Wassailing, the traditional blessing of orchards, returned to Dunster after an absence of 60 years, on the 17th January. In the morning pupils from Dunster 1st School joined us for a mini wassail, where bread soaked in apple juice was hung from some of the trees, we read out the Dunster wassail song, and then made lots of noise to scare away evil spirits!
In the evening, we returned to the orchard for the main event, and over 100 people joined in the festivities and helped us to ensure a healthy crop of apples for the following year- not bad for the first attempt!
Due to the success of our first wassail, it will form a regular part of the estate events calendar, so keep an eye on this (at www.dunsterestate.co.uk/events) for more details.
Showing posts with label orchards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label orchards. Show all posts
Friday, 20 January 2012
Tuesday, 7 December 2010
Dunster now has a community orchard!
Around 40 local residents joined Dunster estate staff and parish council members on a cold Thursday 25 November to create a new community orchard as part of The Crown Estate’s UK-wide commitment to plant 3,000 new trees for National Tree Week (November 27 to December 5, 2010).
At Dunster, the estate and community decided to create a traditional orchard. In less than a hour, volunteers including children from Dunster First School, the scouts, members of the parish council, Dunster estate volunteers, representatives from other local community orchards, National Trust, Exmoor National Park, Orchards Live, and members of the general public successfully planted 57 plum and apple trees.
The Crown Estate is very grateful to everyone who turned out and worked so hard to get the job done. This orchard, which is to be maintained by the community, will be a genuine educational asset and I hope that the volunteers today will return in the future bringing others to enjoy “Apple Days” and similar events.
At Dunster, the estate and community decided to create a traditional orchard. In less than a hour, volunteers including children from Dunster First School, the scouts, members of the parish council, Dunster estate volunteers, representatives from other local community orchards, National Trust, Exmoor National Park, Orchards Live, and members of the general public successfully planted 57 plum and apple trees.
The Crown Estate is very grateful to everyone who turned out and worked so hard to get the job done. This orchard, which is to be maintained by the community, will be a genuine educational asset and I hope that the volunteers today will return in the future bringing others to enjoy “Apple Days” and similar events.
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