Category: Orchard Management

  • Beekeeping

    Beekeeping

    Part of the gardening for wildlife, ecology, habitat management and meadow work Gareth and his team carry out, beekeeping is one of the services provided. The ‘original’ apiary at Aust in South Gloucestershire.  What started as three hives soon expanded into a decent size apiary with swarms and division to manage the thriving bee colonies.…

  • Pruning an Established Apple Espalier

    Pruning an Established Apple Espalier

      Trained fruit trees, probably one of a gardeners favourite jobs. These old apple espaliers perfectly illustrate the techniques and pitfalls when maintaining trained fruit trees, whether espaliers, cordons or whatever shape takes your fancy. Planted in the late 1890’s these trained fruit trees at Barrow Court in North Somerest were once regarded as one…

  • Planting a New Orchard

    Planting a New Orchard

    A gently sloping field, just under half an acre, facing south west, in Abbots Leigh in North Somerset, a village just across from Bristol’s Clifton Suspension Bridge. It would have been difficult to think of anything other than planting an orchard here.  A traditional orchard in the SW would often have its individual trees spaced…