Report from Fred Izzett

Come and join the celebrations of the apple harvest at the forthcoming Apple
Weekend at Gorse Hill Nature Reserve on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8
th October.

Tours of the orchard will provide a focus for visitors to see over 100 apple trees.
Demonstrations of apple pressing will be available where visitors can taste the
freshly produced juice. Tours of the heritage orchard will take place during the day
with some activities there for the children. Refreshments of tea, coffee and cake will also be on sale in the café. There will be opportunities to taste and buy a selection of the 14 culinary and 17 dessert varieties grown on site. New this year will be apple identification with a member of the Northern Fruit Group, so do bring your unidentified apples along!

The orchard is part of the 85 acre reserve with woodlands, ponds and meadows set
up as a charitable trust in 1996 and developed for the benefit of wildlife. The orchard contains 102 apple trees along with a few plum trees. Some of the apple varieties date back to the 1700s, including Ribston Pippin, Rosemary Russet and Isaac Newton.

Reserve Manager Jonathan Atkins told QLocal:"It’s always a pleasure to welcome visitors to the reserve and to show them what we have to offer. Some of our early varieties have been picked and sold. We’re delighted that a local restaurant is interested in a supply of our apples. Looking after the orchard is a lot of hard work but we’re very grateful for the support from our local community and volunteers.”

The Reserve can be found on Holly Lane, off Gaw Hill Lane, Aughton L39 7HB and
will be open from 11am until 4pm on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th of October. Entry and parking is free but donations are always welcome to further the work in the orchard and on the reserve.

For further details, click here: www.nwecotrust.org.uk