What's Going On: March 2012

All on one day we tended to the trees at Wilsons’ Orchard in nearly every possible way. The day had actually started the previous day when additional saplings were taken down ready to plant. (And so were tea, coffee etc and a Kelly’s Kettle and some more spades. And it had started before that as well with the ‘capture’ of stakes ready for the hedge-laying. The ‘We tended’ phrase needs explaining: ‘We’, this time, was a mixture of those attending the first part of the SCE Hedge-laying course, plus a group of Occupational Therapists volunteering for some tree-planting, and, need we say, all the six ‘usual suspects’ from South Court itself. Plus a curious horse (unplanned.)

And ‘tending’ the trees was many and various: There were trees to plant, trees to transplant, a tree-nursery to establish, hedge-trees to lay and – unfortunately – another great branch from our elderly apple tree part-fallen but still attached: A very full range of tree activities, in fact.

The trees to be laid were those same Hawthorn we planted a decade ago, the very first tree-planting we ever did there, when the orchard was newly ours. Back then they came up to our knees whereas now it was vice versa; them towering over our heads.

We started with an introductory review of the wider field of hedge-laying round Britain and a similar introduction to Health and Safety and another to the tools of the trade. We had brought along our (large) ‘sample collection’ of bill-hooks, plus some other tools, to show the diversity within hedge-laying practices.

But before long Tony lead the way into the hedge and all got cracking, or rather pleaching, with considerable success and considerable satisfaction too.

Meanwhile the tree-planters, lead in their endeavours by Chris, Graham and Susan, mopped up a whole range of tasks.
First the remaining gapping in of hedges was completed with Hawthorn plus a smattering of other tree varieties to make our hedge rows yet more diverse.

Then the nursery was prepared, and then finally ..

.. some of our previously planted fruit trees were moved to the nursery as a temporary home. This is because the area they had been in is now destined to become a maze (literally) of banks, dead-hedges, growing hedges and sunken paths and we need complete access to that area uninterrupted by tree-lets at present.

Mid-day cuppas and various guided walks round the orchard were not quite enough in the way of rest-periods for everyone involved. But it was easy-going enough for anyone in need of a break to just take one. However these folk weren’t resting in their tree-planting. Instead they were simply waiting for a bottle-neck to clear so that the next lot of young more trees could be transplanted. When the overcast day started slithering into dimpsy light, we all reluctantly packed away and left, by bike, by foot and other less petrol-free ways. We did so knowing there’s much more to do and almost no time to do it in. The sap is rising now and this sort of work must end until next year. And the year after, and ….

… but by then the layed hedge will be looking very handsome indeed and the trees in the
tree nursery will have been replaced by other new-comers. You must come and see what you think of it all. And
maybe ….

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