October weather arrives.

We had some work planned in the Turnditch Orchard this morning. When we checked the forecast at the start of the week the weather was looking reasonable, but the forecasts gradually got worse during the week. Now it looks like there will be solid rain until 2 pm. I guess bad weather in mid-October is not unexpected, years back when I ran sea scouts we'd have the boats lifted from the moorings around this time to avoid any storm damage from the sea.

One piece of work at the orchard which will be tested is the minor works we did to improve the water flow in the Ecclesbourne river. A bank of gravel had built up on our side of the river and the river was eroding the far side bank. The gravel bar in the river was formed mostly by debris following a partial bridge collapse some years ago. Much of this debris had been left on the river bed and over the years the wash down by floods had begun to accumulate. It's pointless to challenge a river on its course as it will win every time, but it is possible to suggest alternate routes and see if the river accepts them.

In the summer during low water levels we dug out a channel next our side of the gravel bar. It was a  straight channel about 7 metres long, 30 cm wide and 20 cm deep. The gravel and stone taken out was deposited at the base of the eroding bank to help provide some protection. So far the new channel seems to be working. It is now about 60 cm wide with a good flow of water through. The gravel and stone protection on the far bank has not been washed away, suggesting reduced erosion. The winter floods will be the true test, either the gravel channel will be filled or much of the bar will be washed away. We make no predictions.

Edit 14:15 Same day. The BBC Weather forecast got it wrong. Instead of six hours of rain, we had just a couple of hours and then the weather improved.

Hedge extension planning and spiling

Some of the hedges in the orchard have been removed during previous ownership. It is our plan to restore the hedges by planting new bushes along the original line of hedgerow. In a few years, when the bushes have grown large enough we'll have them laid in a traditional Derbyshire /Staffordshire manner to restore the hedge.

The first step is to raise some young plants in a nursery area on the orchard. As soon as the leaves have fallen this autumn, we'll take some hardwood cuttings to grow the replacement trees. We're planning on using a mix of Hawthorn, Hazel, Blackthorn, Elm, Ash and Oak. For the boggier areas we'll also include some Alder. We'll propagate the cuttings in pots in the nursery area with a target of 250 saplings ready planting in the next two years. We may supplement the local plants with some native Hornbeam purchased from a nursery.

During the winter 2016/17 we'll be planting more willow (Salix Verminalis) on the river bank using cuttings from the willow grove we've created in the orchard. The spilings we planted last year on the river bank near the road have been reasonably successful. This winter's planting will be in the lower section of river bank which is prone to flooding. The bank in that area is quite soft and is prone to damage from heavy agricultural vehicles used by the neighbouring farmer. When it is established, the willow root mass will help to reinforce the bank. This will reduce future damage and erosion. We'll pollard cut the willow over the years at approximately head height to encourage reasonably thick trunks. We can pleach cut and layer the trunks on the river bank in future years to form a living wall at the top of the river bank.

The Mystery of the Missing Quince

This afternoon I was able to visit the orchard to complete a section of stock fencing work at the neglected end of the site. Prior to our arrival I don't think that section of the orchard has received any maintenance work in the past forty years. There's almost nothing left of the original boundary fence at the railway end of the site. The area was heavily overgrown and also overshadowed by unmaintained trees. Earlier in the year sheep from the adjoining field were using this area as a route into the orchard. The neighbouring farmer should fixed the fence to stop his sheep straying but nothing happened. 

I had to remove a couple of heavily leaning trees to clear the boundary edge, but after that work I was able to install the final section of stock fence this afternoon. Hopefully this will keep unwanted two legged and quadruped from invading from that end of the orchard.

I was feeling quite calm and relaxed after the success and was checking the fruit trees around the orchard. We have a young quince tree (Serbian Gold) which is smothered in beautiful pink blossom in the spring. To give the tree a chance to grow I remove most of the fruitlets, and additionally the tree drops some of its own accord in the late summer. We'd been left with two good sized quince fruit on the tree. You don't normally pick quince fruit, in the UK, until early November, so we were going to leave the fruit on the tree for two more weeks. When grown in the UK they are hard and bitter until cooked. These Serbian Gold quince fruit look quite like a pear once the "fur" has fallen off.

One of the two remaining quince fruit has disappeared from the tree in the last 48 hours. If someone picked it thinking it was a pear they are going to be bitterly disappointed when they attempt to bite into it. I hope it didn't go to waste.

Perhaps the time has come to re-install the field gate at the entrance to the orchard to dissuade people from wandering in to the fruit trees.

Edit: 2/11/2016 The missing fruit was located.

A nice cup of tea at the orchard

I've just given into temptation and purchased a Ghillie kettle so we can boil water and make tea or coffee while we are working on the orchard at Turnditch.  These don't need gas or electricity, just a few dry twigs to quickly boil some water in any weather conditions.

So now we'll be able to provide hot drinks for visitors and volunteers on the orchard. I guess I'll have to get a stock of camping mugs to hold on the site.

Edit (15 Oct 16) 

I now have a stock of mugs, tea bags, biscuits etc., but they won't be held on site. We'll bring them when we're working on site. 

I gave the kettle a test yesterday morning and it performs really well even in the rain.

Last haircut for the year

I was able to complete the grass cutting in the orchard today. It will probably be the last of the season. The entire session was spread over two days because I had only limited spares of field trimmer cord with me on the first day and  I found too many obstacles which snapped the cord. Fortunately I have a 110 metre spool of the stuff at home and was able to cut some extra lengths for today's session.  It is a tough gray 6mm nylon cord designed to cut brambles. It is actually quite tough to cut, I use a sharp wood chisel against a block of wood to cut this cord. The trimmer takes two 30cm lengths of the cord which are threaded by hand in a strenuous process.

Yesterday, after the grass cutting session I was quietly checking the woodland when  the peace was disturbed by the cry of a cock pheasant hiding in the blackthorn thicket. It is good to see the cock is still around as I'd not seen any pheasants in the orchard for a few months.

Today's grass cutting session was interrupted by rain a few times, but I'd brought the Land Rover on to the orchard and was able to take shelter until the rain stopped. The orchard is looking quite smart and tidy at the moment.

There's a couple of good looking quince fruit on the Serbian Gold Quince Tree and I also had the opportunity to sample some of the yellow raspberry canes we planted late last year.

Insurance for the Orchard

We've decided it is about time we had some insurance for the orchard. We'll be starting that process this week. As usual it is more complex than we first thought. The following are all factors which affect the risk assessment of our particular site:

• Location and size
• What crops/animals are produced on site
• Types of activities engaged in on the site
• Are there bodies of water/rivers
• Is the land fenced or hedged
• Is there public access or rights of way
• Are there volunteers/workers
• What type of machinery is used
• Is there woodland
• Are there buildings

We already have some insurance cover through our existing public liability and employers insurance, but it would be get something properly tailored for the job.


Edit, later same day:

One of the conditions on one of the quotes is that we have lifesaving equipment on the river bank. This "river" is about 4 metres wide and is less than 30 cm deep. Sometimes in the winter in flood conditions the water can be a couple of metres deep and fast flowing, but typically this is approx three weeks of the year. Should we buy a lifesaving buoy like one of these? I can see that type of thing being a target for vandalism.

Slow progress

When I took on the orchard I was thinking it would keep me busy and fit in my retirement. At the moment I'm so busy with social commitments and business activity I have little time to do those tasks which need to be done in the orchard. Fence maintenance, grass cutting, scrub clearance, fruit tree care have all taken a back seat at the moment. Hopefully things will calm down soon and I'll be able to get back to some relaxing hard work in the orchard before the weather turns bad.