Trust aims to make orchards the apple of our eyes again

APPLES have long held a special place in Western culture, from Eve plucking forbidden fruit from the Tree of Life, to Isaac Newton’s apple tree epiphany about gravity.

But in recent decades, the vast diversity of British apples has vanished as orchards ditched heirloom varieties such as the Hoary Morning or Broxwood Foxwhelp in favour of sweeter offerings including the Braeburn and Cox’s Orange Pippin.

Now the National Trust says it will plant 68 new traditional orchards to conserve heritage apples and also provide a haven for insects and birds.

The charity currently looks after nearly 200 orchards over 142 hectares, which are mainly planted with traditional apple varieties, but also plum, pear and damson. The new project adds an extra 82 hectares of trees.

Dr David Bullock, the trust’s head of species and habitat conservation, said: “Traditional orchards are important for conserving heritage fruits such as the cider apple Jackets and Petticoats and the Ashmead’s Kernel. [And] they provide the perfect home for a variety of birds, pollinators and insects, as well as being great for people.”

Orchards have declined by 63 per cent since the Fifties, but some counties like Kent and Devon have seen the demise of nine in 10 of their apple groves since the mid 19th-century.

The loss of orchards was accompanied by a huge decline in apple varieties, as many were unique to the few square miles where they were cultivated. Now 70 per cent of apples are imported and four in 10 produced in Britain are Cox’s Orange Pippin.