One of our yearly autumn traditions is to spend time at our local community orchard picking apples and pears. I find it such a lovely activity because the orchard is always so quiet and the girls just love learning about the names and different varieties of apple.
Although yesterday was definitely more of a late summer day than an early autumn day, with temperatures at 25°C and glorious sunshine, it was wonderful to be amongst the trees, basking in the sun, taking a big juicy bite out of the freshest and sweetest of apples, naturally warmed by the September sunshine.
The community orchard is such a fantastic idea. With fruiting trees, sensory flower beds, seating areas where both picnics and barbecues are encouraged, a pond teeming with wildlife, a huge bug hotel, compost pits and willow walkways. Every community should have one in my opinion.
Furthermore, Apple picking is a wonderful activity for young kids. It provides so much space and opportunity to talk about food education, ecosystems, mathematics and enriching literary language. Apples from the supermarket are apples, however, whilst selecting and harvesting their own apples they become… “That big juicy red one” or the “small knobbly green one.” and they taste; scrumptious or zingy, sweet or bitter, crunchy or crumbly. There’s so much enrichment occurring naturally with an activity such as this.
We were lucky to have chosen this weekend, because already the trees were down to their last apples. But this made searching for good quality ones fun and they still managed to fill their little baskets. (Just a small basket each, so not to take more than we need)
Our fruit bowl is full, but so are our minds, tummies and hearts. How lucky we are to have such a fantastic resource on our doorstep.
Do you have a community orchard? Have you visited and harvested some fruit?
We do have a community orchard and I’m ashamed to admit that we’ve never been, only because my OH is in the fruit and veg business though! It’s a great idea especially for those with no garden to grow their own. #countrykids
LikeLike
Yeah I think it’s fantastic when a community comes together like this for everyone’s gain.
LikeLike
I love the sound of a community orchard. We are lucky to have a couple of nearby farms where we can go apple picking plus my in-laws have several apple trees in their garden. It is such a wonderful thing for children to be able to pick apples from the tree and to learn more about where our food comes from. What a beautiful day you had for your apple picking. Thank you for sharing with #CountryKids
LikeLike
How lovely that you have a community orchard – I’ve never heard of one before! I wish we had one nearby as it would be a lovely place to visit. #CountryKids
LikeLike
This is such a lovely tradition. I’m loving all the autumn activities that are starting to appear! x
LikeLike