We have been blessed by a light covering of snow over the in-between Christmas and New Year Days that are so enjoyable.
I have had about 2 weeks in Herefordshire this holiday season racing up the Covid Tier charts from Tier 1 to Tier 3 but it has not really affected us bunkered up in Oaklands with our log fires, stollen and board games. I have been out each day either to half-do a few odd jobs around the Potager or wood or simply just to walk the boundary of the property with my binoculars. A lovely time to "take stock and make stock" - I am still proud of that phrase for the last few days of the year.
Before we got to the main event of Christmas we received a new delivery of heritage apple trees. Eight in total to fill each of the "panes" in the post and wire supports that were a late edition to this year's landscaping plan. Four pairs of matching young whips either side of the main avenue. Adam's Pearmain, Egremont Russet, Pitmaston Pineapple and Sturmer Pippin - all selected as heritage varieties suitable for undergoing the Espalier treatment.
Each young tree has a 4 m section with 3 wires about 40/50 cm apart - I forget the exact dimensions. Each level of wire should represent a year's upward growth for each new growing shoot. We are giving the trees a rest for a couple of months but then they will be trimmed back to a point just above two side shoots or buds that will form the sideways lattice. We have opted for a fairly simple scheme - perhaps we can try something a little more complicated on a wall later on. In each of the next two subsequent years each tree will be pruned again just above a sensible bud to create the new level's side shoots and a new growing tip for the following year. That at least is the theory.
Most of the trees have already grown well beyond the first and even second wires so we are going to have to be quite confident and brutal to get the effect we want. The idea is that we should be left with a fenced avenue of trained heritage apples over time and again hopefully a beautiful display of blossom in the Spring.
The planting process itself was fairly straightforward. The trees came a bare rooted in the post, A decent sized hole was offset about 10-15 cm in front of the wire to give some room for the trunk of the apple tree. Each whip received a genrous handful of bone meal. We put in the stakes upright before the tree hole was filled in to avoid damage to the small rootball. Finally we doubled up to complete the task. One of us holding the tree straight while the other filled in the hole taking care to avoid air pockets. Finally the satisfying soft boot print as the tree was firmly trodden in. It is all still very new to me. Perhaps I overthink the planting event itself but you cannot help but step back and feel immensely proud for taking such a good step forward.
We encountered one hiccup with the final pane closest to the wood. The hole we were digging in the centre of the final span was filled with water as it was excavated. There is a natural underground drainage of water across the slope of the property due to an aquifer the bubbles up above the sandstone bluff on the farmland next door. The underground stream is causing a number of issues with the Hoggin and we have discussed a few drainage measures with Sam from our landscapers. In any event we heeled in the final tree a off-centre. We didn't think it was sensible for it to begin its life at Oaklands with its feet in freezing water.
I like these type of jobs. After the investment of a little time for research and the guilt-free fun of some shopping with a specialist nursery (Walcott Organic this time) the whole planting routine took no more than about an hour. No more than an hour's gardening to create a real feature in the "bones" of the plan. In one "input" we have increased the number of new fruit trees in the garden to about 20. I cannot see that the pruning will take more than a couple of hours each year. This is the very definition of "direction of travel".
As 2020 closes I am performing some sort of mental audit as to what we have achieved. Morning walks are a joy now for that purpose. While I don't yet think I am a gardener in the same sense that Jane certainly is I am very much wedded to the idea of shaping the view and acting as a good steward to the whole space. There are so many "returns" to look forward to from what we have done this year. Already we are seeing early crocus shoots and some Narcissi peeping through. The hoards of Primroses newly germinated in the new light spaces created by clearances in the wood. 1000 new bluebell bulbs waiting to add to the display I missed this year by being locked down out of the country. The days are lengthening again and that means it's all to plan for again and all to look forward to. 2020 was clearly an awful year on so many levels however for us personally we managed despite lockdowns and separations to get the whole plan moving forward. In many ways Jane being able to spend so much time at the property with the boys as well will not be repeated and is to be cherished. Like this Romanesco cauliflower. The seed was ordered by me in Dubai but sown in a pot by Sam. I planted it when I got back into the country mid June and this Winter we have been enjoying cauliflower cheese. So many small wins this year from new things and small new inputs. Deeply rewarding.
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