Editorial / 1
Forthcoming Events / 2
Recent Events / 2
SLOG Orchard Update / 4
Windbreaks / 4
Plagues & Pestilence: Blotches / 6
Heritage Apple Variety: Bloody Ploughman
DNA Testing / 7
Poetry Corner / 7
Scion Wood Orders / 8
Grafting to Order / 8
SLOG Shop / 8
SLOG Discount at Suppliers / 8
Barrie Juniper Talk Poster / 9
Editorial
The apple harvest just finished is reckoned by many to be the best for several years – why is this? The first factor was the blossom period: having been delayed by a cold April, May suddenly warmed up and provided the pollinating insects with ideal conditions to do their work leading to good fruit set. Subsequently, little & often rainfall meant that soil moisture stayed high through summer and autumn. The result was plenty of fruit, with a bigger than average size.
As a result, our fruit presses were busy: both on hire by members, and at community apple pressings, of which we did a record six this year.A huge thankyou is due to Heather Birkett for managing the bookings for the Spiedel Mill & Hydropress at Sizergh Castle and to Bob Bradley for managing the big press at Witherslack.
SLOG WINTER TALKby PROF.BARRIE JUNIPER 7.30pm Tuesday 29th November
Do you remember Anthony Fitzherbert’s talk just a year ago on his experiences growing apples in Afghanistan? Well, this year, Anthony has persuaded his old friend, Prof. Barrie Juniper, to come and give us two talks: the first on “The Origin of the Apple” followed, after a break for refreshments, by a second talk on “The even stranger origin and spread of grafting”. Barrie is the author of “The Story of the Apple”, published in 2006 which is now out of print. He is a leader in his field and an erudite speaker. This promises to be a fascinating evening, so in anticipation of increased attendance, we have booked a larger venue, Old Hutton Public Hall, which has plenty of car parking. See the poster on page 9 for more details. For map showing directions to Old Hutton Public Hall, see website: will also have the opportunity to taste members fruit-based preserves, chutneys and cakes, so if you have made something interesting recently, please bring it along for others to sample.
Adam Rubinstein thanks the near 100 members who replied to his survey on rootstocks. A clear trend on canker incidence has emerged which will guide our plans for follow-up studies to investigate rootstocks which may offer reduced canker risk. Adam plans to provide members with a detailed report in due course.
Meanwhile if you still have your spring-grafted trees in pots, now is the time to plant them out. The sooner they are planted, the better established their roots will be when growth starts in spring.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
For the most up-to-date information look in:
Tuesday 29thNovember – Winter Talk 7.30pm Old Hutton Public HallOur speaker this year is the eminent Oxford emeritus professor and author Barrie Juniper. For more details, see poster on page 9.Directions: From Kendal, take B6254 past Oxenholme Railway Station direction Kirkby Lonsdale for 5 miles. Old Hutton comprises three hamlets, the Public Hall is in the middle one next to the School and Church. Satnav LA8 0NQ
Sunday 29thJan 2016 - SLOG Pruning Workshop, Grange Community Orchard. 1.30-4.30pm.Join us for our ever popular workshop, learning to winter prune your trees - the key to healthy trees and a better harvest. Bring your own secateurs (but some will be provided).Directions: Near Grange-over-Sands railway station, just south of the B5277/B5271 roundabout,opposite the Ornamental Gardens. Car parking on opposite side of road or in nearby carparks.
Saturday 4th March 20162.00–4.30pm SLOG Grafting Workshop, Growing Well, Sizergh LA8 8AE Graft your own apple & pear trees using MM106, MM111, M26, M9 & Quince A rootstocks and a wide range of scion wood varieties. Led by Hilary with advice from other experienced members. Bring your own Stanley knife (a few will be provided) and gardening gloves for protection. Wear suitable footwear as the path to the yurts may be muddy. Directions:From M6 jnctn 36 go 4 miles on A591 towards Kendal, then A590 Barrow, then shortly on right follow brown signs for Sizergh Castle, then Low Sizergh Barn. From Kendal go 3½ miles south on the A591 then just before the A590 interchange turn left into the car park at Low Sizergh Barn Farm Shop and Tearooms. Park at the far end of the car park and walk over the fields. Rootstocks £2.50 each.
Saturday 15th April 2016, (date provisional) Damson Day at Low Farm, Lyth Valley LA8 8DJ Always a popular and friendly event. SLOG stand will be there again. Directions: Take A590 to Gilpin Bridge, then A5074 direction Bowness for 2 miles to Low Farm. See website
RECENT EVENTS
WESTMORLAND COUNTY SHOW Thursday 8th September
Our stand was again inside the Countryside Marquee, shown above after setting up and before the show opened to visitors. The show’s attendance this year was 26,500, a reduction from last year, no doubt due to the bad weather which reduced the showfield to a mudbath. Added to this was an up to 2hr delay due to traffic problems. We had a reasonable number of visitors to the stand in the morning, although some of these were probably sheltering from the rain. However the afternoon went quiet rather quickly, probably due to many electing to leave early before the car parks were reduced to mud.
COMMUNITY APPLE PRESSING Saturday 24th September, Staveley
The seventh Staveley Apple Day in the Woodyard outside Wilf’s Café was busy this year. The press was running solidly from mid-morning to mid-afternoon as members and the public reported both heavy yields and bigger than average fruit size. The identification advice stand identified over thirty specimens.The most frequent variety this year was Laxton’s Fortune (5), followed by two each of Bramley’s Seedling, Lord Derby and John Downie (crab), plus one each of Burr Knot, Lane’s Prince Albert, Egremont Russet, Adam’s Pearmain, Jonagold, Kidd’s Orange Red, Allington Pippin, Worceter Pearmain, Howgate Wonder, Blenheim Orange, James Grieve, Spartan, Crawley Beauty & Luoise Bonne of Jersey (pear).Many thanks to all the SLOG members, too numerous to mention, who turned out to work the press and make the day so successful.
FORD PARK APPLE DAY Saturday 1st October
The Spiedel Mill & Hydropress started work at 10.30am and only just managed to keep up with demand. There was a constant queue of apples all day which were competently processed by an efficient team of SLOG volunteers and Ford Park volunteers. Andy provided technical advice and attempted to identify over twenty apples, half of which needed a second opinion from Hilary & Phil. Ulverston folk showed their appreciation for our efforts on the press by donating almost £100 to SLOG! Special thanks to the press gang of Win, Karen F, Karen J & Hugh for their hard work.
APPLE PRESSING SOCIAL DAY Saturday 8th October, Witherslack
Another successful day - a steady stream of members dropped in at Bob Bradley’s throughout the day. Members brought apples for the large press and Bob showed visitors round his orchard. Special thanks to Sarah for tasty refreshments.
ACORN BANK APPLE DAY Sunday 9th October
The day started bright and sunny bringing in a crowd of well over a thousand to enjoy a diversity of stands offering local produce etcSLOG shared our tents with NCOG who were busy pressing appleswhile Hilary, Phil and Andy were busy identifying apples inside.
BEETHAM NURSERY APPLE DAY Saturday 15th October
This event brings in a fair number of people, at least half from various parts of Lancashire, wanting their apples identified or to discuss a wide range of fruitgrowing problems. This year broughtabout 25 apples to identify, a particularly curious one being a very large red apple offered by two different people, in both case having purchased the tree from Aldi labelled as a Bramley.It turned out to be the red sport of Belle de Boskoop, which Phil also encountered at identification sessions in Lancaster. Technical queriesincluded canker, scab, trainingand pruning. Beetham again displayed a range of 33 different apple and3 pear varieties for sale, mostly grown in Cheshire. Customers were continually browsing and purchasing different varieties, demonstrating that there is clearly an interest in the lesser known varieties of English top fruit.
LEVENS APPLE PRESSINGSaturday 15th October
Hugh Connor again set up the big press at Levens School to press apples for local people. The electric mill broke down for an hour but fortunately expertise was available to fix the problem and get it back into action. It was assisted by Chrissie & Nigel bringing their own press up from Lancaster, both were needed to meet the demand. However, the school are becoming difficult hosts so Hugh is investigating an alternative venue for next year.
SEDBERGH APPLE DAYWednesday 26th October
This event was organised by COGS (Community Orchard Group Sedbergh) using SLOG’s Spiedel Mill & Hydropress. It was a first time event but very well attended, the press running from 10am to 1pm in the People’s Hall car park, with a range of stands and live musical accompaniment inside. The press was efficiently run by both COGS & SLOG volunteers.
The above photo of the event made front page news in the following day’s Westmorland Gazette providing good publicity for both COGS and SLOG.
MEMBERS APPLE PRESSING DAY Sunday 6thNovember, Burneside
Romola & Edward hosted a special late season pressing for the first time this year which was well attended due to members having planty of late season apples left. Both the big press and Adele’s hydropress were in constant use throughout the day from 10.30am to 4pm. The day was freezing cold but fortunately there was a warm fire in the magnificent old mill to thaw out numb fingers. Depending on the harvest there may be some years when we don’t need such a late pressing day, but this year we certainly did, and we will schedule a repeat event provisionally for next year. Many thanks to Romola & Edward for their hospitality.
SLOG ORCHARD UPDATE
The trees have made good progress during the year. The older trees are starting to carry a crop, though this was hard thinned in August because their priority is still to build their framework.By fruiting for the first time, two trees in the Cumbrian seedling row, Rydal Hall and Grizedale Hall revealed themselves to be crabs so have been removed. Their places have been taken by Daphne’s Delight and Hilary’s Late Flowering. The last gap in the Yorkshire row has been filled by Rymer. The grass in the alleys is well established and was mowed six times this year; the cut grass has been composted so we should again have some good compost to mulch the trees early next year. The information board is being fabricated by the printer, Sun Signs, and when it’s ready we will organise a working party to install it at the southwest corner of the site.
View from North-West corner showing colourful fruit ready to pick in September on the oldest trees, now in their 5th year
WINDBREAKS
Windbreaks are worth considering when planting an orchard on an exposed site.They can significantly raise the temperature in spring to give better fruit set in the orchard. In Autumn an effective windbreak will lessen the amount of fruit lost as windfalls. Deformed growth results from a mean annual wind speed of 4.5 metres per second. Serious deformation results if wind speed is greater than 6.8m/s.Prevailing winds may not be the most damaging. The name refers only to the direction from which the wind most frequently blows. In this are, prevailing winds come from the southwest. The greatest benefit may come from providing shelter from these winds, but in some situations protection from cold winds from the north and east is more important. Local topography can modify wind direction and must be taken into account. An efficient windbreak reduces but does not stop wind speed. An overall reduction approaching 30 per cent can be achieved whenever the wind is blowing from the direction for which shelter has been provided. On the exposed end, wind speed is reduced to 70 per cent or less. Since physical damage is proportional to the square of wind speed, when the latter is reduced to 70 per cent, the wind pressure is reduced to 49 per cent and the sheltering effect is quite pronounced.Orientation siting: All-round shelter would be ideal but is expensive in materials and space. Attention should first be given to the prevailing wind: between southwest and west in most cases. It would be an advantage if the windbreak could also protect against winds from the north-west which are most likely to causestructural damage. Funnelling is often very noticeable along valleys. Windbreaks across a valley have maximum effect because the wind is most likely to be at a right angle to the windbreak. Those sited across sloped land can impede air drainage on cold nights, increasing the risk of frost damage. In such situations, a 0.3-0.6m gap should be kept at the base of the windbreak to allow cold air to drain away. A windbreak of trees takes several years to establish and eventually occupies a lot of space. Deciduous trees are leafless in winter and early spring when shelter is most needed. Evergreen trees tend to be too dense with a risk of increased turbulence downwind. Because of their greater density, evergreens are more likely to be blown over. Light penetrates deciduous trees in winter, reducing their shading effect compared with evergreens. A good compromise is to alternate a deciduous with an evergreen species, planting at 1.5m centres. Betula alba is one of the best deciduous species, with Alnus incana and Salix caprea, S. cinerea and S. viminalis as less twiggy alternatives. All are relatively cheap to establish, quick-growing and thrive in exposed positions and on most soil types. Populus 'Eugenii' and P. 'Robusta' are only suitable where space permits a tall, broad, branchy windbreak. Salix alba are also suitable.Hybrid willow can grow at up to 3 metres per year and hybrid poplar 2m/yr., both available from Adam’s apples at 50p each. The most suitable evergreen is Cupressocyparis leylandii. It is quick-growing and can stand salt winds. Chamaecyparis lawsoniana and Thuja plicata are similar and as easy to establish at a fraction of the cost. They are slower-growing and need good soil. C. lawsoniana may not be as hardy, and the leylandii and thuja may not take kindly to regular trimming and will not thrive in low rainfall. Avoid container-grown stock - they will not produce well-anchored trees in some situations.Suitable sizes for transplanting are 30-60cm for evergreen trees and 60-90cm for deciduous species - although willows and poplars, being easier to establish, can be planted up to 1.5m. A common fault is to plant bigger, older and more expensive trees that establish badly. October is the best month for planting, allowing roots to become established before soil temperature falls. Avoid planting in late spring because the trees leaf out before roots are established and losses can be high. Irrigation is likely to be needed in the first season and beneficial in the second and third until trees are well established. It will be much less important if black polythene mulch is used for weed control. Reduction of wind speed occurs up to a distance of 20-30H ("H" being the total height of the windbreak) to the leeward of a windbreak with 50 per cent permeability. At this distance the wind will have almost regained its original speed. Maximum benefit to crop yield occurs at a distance of up to 10H from a windbreak.Artificial windbreaksgive immediate protection with constant permeability and take up little space. They do not compete with crops for water and nutrients and can be used as temporary or permanent shelters. They are ideal for protecting units of container-grown nursery stock and also useful for protecting crops and living windbreaks until the latter become established.The most efficient materials are those with a hole area of about 50 per cent. Supports are normally round timber posts of sweet chestnut, larch or Douglas fir, placed at 3m intervals. Site exposure, prevailing wind speeds, height of the windbreak, soil type and method of anchorage must be considered when determining the size and length of supports.
Courtesy Horticultue Week & Adams Apples
PLAGUES & PESTILENCE Sooty Blotch & Fly Speck
These blemish diseases are caused by unrelated fungi, but both result in dark fungal growth on the surface of the fruit. Apples are affected most commonly, but the symptoms may also be found on pears and plums. Eating or cooking quality is not affected. The diseases are most common in wet summers and have been widespread this year, although here in Cumbria, we see them most years.Sooty blotch and flyspeck are fungal blemish diseases of fruit. The diseases are sometimes found together on the same fruit, as they are favoured by very similar weather conditions, but they can be distinguished from each other by their symptoms.