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.

Hedge End Apple Picknik

I had been checking regularly on the apple trees close to my work place, in Hedge End. I thought they were beginning to look ripe enough to pick. The trees are full of fruit this year; the hot summer sunshine obviously helped the apples as much as it did our summer holidays.

Most of these trees are eating apples, there are many different types and colours but there are a few cookers scattered amongst them. I don’t know where they originated from but after consulting old maps, it seems that there used to be a farm on this land.

The weather looked good enough on the day, so we called around to a few friends and rounded up the children. Despite a drizzly start to the afternoon, the sun soon broke cover and warmed the air.

The adults set about the trees with telescopic pickers while the children scampered up amongst the branches like squirrels; soon the buckets and bags were filling up nicely.

There was so much abundance that it was hard to know where to start collecting at first. Soon though the arms began to ache and the buckets got heavier to drag around; our family took home about 30Kgs in the end, which was a great result.

By the time we decided to stop picking apples, the kids were already on the field, playing football. We had a quick foray into the hazel bushes and filled our bags with lots of lovely big hazelnuts before setting off for home.

On our return, I set about sorting the best apples into our store in the shed; it’s nearly full now and our stock should see us safely through the winter. The rest of the fruit will either be eaten soon (the Head Chef cooked a delicious Blackberry and Apple pie on Sunday night) or turned into juice and cider.

Common Sense Picknik

It was the weekend of the Autumnal Equinox and there had been a rather splendid harvest moon the night before. Now it was overcast but warm.

A couple of weeks earlier, we had been on a bike ride to check out the big apple tree on the Little Common. It was loaded but the apples were not quite ripe yet, so we planned to come back soon.

On our return we bought a small group of friends along to help us pick some fruit and generally have a run and ride about. There was a large amount of windfalls on the floor when we arrived.

I guess we must have spent an hour or two picking, chatting and catching the big apples that were thrown down out of the venerable tree.  The kids ran about making the most of the last Blackberries too. After Michaelmas day they should not be picked as the Devil has (allegedly) spat on them.

Southampton Common is a very pleasant environment to pick fruit in and several passers-by stopped to see what we were up to and comment on our activities. There was even a report of another big tree that we need to check out soon.

In the end we picked about 46 Kgs of beautiful apples, the best of which will go into store for the winter months; the remainders will go into the cider press! 

Even with our harvest haul, the bulk of fruit was still left on the tree, there is also plenty on the ground for anyone without pickers.

Red Devils at St. Mary’s

The first apples and pears of our 2013 harvest were picked in September from the mediaeval churchyard of St Mary’s in Swathling.

Naturally, we got permission from the parish guardians first; then we popped down to the delightful little church with our pickers.

The children were keen to get stuck into the job and first set about getting as many pears as they could. These were only small fruits but nicely ripe and many had already fallen to the ground so there was a risk of getting a soft one on the head!

Gary, the previous Vicar, called the apples Red Devils, because of the fruits colour. They have a dusky bloom when first picked but they polish up beautifully. Interestingly, the ruby colouring of the skin carries through to the flesh of these apples; this adds an interesting pink tint to the juice when they are pressed.

The Red Devils are lovely, sweet fruit but some had pitting and there was not a great many to pick. So, it was a fast, pre-dinner foray and we were soon home again with our fresh fruit. After eating, we were treated to the first Blackberry and apple crumble of the year.

The apples in Fleming Park leisure centre car park, are currently weighing down the tree branches, and they have a similar pinkish flesh. Maybe we will nip over there and pick a couple of buckets full to make some rosy pink cider…

Up the Apple & Pears

A Lovely Big hedgerow Apple Tree

Now is the easiest time to spot fruit trees in the hedgerows and parks and common land, even if you do not have much knowledge of tree types. This weekend we stopped under a small but florid crab apple tree to shelter from the April rain (this is certainly the wettest drought I’ve ever seen). The prolific buzzing of bees in the canopy made a welcome change from the constant background drone of traffic.

A Great Spot For A Picnic; by a Canal, with Free Fruit and Walnuts

Apple and pear trees are coming into bloom and the blossom will be abundant, which is why, like, Cherries, they are sometimes planted as ornamental trees.

Apple

Many countries celebrate the flowering of fruit trees in Spring. It is a time of rejuvenation and transformation.

Pear

So, when you next spot a tree covered in flowers, take time to look a little closer and see if you can identify what fruit it will bear.

Apple

Structurally, apple and pear trees can look similar although pears tend to be taller and more upright in their growth. Apple trees often show signs of previous pruning but if they have been neglected they can get very gnarled and busy.

Apple

The flowers of pear trees do look similar and both trees begin to grow leaves before flowers but the buds of apple blossom are often tinged with pink; whereas pears are likely to be pure white

The easiest way to determine apple from pear, before the fruit is visible, is by examining the leaves. Pear leaves are more pointed in shape and have a more sharply serrated edge. Apple leaves have more gentle serrations around the edges and a more rounded appearance.

Pear

Of course there are many diverse varieties within any type of fruit tree, so differences will always need to be accounted for. The Urbane Forager’s free Seasonal id Sheets are still available for download to your computer and printing off for convenience…

The Lost Orchard Of Hedge End

When I wander around Hedge End during my lunch hours, I often locate new fruit trees.

Spring is the best time to find trees which may bear fruit later on. The blossom is beautiful and is associated deep within in our psyche with romance and rejuvenation.

I found an area in a local park that was quite literally swarming with apple trees. It must have once been an old farm orchard that has been forgotten. Last year I made quite a lot of cider out of these apples and kept loads for eating through the winter too.

Other people do use the trees that are near the carpark but my picker allows me to reach the higher fruits.

It’s great fun working out which apples are the tastiest and which will keep best during winter.

Generally, I find that the earlier fruits are softer and the later/hardest fruits keep best.

People often ask me if I know what the different varieties of apple are but I niether know nor really care. Maybe one day I will have enough free time to learn a bit more about naming the fruits but for now, I'm happy to locate, pick and use them. These are mostly eating apples.

There are a couple that look Russetty but they do not taste similar at all. Almost all of the fruits are good to eat.

These red / green stripy ones are the crunchy and sweet winners in my opinion. They also keep very well.

All of these different varieties of trees can be found in a public park within an area of about 100 meters. I'm pleased to see that other people do pick them a bit more now but there are a lot still left on the trees.