such as wassailing, blossom days, and apple days. To see the products of their hard work fall to only one or two people, is, understandably galling and disheartening.

    Orchard Revival has been in touch with Police Scotland to make them aware that this issue has been, and is still live, and to ask advice should any communities experience this unwanted state of affairs.

    Police Scotland also said that they will notify the Community Policing Teams across Scotland and if any community members report any of the above issues, these teams will log any incidents to determine whether there is an emerging pattern of criminal behaviour.

    Underpinning the police’s advice, is the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 (As enacted), and 2016, (As revised), which gives everyone a statutory right of responsible access to most land and inland water in Scotland. To quote the Scottish Outdoor Access Code – Public access to Scotland’s outdoors Your rights and responsibilities, “People only have these rights if they exercise them responsibly by respecting people’s privacy, safety and livelihoods, and Scotland’s environment. Equally, land managers have to manage their land and water responsibly in relation to access rights.” So, anyone can access the orchards and pick the fruit, as long as they behave responsibly.

    To most community orchard managers, accessing the orchard and stripping the fruit in one fell swoop might not seem like responsible access, but those who are doing it, are not committing any offence….are they?!

    There are certain circumstances where access rights do not apply (Bullet point 7, Part 2 – Access Rights of The Scottish Outdoor Access Code) and according to Police Scotland, some of these exceptions are ones to look out for. They are listed below, with the relevant police advice:

    • “being on or crossing land for the purpose of doing anything which is an offence, such as theft, breach of the peace, nuisance, poaching, allowing a dog to worry livestock, dropping litter, polluting water or disturbing certain wild birds, animals and plants”.

    Police advice: If the person/s picking the fruit become threatening, abusive, violent or intimidatory, then call the police.

    • “any form of motorised recreation or passage (except by people with a disability using a vehicle or vessel adapted for their use)”

    Police advice: Take the registration number of any vehicles and report it to 101, or Crimestoppers (0800 555 111, or Crimestoppers anonymously online)

    • “anyone taking away anything from the land for a commercial purpose”.

    Police advice: It might be difficult to prove, but report it if you have reason to suspect this might be happening.

    Our thanks to Police Scotland for their advice.

  • “Pistils at Dawn” – Blossom Time Poetry Inspiration

    Blossom Day is nearly here, and to inspire people to celebrate this wonder of nature, James Crowden, poet, cider-maker, and cider historian, has written some beautiful poems for Orchard Blossom Day.

    James recites these poems on YouTube with a background of wonderful orchard video footage. Enjoy!

  • NTS Priorwood First Off the Mark!

    Congratulations to the National Trust for Scotland Priorwood for registering the first blossom event to be registered for Scotland on the UK map! More…

  • Orchard Blossom Time Webinar – 21 February 2024

    For anyone interested in participating in Orchard Blossom Day (and Orchard Blossom Season activities), and if you missed the first one, there’s a second chance to attend a free webinar on Wednesday, 21 February 2023 at 18:00 by PTES and Orchard Network. More…

  • Blossom Time 2024

    A bumble bee gathering nectar on apple blossom

    UK Orchard Blossom Time in Scotland

    We are excited to bring you news of the UK Orchard Blossom Day, around the last week in April, or whenever your blossom looks at its best!

    This will be the third year of the celebration, but this year will be the first time it will have been actively promoted in Scotland.

    We’re joining with the organisers (People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) and the UK Orchard Network) to bring you news, ideas, and inspiration to get you involved, whether you have trees in your gardens, are a community orchard group, local food group, or commercial producer.

    Get involved in the new annual celebration of fruit trees, flowers and food!

    Celebrate orchards as magical places for people and nature, but also a source of healthy local food.

    More on our Blossom Day 2024 page.

  • Variety ID – using DNA

    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

  • Scottish Scything Festival

    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
  • Monimail apple day

    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

  • Clips from BBC Radio Scotland piece

    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.

    Sue Pomeroy (Local Facilitator for the Inventory in the West Highlands) on remote orchards surveyed and crofting interest in fruit trees

    Kate Holl (SNH Project Officer for Inventory) on biodiversity and benefits of orchards

    Ron Gillies ( Cairn o’Mhor Winery) on making King Jimmy cider

    Kate on different fruit and nuts grown in orchards

    Ron with a guileful plug for his cider – how far apart to plant your trees

    All clips copyright BBC 2018