The establishment and management of orchards in the UK probably started in Roman times.  The organised growing of apples, pears, plums and cherries developed during the 1st to 4th centuries of the CE.  However, with the withdrawal of the Romans, the management of many orchards declined, though it was maintained in some monasteries. These orchards offered such communities stored / preserved fruit, ‘medicines’ and cider.  Later during the medieval period, orchards were often present in manor houses, outside of villages, monasteries and other community settings.  Most of the orchards grew apples and pears, though cherries, plums / damsons were also grown.   Moving on to Tudor and Stuart times, these were good times for orchard and fruit expansion in general.  A wider range of varieties became available, pruning and grafting techniques improved, as did the layout of trees within orchards.  Books were written on fruit and orchard cultivation by people like John Gerard and John Evelyn (his contribution on fruit trees appeared in the appendix of ‘Sylva’ - entitled Pomona); so good practice spread.  Some orchards were part of a mixed use landscape, where grazing animals wandered between the trees.  Such orchards are sometimes referred to as ‘heritage orchards’, in contrast to more modern techniques of orchard management.  Further changes took place in the 18th and 19th centuries which saw the introduction of many varieties of fruit e.g. Kentish Cherries and Herefordshire Apples. At this time orchards reached their greatest coverage in our landscape. However, the 20th century saw a sharp decline in the maintenance and number of orchards.  The decline was due to a number of factors : Traditional orchards are long lived but require regular management Two world wars - these encouraged the use of land for increased food production / arable crops.   Urban expansion and increased need for housing and transport networks resulted in the loss of many city and village orchards Cheaper imports of fruits Subsidies and grants supported the removal orchards. Also, some  orchards survived but heritage / traditional orchards with tall, widely spaced trees were grubbed up and replaced with low stemmed, high density planting. These trees bear fruit after a shorter period of time and the collection of the fruit can be done mechanically.  Sadly, such trees support less wildlife. Beers and lagers replaced cider as a traditional drink, traditionally it was supplied to farmworkers / labourers. Supermarkets wanted fruit that was unblemished with a long shelf life. Plus, the demand for certain apple varieties (e.g cooking apples) fell. Now, orchards are recognised as valuable habitats and community orchards are being re-established.  A community orchard is a shared space, which support fruit and nut trees.  The trees grown include apple, pear, cherry, plum, walnut and hazelnut. Sometimes there is an understory of soft fruits, various herbs and plants which support pollinators of the trees. The community orchards are normally looked after by local people or organisations and ‘managed’ by local groups such as ‘not for profit’ organisations, the local council or a specific neighbourhood group. The orchards are usually open access / semi public, with the harvests shared with the volunteers and the local community, providing fresh local food.   The harvesting of the fruit, nuts and sometimes vegetables varies from ‘pick what you need’ to ‘an organised distribution’ to ‘local food banks’ and ‘community kitchens’.  To find out more about community orchards and if there is one near you - visit the Orchard Network at the Peoples Trust for Endangered Species.

I purchased a small woodland in West Lothian in July 2020.  It is ex-forestry commission woodland of about 4.75 acres.  It had some open areas, gaps in its planting as a result of two gas-pipe easements through it. On one edge of the wood, there is a small river, the opposite boundary is a road. The parcel of woodland is one of several side-by-side blocks with common planting, mainly of larch, but with a fair number of hazel, oak, cherry, sycamore and a few stragglers of other species. I was attracted to this woodland because it had a mixture of well established trees, but also a good opportunity to plant out the unwooded areas (that might be a third of the area). Researching gas wayleaves, I found that the distance allowable for plantings from the actual pipeline varies with the species and size intended for the trees. There are simple restrictions on heavy plant digging along the route of the buried pipeline for obvious reasons.   My main objectives in buying a woodland were twofold  to have a nearby source of firewood (I live locally), and  to add to a legacy for my adult children - an inheritance of something a little different.  As an old saying goes – buy land, they’re not making any more of it! Initially I just visited the spot many times and got used to finding out what lives there, who goes there and what happens. Dog walkers use the area a lot, and trampled grass attest to their frequency. I’ve maintained their routes by trimming and mowing. but I also came across families of deer, and many different bird species. Despite there being over a hundred hazel trees, there seemed no evidence of squirrels; as yet I’ve never seen one. But what of these wayleaves? Wild meadowland is all very well, but these were more wild rushes land. Rushes abounded and the unplanted areas were almost 100% rushes. I researched a lot about these, and was keen to find a method of eradication that didn’t involve chemicals. I found it in an old fashioned scythe. Purchasing one and learning how to sharpen it, and use it to best effect, I found that after an initial foray with a sickle bar mower, the scythe was the best tool for keeping the rushes under control. Now after some eighteen months, I’ve probably got about a quarter of the rushes left and I am working to rid the wood of the rest. I don’t let them seed, nor get enough growth to keep going, consequently they’re dying. Planting Christmas trees would allow planting closer to the pipes / wayleaves. Off to a nursery in East Lothian I went and loaded up with a thousand Norway and Serbian Spruce seedlings. I’ve since bought another two hundred, so in total planted about 1200. Over 1100 survived the drought of summer 2021. And still I’ve found more space, so intend planting several hundred more, but will vary the varieties. I have also planted some willows from cuttings along the river bank. The hazels were an attraction. With more than hundred, perhaps even two hundred, it was obvious that they’d never been pruned, so I learned about that and set to work thinning them. This has led to making hazel walking sticks as a side hobby! I was looking forward to last autumn’s harvest, seeing the signs of the promised fruit early on and the developing nuts during the summer. Judging the right day to go and harvest them and expecting to fill a 200 litre drum,  off I went.   Imagine my surprise to find the ground all trampled and not a nut to be seen! This was the first sign of “squirrels”, ones that wear wellingtons!. I imagine someone has been harvesting them for years and how would they know that these now belonged to someone taking an interest in their land?  My grandchildren have loved going “to the forest”. And their grandfather likes the quiet, the flora, the fauna and the peace, even without nuts! The above account with thanks to Geoff Crowley