Planting Eynsham's Coronation Mini Orchards

On 14th February, as part of the Coronation Community Orchards Scheme funded by WODC, the Network planted two sections of orchard in Eynsham to benefit the residents.

NRN member Carl Rylett reports on the planting at Marlborough Place:

On a sunny February afternoon I had the pleasure of working with the Nature Recovery Network to plant fruit trees on the green at Marlborough Place. The project was part of a nation-wide celebration of the coronation of King Charles, with the aim of planting fruit trees to be enjoyed by the local community. This provided the grant to fund the project.

In Eynsham we have the fortune of being able to tap into an incredible wealth of expertise of residents and also a local tradition of apple tree growing, with several varieties originating here.

Several residents came by and offered their support, including giving us cups of tea to help keep us going. We planted five apple trees (dessert apples varieties Jennifer Wastie, Oxford Hoard, Oxford Conquest and Red Army, and dual purpose Old Fred) and two pear trees (a Conference and a Williams’ Bon Chretien).

We also noticed a small yew tree on the green which we were told came from Ely Cathedral! It got us thinking what other interesting stories of our village's trees are out there.