Axminster plants a community orchard for the future.

Published: 11 December 2023

It was a frosty morning on the 2nd of December when over twenty intrepid diggers arrived at the field next to the cemetery and began to plant a legacy for the future. Axminster would soon have a new Community Orchard.

Axminster Climate Action Group, comprised of town councillors and residents, led the sourcing of the trees from Adam’s Apples in Dulverton, utilising the Axminster Town Council Tree Planting fund. Tom Nancarrow from the nursery assembled an excellent selection of eating, cooking and cider apples, pears, plums and even a medlar tree. We had excellent advice from Axminster’s honorary tree warden, Mike Davis, who oversaw the buying and the planting, and Sarah Jackson, who painstakingly recorded information about each tree and where it should go. In total, the group planted 40 saplings in under three hours. Well done, volunteers!

Thanks must go to the Town Council staff, especially the maintenance team, for their tireless efforts in preparing the ground for planting, refreshments, and commitment to completing the orchard despite the extreme weather. We could not have managed without them.

This truly was a community project. Children came with their parents, and one volunteer said that she didn’t mind that her son was reluctant to dig as she felt it was more important that he saw what community action meant so he would know how to participate in the future. A good lesson for us all.

Of course, the journey of the orchard has only just begun. It will be several years before we can begin to harvest fruit, and we will be looking after it and nurturing the young trees during that time. A new path will be mown between the trees and through the wildflower meadow, and a Willow copse planted in the spring on the boggy ground in the middle of the field. In the longer term, a new Devon bank and native hedge will enhance the fence to the north. There will also be information tags accompanying each tree detailing its variety and when it will be ripe to pick, as there’s nothing worse than a sour apple!

We hope the whole community will enjoy the spring blossom and autumn fruit. Please help us look after and protect our fledgling orchard until it reaches maturity.