Frodsham Town Council’s tree adviser Tom Blundell leapt to the rescue after vandals wreaked havoc in Ship Street Community Orchard.
On a cold damp Saturday in January, a group of volunteers helped Tom plant new apple trees provided by the Town Council to replace those that were destroyed, together with a further 12 fruit trees kindly donated by Mersey Forest. We took the opportunity to widen the selection to include pears, plums and cherries.
The planting was organised by Frodsham Transition Initiative and the volunteers were from TSB, the 4th Frodsham Scouts and members of the public. They enjoyed the dig despite the rain.
Tom was back in the orchard last Sunday – this time with just one other volunteer, to prune the trees.
The Ship Street Community Orchard was initially planted in 2015 and residents are encouraged to enjoy the fruit at harvest time. It is part of a wider Community Orchard in Frodsham project, started in 2012 to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Fruit trees were initially planted in Churchfields. Further planting took place in Hob Hey Wood , Ship Street and Hawthorne Road. The project is a joint exercise between Frodsham Town Council and Frodsham Transition Initiative in which the Council keep the tree bases free from weeds for at least the first five years and Frodahm Transition Initiative carry out the winter and summer pruning as and when necessary.
All the community orchard trees have now been winter pruned and Tom plans to hold a summer pruning workshop in August. Hopefully the weather will be warmer and there will be fruit on the trees. If you would liek to get involved, please email council@frodsham.gov.uk.
