Young Plums (Go For it!)

Beetroot, Pear and Walnut Salad

My wife made a deliciously zingy and very healthy salad, using Beetroot, Pear and Walnut, she also added thinly sliced Turnip, Avocado, crisp Watercress and leaves of Jack by the hedge (Garlic Mustard), from the garden. I supplied the Walnuts and added some Hazelnuts for fun; these nuts were gathered last year during October and September, they keep very well in cool, dry conditions. Apples will also last throughout the Winter, if you store them well.

Walnuts and Hazelnuts

The recent heatwave has kept me out of the midday sun and I decided it was high time to pick the Elderflowers that I have been planning to make champagne with. I got on my bike before it got too hot and cycled over to the local park, beside the river. I got a heady citrus waft off the flowers, as I approached from downwind. I filled my bag in a matter of minutes, getting covered in yellow pollen in the process.

Elder Tree in Flower

The other simple ingredients are Water, Lemons, Sugar, and a dash of White Wine Vinegar. By the time you have this little lot mixed together in a bucket, the kitchen smells terrific and gives you a strong taste of things to come. It is left (covered) in the bucket for 2 days, then the debris is filtered out and the liquid transferred into demijohns for fermentation.

Ready for Fermentation

After a couple of weeks the fermentation should have slowed down enough for bottling in Pressure Safe Bottles - but a word of caution... If fermentation continues too much under pressure, you might, at best, lose half of your lovely Elderflower Champagne all over the room where you open it. Far more dangerous, would be exploding glass bottles, so please, do keep a regular eye on anything you have bottled and always use suitable Pressure Safe Bottles!

Green Cherries

Ongoing observations include, keeping your eyes pealed for immature fruit. If you have identified a likely tree by its blossom, revisit it later, to see if any young fruits are developing. I have already seen young Plums, green Cherries, and tiny Apples and Pears; regular checking will keep you in tune with seasonal developments and ensure you are ready as fruit ripens. I recently noticed Fennel growing out of pavements in the city.

Fennel

Nasturtium are starting to grow in the garden, these are one of the most likeable garden flowers. The leaves and flowers can be eaten, or added to a salad to liven it up. They taste peppery, a bit like Rocket or Water-Cress. The Latin name, Nasturtium, translates as "Twisted Nose!"

Nasturtium 

Autumn Arrives

Autumn has arrived and with it the normal flurry of fruit and nut based foraging activity. Recently we have been collecting Sweet Chestnuts and toasting them in an old syrup tin inside our garden fire. Perfect for those chilly evenings as the dark season approaches.

There are still plenty of delicious Apples in the trees and we have been out gathering extra stocks for Apple Bobbing and other All Hallows/Guy Fawkes based events and activities.

We have picked close to 300Kgs of Apples this year, a new family record but there are still lots of trees, filled with fruit, out there that we have not tapped into. Remember that the later Apples tend to be harder, more dense and these fruits will be better for keeping throughout the Winter. Our store is already over-flowing.

The colours of Autumn are always a pleasure to behold and this is a great time for a walk in the woods in order to fully appreciate the russet/red/gold spectrum that is waiting for us, out in the wilds.

Crab Apples are still available for collecting in their thousands, they can be red, yellow or green. There is of course a true bounty of wonderful preserves and drinks that can be made with Crab Apples.

Whilst we wonder at the mists and mellow fruitfulness of our Autumnal world, the leaves are turning to gold and falling, flickering from the darkening branches, spiralling down to the roots that poke through the ground like bones of the earth. 

Each yellow/brown leaf is a wonder in its-self and it is all too easy to miss this beauty. So, take the time to appreciate the detail. Pause your busy life. Go out for a wander (not a march), You do not need a car, you do not need a plan; even the city holds beauty in its roadsides and parks.

And don't forget those Apples! There are loads left and they are free for the taking. Check out the Falling Fruit map and zoom in to your area. This picture here was taken in the Makro Supermarket car park in late October and we have already had about 30 Kgs off this tree. 

Family Eat Ancient Apples!

In our latest shocking news we have finally finished using the Apples that we picked last September! This nine month old fruit was turned into apple-sauce to accompany a splendid roast dinner.

This may come as a surprise to people who are used to buying apples with a sell-by date stamped on the cellophane wrappers, but some types of freshly picked Apples can keep for several months, given the right conditions.

We picked over 200 KGs last year, for free, from urban trees around our city and then stored them in our lovely old wooden apple-cupboard that lives in my garden shed.

The bucket-loads of apples that would not fit into the store were crushed, pressed and Pasteurised, turning them into into several gallons of delicious juice which, I'm pleased to report, we are still glugging down now and couple of gallons of golden cider, which have already been heartily consumed.

However, you do not need a lovely wooden apple cupboard to make apple keep for a long time. My mum still keeps hers in greengrocers boxes wrapped up in old newspaper and, to be honest, this method works just as well and actually makes it easier to remove any bad apples to the compost heap.

Favourite Fruits

We pick a lot of Apples every Autumn, this year I weighed them all and we have already gathered well over 200 Kgs. A lot of these are varieties that are either not especially good for eating or perhaps not good for keeping, but I always keep a special memo in my mind of my favourite trees. These beauties are the best tasting apples that also keep well in our Apple store and we will still be using them well into next year.

The newest gem I have discovered was rescued from a small hedgerow tree in Segensworth. They have a lovely pastel colour, a slightly waxy skin burst with tangy flavour when you eat them.  They are very juicy,  with a fresh aromatic taste. The flesh of these tasty Apples also has a pink tint. My greengrocer friend said it looks quite like a Discovery Apple. I think the tree is quite a discovery...

The Hedge End Red and Yellow is an iconic red and yellow fruit with some interesting shapes and frequently knobbly exterior. Despite the bumpy appearance, upon biting into these fruits one immediately realises that you are in the presence of something special. A soft and delicate skin and a beautifully textured, crisp, sweet, crunchy flesh. The perfect combination of sharp and sweet; truly scrumptious.

Another Hedge End fruit is the imaginatively named (by me) Red and Green. A firm, crunchy Apple with a distinctive red and green stripy skin. These mature slightly later than some and they keep very well through the Winter. Unfortunately the tree has grown very tall, and it is hard to reach the fruit, even with our pickers. The birds seem to enjoy pecking them too and this is no surprise when you bite into their firm flavoursome flesh. They are so treasured that I will even keep the ones with small pecks and cut the nibbles out prior to eating.

We have also been harvesting at our allotment, we collected enough sweet corn for a quick snack, enough squash to feed an army and my son has managed to grow enough grapes to make a few bottles of wine (he probably would prefer grape juice I guess). Our own little Apple trees is finally coming through with the goods too.

Mansbridge Community Orchard Funding News

We Need More of These

We are very happy to announce that the Mansbridge Community Orchard has received a generous amount of financial backing from the Southampton Airport Community Fund.

We Always Need More Funding and Volunteers

We will use the money to purchase tools, training and equipment for use in the orchard and other orchard related projects. Primarily we will buy fruit picking and processing equipment (like a shiny new apple mill and cider press) but we will also invest in tree pruning training and tools.

We Need More of These

Fruit tree renovation can be a lengthy process; this is because it can only be done by degrees and during certain periods of the year. Given the number of trees in the Mansbridge Community Orchard (around 50), we believe that five years is a fairly optimistic target, for returning the majority of the trees to good health.

We Need More of These

 Last year was spent clarifying our position, mapping the area as well as keeping most of the brambles and ivy out of the easily accessible trees. All the efforts culminated in a wonderful Apple Day event, organised by the Southampton Woodcraft Folk, who have taken on an active role within the orchard.

We Need More of These

The Southampton Airport Community Fund has also promised us volunteers. We will organise another introductory Orchard Blossom Walk, when the trees come into flower (around April-May). Around this time, we will also set up a meeting for anyone else keen to get involved.

Cider House Rules

It has been a bad year for fruit and fruit trees generally but by using our map to remind us we still managed to pick plenty of apples to store and crush into juice. Apple picking and cider making are quintessential autumnal activities and I look forward to these days each year. 

We do offer a cropping service whereby, if people ask us, we will come and pick apples that they would otherwise not use.

Our friends Craig and Rachel, offered us the bulk of the apples on the trees in their garden; on tree was full of cookers and the other, a lovely knobbly old tree had delicious Coxian eaters.

That morning, with the enthusiastic help of the children, we had soon plucked about 40Kgs of apples, which in my book means only one thing, an afternoon of apple pressing.

This year I have invested in a small apple scratter, which Craig and I soon had clamped onto my battered old workmate.

Then in a whirlwind of communal effort (apple pressing is a very social event), we began the process…

One person chopping the apples and cutting out any bad bits (any parts that you would not like to eat but the skin and core is fine to leave in).

The next job was cranking the handle on the scratter and carefully feeding the hopper with more apples.

When the bucket was full enough, we then empty it into the press and the children turn the screw as far down as they can, before handing over to the strong arms of the adults.

The juice is collected in a bucket and I wanted 5 gallons of it because that is the size of my barrel.

That afternoon, after cleaning up all the equipment (we did achieve our goal); I cycled over to Shirley, where I had been invited to another sociable apple pressing.

Members of the Southampton Slow Club had deployed our fruit map in order to locate and pick a dustbin full of apples and hired a lovely big scratter and press from Ashurst Community Centre. I couldn't stay too long but they were a friendly bunch that were having great fun and making very rapid progress.

Hedge End Apples

One of my Favourite Trees

As if on cue, the weather suddenly shifted as the Autumnal Equinox fell. The Indian summer we had been enjoying turned cold, windy and wet.

Official Taster

Fortunately, we made the most of the last sunshine on Saturday by nipping out to Hedge End to pick some more apples.

Each Apple is off a Different Tree

There are several trees in this location and although it has been a bad year generally for fruit, some trees have still managed to do the business.

10Kg Small Cider Makeweight Apples

We will be storing nice apples for the winter months and converting any that are not good enough into apple juice or cider.

13.5 Kg Bucket-Load of Different Varieties

Past experience has demonstrated which trees grow the tastiest eaters and the best cooking keepers.

12 Kg Best Eaters for the Apple Store

Having said this, we are not fussy with our fruit; we know that knobbly apples can conceal the sweetest flavour and the fruit that is the sharpest to savour, crushes to create the coolest cider.

One Half of the Apple Store Filled

We filled our boot with a healthy 35.5 Kg…

Apples of the Equinox

There are two lovely little apple trees by the junction of Dukes Rd and Thomas Lewis Way. I’ve often noticed them but every time someone picks all the apples very early in the season.

This year, after we noted the trees had been cropped, I returned to mop up the survivors. The original picker lacked either the tools or the determination to gather the hard to reach fruit.

I had to prune away some brambles in order to reach the apples but they were an interesting looking fruit and I gathered about 8 Kg. Sadly, I saw that some idiot had dumped and smashed a china basin by the tree; the effort required complete this criminal act would be about the same as disposing of it legally.

I did notice that some crab-apples were grafted onto one of the trees. I believe this old practice is intended to provide a small supply of more-tart fruit, to improve the cider making or cooking process. It is a sure sign that someone who knows their onions, once cared about the tree. I always grab a couple for good luck; I firmly believe in preserving arcane lore, especially when it comes to apple trees.

The Autumnal Equinox falls this weekend and I intend to pick a regular boot-full of apples (that’s a car boot, not a wellington), in Hedge End. The best fruit will be stored for the winter months and the less tasty crop will go toward the imminent cider making season!