Tuesday 5 May 2009

Blossom

Spring is finally here!...

...One of the best things about working at a cider farm is the fact that you get to really experience the different seasons. Spring is definitely one of my favourite seasons as the orchards fill with pink and white blossom, and come alive with colour after a long winter of spindley grey branches.

Spring is the first time we get to see what the expected apple harvest is going to be like, with the general rule being: the more blossom, the better the harvest. So far, things are looking good, the Dabinett trees in particular are blossoming well. At this time of year, however, we are at the mercy of the pollinating bees and insects which we rely on to pollinate the apple blossom. Bees are said to be responsible for over 80 per cent of orchard apple pollination so are vital to the success of our cider. This year, with this in mind, I have come up with a plan to guarantee improved pollination, and to help save our bees. I hope.

The plan is to introduce my own, well actually my girlfriend Phaedra's, colony of bees into our orchards. This should hopefully not only encourage more biodiversity into our orchards but also ensure that more of the blossom is pollinated. At least that's the theory. In practice, this has meant me spending the last couple of days frantically building our hive and its many frames so that we don't miss getting the bees into the orchards before the blossom is over.



Over the next few months I'll be posting some updates about our progress into amateur bee keeping, and hopefully its positive impact on our orchards and the local environment.


(Bee at work)











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