A wooden sign reading 'Berry Fields Orchard' stands in front of a group of apple trees in a grassy area, with larger woodland trees in the background.

A map of Birmingham, UK, heat-shaded in tones of green to indicate where the highest concentrations of publicly accessible fruit trees in the city can be found.

A map of the Stirchley area of Birmingham, UK, with coloured dots showing where publicly accessible fruit trees have been planted.

A man (Lawrence Weston) wearing a green t-shirt, brown trousers, a bucket hat and sunglasses stands with arms akimbo amongst a group of fruit trees in a grassy orchard.

A real treat on the blog today, a guest post by Lawrence Weston of Clent Hills Orchards, on a recently completed project to identify, record, and map every one of the publicly accessible fruit trees in Birmingham, UK.

17 species, over 1,600 trees, full details here: orchardnotes.com/2026/04/03/g...

Here is a poem about a very old Pear Tree, Ma Dame Pyrus, which was a delightful discovery when I purchased the house with a small old orchard. Hope you enjoy it@ciderreview.bsky.social @rosscider.bsky.social @orchardnotes.com @barmas.bsky.social

Lovely. I enjoyed the imagery of "gone to ground and bletted out in soil", very evocative of fallen fruit in a late autumn orchard.

Blimey. Brits abroad, eh? 🙂

Marmalade to be rebranded in post-Brexit food deal The breakfast favourite will be legally renamed when Britain aligns with new EU labelling rules.

What's in a name?

Historically, this sort of fruit preserve has had a few different names in England - marmelade, marmalade, marmalute - and has been made from various types of fruit: orange, quince, cherry, apple, apricot, gooseberry etc.

@ciderreview.bsky.social Just racked off the 2025 perry and cider, and another year’s cycle begins again!

Thank you 😊

Apple buds just beginning to break open in spring.

Apple blossom unfurling

An apple fruitlet, surrounded by leaves.

A 'Herefordshire Russet' apple glowing in the sunshine.

It's very nearly apple blossom season in our neck of the woods, so it seems like a good time to re-post the photo essay I put together in 2023:

'Lifecycle of an Apple, From Bud to Blossom to Fruit'

orchardnotes.com/2023/03/28/l...

Many, many more photos via the link.

#apples #blossom #fruit

A horizontal branch with clusters of white pear blossom against a brick wall.

A blackthorn bush, covered in masses of white flowers.

A close-up of three pale pink nectarine flowers, against a brick wall.

Clusters of bright white damson blossom in an orchard.

Anyone for a few dozen early spring blossom pics? I've got apricot, peach, nectarine, pear, plum, greengage, damson, cherry, Japanese quince, and blackthorn... small selection below, plenty more on the blog:

orchardnotes.com/2026/03/31/g...

A wooden sign reading 'Berry Fields Orchard' stands in front of a group of apple trees in a grassy area, with larger woodland trees in the background.

A map of Birmingham, UK, heat-shaded in tones of green to indicate where the highest concentrations of publicly accessible fruit trees in the city can be found.

A map of the Stirchley area of Birmingham, UK, with coloured dots showing where publicly accessible fruit trees have been planted.

A man (Lawrence Weston) wearing a green t-shirt, brown trousers, a bucket hat and sunglasses stands with arms akimbo amongst a group of fruit trees in a grassy orchard.

A real treat on the blog today, a guest post by Lawrence Weston of Clent Hills Orchards, on a recently completed project to identify, record, and map every one of the publicly accessible fruit trees in Birmingham, UK.

17 species, over 1,600 trees, full details here: orchardnotes.com/2026/04/03/g...

Hope to see you all at the Molewood Apple festival tomorrow in Greytown Wairarapa this Easter. The weather will be perfect. Teepee Cider has a stall. #cider #festival

Three very old Bramley apple trees with mixed daffodils beneath. It's important to conserve old fruit trees even when you are redesigning gardens for people

Apple buds just beginning to break open in spring.

Apple blossom unfurling

An apple fruitlet, surrounded by leaves.

A 'Herefordshire Russet' apple glowing in the sunshine.

It's very nearly apple blossom season in our neck of the woods, so it seems like a good time to re-post the photo essay I put together in 2023:

'Lifecycle of an Apple, From Bud to Blossom to Fruit'

orchardnotes.com/2023/03/28/l...

Many, many more photos via the link.

#apples #blossom #fruit

A horizontal branch with clusters of white pear blossom against a brick wall.

A blackthorn bush, covered in masses of white flowers.

A close-up of three pale pink nectarine flowers, against a brick wall.

Clusters of bright white damson blossom in an orchard.

Anyone for a few dozen early spring blossom pics? I've got apricot, peach, nectarine, pear, plum, greengage, damson, cherry, Japanese quince, and blackthorn... small selection below, plenty more on the blog:

orchardnotes.com/2026/03/31/g...

Planting an Orchard in an Age of Change Barry looks back at what led him to plant an orchard of rare and endangered perry pear varieties, and worries for the future.

Was just reminded, two years ago I published this, about my experience and worries after planting a new orchard in an age of change. And I still worry about it!

I need to update our project pages on the Kertelreiter website, as a lot has happened since then.

A woman up in an apple tree pruning - photo credit: The Mirror

I want to honour my lovely friend Evelyn Adams - wise founder of @transitionfidalgo.bsky.social - by sharing her beautiful story with a hummingbird: 1/7🧵

“So there I was, up in the Jonagold pruning branches, when an Anna’s hummingbird suddenly joined me. I welcomed her and pruned on, puzzled….

This month, Manchester Cider Club is delighted to welcome @artistrawcider.bsky.social , the Herefordshire-based natural cidermakers whose thoughtful, low-intervention approach has earned widespread praise from drinkers and critics alike.
Tickets - thecatintheglass.co.uk/product/mcr-...

Ah, good idea. I've done a fair few skinny scions with either double-cleft or z-graft this year. Seems to have been the year for thick rootstock and thin scionwood.
Good luck!

Did you use a double cleft graft for the skinny scions on the left?

Kingston Black – A Vertical and Horizontal Exploration from Eve’s Cidery Kris Kazaks returns with a flight of Kingston Black single variety ciders from New York’s Eve’s Cidery, highlighting the diversity and complexity of flavours across different years and …

Kingston Black – A Vertical and Horizontal Exploration from Eve’s Cidery
Kris Kazaks returns with a flight of Kingston Black single variety ciders from New York’s Eve’s Cidery, highlighting the diversity and complexity of flavours across different years and locations.
#cider

roxbury russet apples, painted by ellen isham schutt, 1912

roxbury russet apples, painted by ellen isham schutt, 1912

I spent a lovely couple of days this week helping out at a Family run PYO Cherry farm in Buckinghamshire.

The trees are trained on the UFO system. UFO stands for Upright Fruiting Offshoot and is a system of growing Cherries to maximise light, yield and airflow. It also makes picking a lot easier.

fletcher russet apples, painted by elsie e. lower, 1909

fletcher russet apples, painted by elsie e. lower, 1909

CraftCon 2026 – The Taunton Edition Jack, Ian and first time contributor Anna report back on last week’s fantastic CraftCon 2026, organised by the Three Counties Cider and Perry Association.

CraftCon 2026 – The Taunton Edition

Jack, Ian and first time contributor Anna report back on last week’s fantastic CraftCon 2026, organised by the Three Counties Cider and Perry Association (@3ccpa.bsky.social)

Black and white headshot of actor Mark Rylance, smiling

Pink apple blossom on a tree

“English apple blossoms always lift my spirit. My grandfather dreamed of having an orchard when he was a prisoner during WW II; it helped him to have hope and survive. Apple trees & orchards are not just for fruit, they are for our mental health and our joy all year long,”-our Patron, Mark Rylance

We will be growing lots of new fruit at Le Manoir. Starting with Almonds.

A few tips -

🥜 They are related to peaches, so Peach leaf curl is something to look out for.

🌞 They want as much sun as you can throw at them!

Perry pear trees often have colourful names such as Startlecock, Stinking Bishop, Mumblehead, & Merrylegs. Mumblehead is named for the "mumbling" or incoherent speech that often follows after too much drinking 😵‍💫
What is your favourite?
photo of Merrylegs -National Perry
Pear Centre

The Good Food Bill - The Orchard Project A new Good Food Bill could transform the UK's food system and help protect us from the effects of climate shocks and inflation.

There are many people like us already working to make the UK's food system more resilient, but we need to do more to join up the dots. Find out why we're supporting proposals for a Good Food Bill: www.theorchardproject.org.uk/news/the-goo... #CommunityOrchards
@foodfoundation.bsky.social

Volunteers planting the native hedge.

Volunteers with spades planting the native hedge.

Volunteers adding tree guards to newly planted fruit trees.

Volunteers have added more fruit trees to Kenfig National Nature Reserve in Wales, led by our project manager, Witchhazel, and freelance orchardist, Mary. The team also planted a native hedge to help increase habitat value in the area and act as a windbreak. #CommunityOrchards

Cider from the 1630s became a drink of nobility as well as on the farm. War with France raised national fervour for the English wine or cider. Glassmaking and blowing was advancing and many fine pieces were made. If you had great cider, why not display it in a fine cider glass? #cider #glass