Orchards, Trees & Orchard ProduceKent information
Orchards, Trees & Orchard Produce
Kent information
The East of England Apples and Orchards Project began life as the Norfolk Apples and Orchards project and was set up to promote a greater awareness of Norfolk's apple heritage. It has recently extended its brief to cover the other Eastern counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire and Suffolk. They are surveying the areas’ existing orchards and helping to establish new orchards with Eastern county varieties - they produce a most comprehensive range of local apples and pears. Contact them for details of price and stock availability. They also organise Apple Day celebrations and attend other Apple Day events offering identification, advice and displays of varieties. Contact Clare Stimson or Martin Skipper at School House, Rougham, Kings Lynn PE32 2SE, or call +44(0)1328 838298, and take a look at the project web-site.
Brogdale Collections, Brogdale Farm, Brogdale Road, Faversham ME13 8XZ, +44(0)1795 536250. Brogdale Farm, originally a government research station, is home to the National Fruit Collections, the largest collection of varieties of fruit trees and plants in the world. Over 2,300 different varieties of apple, 550 of pear, 350 of plum, 220 of cherry, 320 varieties of bush fruits, as well as smaller collections of nuts and vines are grown in 150 acres of orchards. The National Collections are now run by Reading University while Brogdale Collections run orchard tours and a number of special events throughout the year: Blossom Walks in the spring; a Cider and Perry Festival in September; Apple Day in October. They sell hundreds of varieties of apples, plums, pears, cherries, quince, medlar. Apple juice is available from the shop. They have a web-site that you can visit.
Kentish Cobnut Association represents growers and other interested parties, and promotes the cultivation and marketing of cobnuts. It runs training courses and produces a regular newsletter. You do not need to grow cobnuts to join the Kentish Cobnuts Association. The annual membership fee is £15, contact re membership: Adrian Vincent, Golding Hop Farm, Bewley Lane, Plaxtol, Sevenooks, Kent TN15 0PS, phone +44(0)1732 885432, e-mail: adrian[at]mvincent.freeserve.co.uk. Find out more on their web-site.
Left: a new sign for the Cobnut inn, Ightham, in 1992.
Mid Kent Downs Orchards Project - ‘Orchards for Everyone’ - a two year project from September 2006 that seeks to build a sustainable future for Kent's traditional orchards of tall, spreading, wide spaced trees, with sheep grazing beneath. Traditional orchards close to village centres have been identified for restoration in Sheldwich, Selling, Milstead, Stockbury and Harrietsham. Discussions are taking place with parish representatives, members of the local communities and landowners so if you live in one of these villlages the project we may need your help. The project focusses on restoration/creation of Community Orchards including: planting, restoring and managing orchards using traditional varieties and techniques; providing advice to landowners through the development of guidance notes and community workshop training; celebrating local heritage through a variety of events and activities to enjoy the horticultural and social tradition of the area. It will also develop management plans and sustainable end-uses for the fruit, help to conserve and enhance our environment, save on food mileage and support the rural countryside. Look out for family learning days, biodiversity surveys, historical fruit maps and a schools fruit juice project, as well as interpretive art, leaflets and entertainment. The project will culminate in a ‘Festival of Fruit’ complemented by master classes to bring orchard fruit into the local restaurants, pubs and schools. The project will forge links between existing and new initiatives’ nationwide and support collaborative schemes as well as producing a fruit related register. The project has been supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, LEADER+ and Sustainable Rural Development and has been drawn together by the Mid Kent Downs Project. For more information contact Pippa Palmar 01303 815170 pippa.palmar[at]kentdowns.org.uk
The Walnut Club started in 2000 following a Walnut Day at the East Malling research station. Its membership includes growers, furniture makers, retailers. For further information contact Vanessa Draper on +44 (0)795 413753, e-mail walnutclub [at] b-opie.com. Their website seems to be off-line at present but see Manse organics website on grafted walnut trees for lotsof useful information. See their website www.graftedwalnuts.co.uk
Orchards and Community Orchards to visit
Brogdale Collections, Brogdale Farm, Brogdale Road, Faversham ME13 8XZ, +44(0)1795 536250. Brogdale Farm, originally a government research station, is home to the National Fruit Collections, the largest collection of varieties of fruit trees and plants in the world. Over 2,300 different varieties of apple, 550 of pear, 350 of plum, 220 of cherry, 320 varieties of bush fruits, as well as smaller collections of nuts and vines are grown in 150 acres of orchards. The National Collections are now run by Reading University while Brogdale Collections run orchard tours and a number of special events throughout the year: Blossom Walks in the spring; a Cider and Perry Festival in September; Apple Day in October. They sell hundreds of varieties of apples, plums, pears, cherries, quince, medlar. Apple juice is available from the shop. They have a web-site that you can visit.
Chapel Orchard, Darenth Country Park, Gore Road, Dartford (Grid ref: TQ565724). A 2ha orchard planted in 2000 where an old orchard once stood, in the grounds of a psychiatric hospital, now Darenth Country Park, owned by Dartford Borough Council. The Groundwork Trust helped establish the orchard, and it is now managed by the Borough Council Countryside Team. The trees are sized from dwarf to standard with over 150 varieties old and new, of apple, pear, cherry, plum and cobnut supplied by Brogdale Horticultural Trust. No herbicides or pesticides are used. Many of the varieties chosen are from the south east and some from Kent including the apples Beauty of Kent, Falstaff, Fiesta, Flower of Kent, Greensleeves, Jupiter, Kentish Filbasket, Lamb Abbey Pearmain, Michaelmas Red, Sunset, Suntan, Tydeman’s Early Worcester and Tydeman’s Late Orange and Warner’s King as well as Concorde pear, Farleigh damson and Kent Bush plum. Park users are free to help themselves to the fruit. Wassailing was held in 2006. Contact: Richard Pullman, Country Parks Officer, Bailiff’s Cottage, Darenth Country Park, Darenth Park Avenue, Dartford DA2 6LZ, 07976 308534, Richard.Pullman[at]btinternet.com
Cherry Tree Walk Community Orchard (left), Rainham is in Riverside Country Park, an old orchard, In 2000 new trees of local varieties were planted to replace dead trees. The old trees support a thriving population of stag beetles and feeding bats and the orchard is protected within the local plan. Local people helped to save the orchard from development in the 1990s and continue to play an active role in its care. Contact: Riverside Country Park 01634 378987, or Medway Borough Council, Civic Centre, High Street, Strood, Rochester, ME2 4AU, +44(0)1634 812196. Left: a Kentish cherry orchard.
Church Lane Cherry Orchard, Church Lane, Stockbury, Sittingbourne. A 4ha cherry orchard thought to be at least fifty years old established as a Community Orchard in 2006/7 by the Mid Kents Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Unit, funded for this project with a Leader+ grant from Europe. It is being managed under Environmental Stewardship. Currently there is limited access. A management plan is being written and further plans are to be confirmed. Contact: Pippa Palmar, Mid Kent Downs Orchards Officer, Kent Downs AONB Unit, West Barn, Penstock Hall Farm, Canterbury Road, East Brabourne, Ashford, Kent TN25 5LL, +44(0)1303 815170, pippa.palmar[at]kentdowns.org.uk or see www.kentdowns.org.uk
Clockhouse Community Orchard, High Elms Road, Farnborough (opposite High Elms Golf Course Club House). A 1 acre orchard dating from the 1850s that once provided fruit for the High Elms Estate. Only some of the original trees remain and more were added in the 1990s by estate workers of the Lubbock family and Bromley Council’s Nature Conservation Section. The orchard has minimal maintenance at present with scrub and grass cut annually under the management of the Environment Community Services Dept of Bromley Council. The orchard is next to a road and walled on that side, with hedges on other sides, and has full public access at all times. Contact: Terry Jones, Site Manager for High Elms Country Park, Ranger Office, High Elms Country Park, Shire Lane, Farnborough BR6 7JH, +44(0)1689 862815.
Collier Street Orchard renovation project launched on Apple Day 2001 to clear undergrowth, prune trees, replant and use the fruit of derelict orchards in Collier Street village including Brook Farm and Ashmead Orchard. The village once had six fruit farms but few remain so a Local Heritage Initiative grant was awarded to restore the village’s orchards between 2001-2004. Although the orchards are privately owned they arraged a programme of visits. Nine activity days were organised in the first year to raise awareness, and the project has been recorded on film. Further activity days included beekeeping, and involvement of local school children. The project involved pruning 2,500 fruit trees carried out by professionals due to the volume of work, but local people have been given tuition in pruning so that they can manage the orchards in the future. Apple Days and Blossom Days were held during the project. Contact: Collier Street Parish Council, +44(0)1892 730611.
Downe Community Orchard, between Rookery Road & North End Lane, Downe village, near Farnborough. A standard apple orchard planted in 1992 on unused allotments. The adjacent land to the north was once an orchard. The orchard was instigated by the Environment and Community Services Department of London Borough of Bromley. Over forty local people including members of the Residents’ Association helped plant the trees in March 1992. There are culinary and dessert apples of Kentish varieties including Bascombe’s Mystery, Cobham, Colonel Vaughn, Gooseberry Apple, Mabbotts Pearmain, Kentish Fillbasket and Tydeman’s Orange, and others from the South of England. After preparing for planting the land was re-seeded with wildflower mix. Hay is cut annually in Autumn. Mistletoe has been planted in the trees. Full public access and an adjoining footpath. Apple Day is celebrated and there are pruning and mulching days. Contact: Mrs Alison Bolt, The Ranger Office, High Elms Country Park, Shire Lane, Farnborough BR6 7JH, +44(0)1689 862815, Alison.bolt[at]bromley.gov.uk
Groombridge Place Gardens, Groombridge, Kent TN3 9QG +44(0)1892 863999 - have a walk of pollarded Kentish cobnut trees underplanted with spring bulbs.
Hatton Fruit Garden, Bradbourne House Gardens, East Malling. This is the place to see trained fruit trees. It is occasionally open to the public. Call +44(0)1732 872064 or look at their web-site.
The Museum of Kent Life, Cobtree, Lock Lane, Sandling, Maidstone, ME14 3AU, +44(0)1622 763936. A 40 acre open air museum reflecting life in Kent over the last 100 years, including cider making. There is an orchard with 60 varieties of Kentish apples. They hold an Apple & Cider Festival in mid-October.
New Ash Green Woodlands, New Ash Green, Kent. A group originally called the New Ash Green Orchard Group started in 2004 to renovate an orchard that had been neglected since the 1980s, before the farms were sold to make way for the new village. “In the 70s and 80s the orchard was a great place for picnics, scrumping and the odd folk festival too. But from some time in the mid 80s (nobody knows exactly when) neglect took over and encroaching bramble and scrub then made it impossible for anyone to get into or even see into the orchard. The apple trees were dying”. A grant from the Living Spaces Programme in 2003 kick started the project. Their first gathering in 2004 was attended by 50 people and numbers rise and fall around a core group of volunteers. After monthly working parties since 2004 the orchard has been transformed. The apple trees have been pruned and opened up to the light and air. Access has been improved with new paths . Views to the far side of the green to the meadow (the green is sometimes known locally by its ancient name Minnis). There has been a positive response from residents and walkers. “Employing some ancient techniques, like dead hedging and making charcoal from the trees and branches we've cut down, and choosing some old apple varieties to plant is helping us all get in touch with our heritage”. The name was changed to reflect their broadening ambition to continue working beyond the orchard regeneration project. Having started by clearing the orchard work has moved on to other parts of the village woodlands, in what is described on their website as “a blighted area”. “The project has led to an increased sense of pride, belonging, ownership, stewardship and continuity. We have more skills and knowledge: not just about apple trees, but also skills of co-operation, negotiation, debate, problem solving, etc. As a group we are also fitter and have a better sense of well being about our place in the community”. “A core group of 10 key members meets before each work-day to plan the day. Five people from this group have become Tree Wardens, and a sixth has become the village Pond Warden. All have attended various courses run by BTCV on woodland and pond ecology and management. For the first 7 workdays (months) we only used hand tools, clearing dense bramble thickets, choking clematis and encroaching smaller cherry plum and ash trees and various shrubs. This opened up large sections of the orchard and we were able to visualise its potential. Once we were able to identify a qualified arborist (and acquired more specialised tools, thanks to Living Spaces funding), we made faster progress and cleared many of the larger overgrown cherry plum trees, whose huge spreading canopies had been responsible for smothering many of the apple trees”. The group have learnt new skills in ancient crafts such as hedgelaying, dead hedging, charcoal burning and coppicing. Logs are sold for fundraising. During the October 2007 work day seven apple trees and two cobnut trees were planted by family groups who had nurtured the trees through a very dry summer. Kentish cobnuts have now also been planted in the orchard. Quotes from website. Contact: Jerry Ash jerryash41[at]hotmail.com or see www.nagwoodlands.ik.com
New House Farm Orchard, New House Lane, Sheldwich, Faversham. A fifty year old cherry orchard established as a Community Orchard in 2006/7 on part of the Lees Court Estate. Grants were gained from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Leader+, and the Sustainable Rural Development Fund. The trees are standards on Mazzard rootstock. Additional cherry trees of southeastern varieties have been planted including Merton Glory, Blackheart, Bradbourne Black, Merton Bigarreau, Amber Heart, Early Rivers, Kent Bigarreau, Napoleon Bigarreau and Roundel. There is restricted access to the public but events are being planned. Contact: Pippa Palmar, Mid Kent Downs Orchards Officer, Kent Downs AONB Unit, West barn, Penstock Hall Farm, Canterbury Road, East Brabourne, Ashford TN25 5LL, +44(0)1303 815170, pippa.palmar[at]kentdowns.org.uk or see www.kentdowns.org.uk
No Man’s Orchard (left), Bigbury Road, near Chartham Hatch. Along the North Downs Way (Grid ref: TR 108572). A large standard orchard over about eight acres planted in 1947 with mainly Bramley apples. It was acquired in the 1990s by Chartham and Harbledown Parish Council. A Management Committee meets four or five times a year and consists of four representatives from each Parish and one from the Kentish Stour Countryside Project. The KSCP and volunteers care for the orchard. In 1996 30 cider apple trees were planted at the eastern end, and the following year 14 more trees of traditional varieties were added including some Kentish varieties such as Kentish Fillbasket. Grass is cut annually with a strip around perimeter left long. Deadwood is left for woodpeckers, nesting birds, beetles and fungi. The orchard has not been sprayed since 1993. There are species of lichens, grasses and wildflowers, areas of nettles and brambles. Lots of mammals live in the orchard including foxes, badgers, stoats, wood mice, common and pygmy shrews, rabbits, field voles, moles and bats. There are slow worms, grass snakes and common lizards. Moth surveys have shown good results with 87 moth species including Four Dotted Footman, Orange Footman, scorched Wing, Satin Lutestring and Treble Brown Spot. Butterflies include Peacock, Orange Tip and Meadow Brown, and Migrant Hawker and Common Darter dragonflies are seen. 256 species of invertebrates have been recorded , and 30 different lichens and mosses found on the fruit trees. Many birds nest in the apple trees including Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers, Song Thrushes, Wrens and Starlings and there are Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs, Kestrels, Jays, House Martins, Swifts and Long Tailed Tits. The orchard is designated a Site of Nature Conservation Interest and a Local Nature Reserve. The trees are sponsored by local people who collect the fruit and in the past some fruit was sold to a fruit and vegetable local box scheme. Currently much is unused. Although the orchard is remote, it is visited by walkers and is located along the North Downs Way long distance path. Events are held in the orchard apple picking days, guided walk, bat and moth evenings, and heavy horse visits with stalls selling local produce and crafts. A long snake sculpted in wood provides seating as well as demarkating the parish boundary that runs through the orchard. Students from Kent Institute of Art and Design were asked to carve the bench. The snake has become as much a part of the local landscape as the orchard trees themselves. In 2005 after about 10 years the wood began to rot, and plans were made for a replacement to be installed when the orignal is no longer usable. In the past it has been used as the central market for cross parish tug of war. The orchard is 60 years old in 2008 and the anniversary is being celebrated with '60 YEARS ON', a Summer event on 26th July 2008, 10am-4pm when the new sculpture will be unveiled. Contact: Jane Pepper, 18 The Mint, Church Hill, Harbledon, Canterbury CT2 9AA, +44(0)1227 463038.
Northwood Hill Reserve Cherry Orchard, RSPB Northwood Hill Reserve, Bromhey Farm, Eastborough, Cooling, Rochetser (A228 towards Grain, follow brown signs to reserve car park, an orchard walk leads from there). A cherry orchard of 75-100 years old on one and a half hectares of the RSPB reserve at Northwood Hill. This was once a commercial orchard, bought along with the rest of the reserve by the RSPB in the early 1990s. It was traditionally grazed by sheep, a practice the RSPB will be reintroducing. The trees are tall, standards, of four cherry varieties, two white and two black, free to be picked by the local community. The orchard is not currently specifically managed although this may change. It attracts, jays, rooks, jackdaws, barn owls, foxes, badgers and a variety of butterflies. A new gate and seat was commissioned, designed by a local artist. An Orchard Walking Trail has been devised and a beautifully illustrated booklet of Cherry Orchard Poems that resulted from a series of poetry writing workshops in the orchard run by Medway poet Katherine May. There have been willow weaving workshops, guided walks, children’s environmental activities and there are plans to use the orchard for more festivals and courses. A permissive footpath through the orchard is accessible at all times and the orchard is on the Saxon Shore Way National Trail. Contact: Carol Donaldson, RSPB Northwood Hill reserve, Bromley Farm, Eastborough, Cooling, Rochester, Kent, ME3 8DS, +44(0)1634 222480, carol.donaldson@rspb.org.uk
Park Farm Cherry Orchard (left), one mile south of the A2 between Sittingbourne and Faversham, just south of Lynsted village (Grid ref: TQ944604). A 2.3ha standard cherry orchard with some trees dating from the 1950s and some planted in 2004 as a community project with support from a Heritage Lottery Fund grant. There are fourteen varieties of sweet cherry, many Kentish. The orchard is owned by a farmer who continues to help manage the farming and sheep grazing, although selling the fruit is now more sporadic with farm gate sales and PYO during Cherry Day events. There is a difficulty finding pickers for a larger scale harvest, and ladders are needed for the tall trees. There is a management committee of parish councilors and community group representatives. Sheep graze the sward, there are bats, moths, fungi, small mammals and birds. There are plans to install bird boxes. There is a carved oak seat, an interpretation board with images designed by local school children. Celebrations in the orchard have included Cherry Blossom Day in April, Cherry Day in July, a Halloween Party for children, moth trapping, bat detection, fungi forays, an opera night and folk dance. There plans for children’s orienteering, and an open air play. An illustrated booklet has been produced called ‘Cherry Cultivation in Kent and Selected Recipes’. Contact: Bob Baxter, Tudor Cottage, Cellar Hill, Lynsted, Sittingbourne ME9 9QY, +44(0)1795 521515, robbaxter[at]tiscali.co.uk or see www.lynsted-orchard.org.uk
Sissinghurst Castle Garden, near Cranbrook TN17 2AB, has a nut walk and orchard, +44(0)1580 710700.
Solly’s Orchard (left, photo with permission from Peter Magee), near St Peter’s Lane, Canterbury (grid ref: ST158.3 614.9). In 2007 fourteen three year old apple trees were planted to re-establish an old orchard in the centre of Canterbury. It was known locally as Solly’s Orchard but only contained a few cherry trees. The apple varieties chosen have a religious theme: Chorister Boy, Christmas Pearmain, Easter Orange, Eden, harvest festival and Ten Commandments. The trees were planted by Canterbury City Council who own the land and are responsible for its management. The orchard is within a scheduled monument so English Heritage had to approve plans for removing sycamore and planting apple trees before work began. Contact: Peter Magee, Outdoor Leisure Officer, Canterbury City Council, Military Road, Canterbury CT1 1YW, +44(0)1227 862523, peter.magee[at]canterbury.gov.uk
St Johns Jerusalem Orchard, Sutton at Hone is part of a larger property owned by the National Trust, managed by the Parish Council for use by the local community. The orchard contains five rows of fruit trees some of which are quite old with meadow grass beneath. The Community Orchard was established in 1994 with the help of Groundwork Kent-Thameside.
Turner’s Orchard, Nargate Street, Littlebourne, near Canterbury (Grid ref: TR209576). An old orchard of a quarter of a hectare on land adjoining Littlebourne village recreation ground and near the War Memorial Hall which has full public access. A public footpath also runs alongside the orchard. It is thought that there has been an orchard on this land since the early 1600s. The centre was used as allotment land for a number of years. It was bequeathed as an orchard to the village by Mrs Turner in the 1990s. The orchard has forty standard and half-standard apple trees ranging from 25-50 years old. Around 17 new trees of apple, pear, plum and cherry were been added in 2001 and 2007. Varieties of older trees include Bramley, Cox, Golden Delicious, James Greave, Macintosh, Golden Gage Plum, Cherry Plum, Victoria Plum, Comice and Conference pears, a cobnut tree and walnut tree. New plantings include some Kentish varieties: Kentish Filbasket, Tydeman’s Late Orange, Jupiter, red Devil, Sunset and Fiesta. There are also a number of non fruit trees in the orchard including elm, acer, rhododendron, rowan, lime, willow, cotoneaster, and holly. Volunteers pick the fruit which is in part distributed to people in need locally. Some is sold to raise money for charity. The orchard is managed by Littlebourne War Memorial Hall Trustees. Bird boxes have been installed. Wood piles are left to encourage stag beetles and hibernating frogs and toads. Woodpeckers and goldfinches have been noted and small mammals such as voles and shrews. A survey of wild life in 1999 recorded lots of wild flowers and herbs including black horehound, milk thistle, mayweed, poppies, black meddick, white clover, lords and ladies, flag iris, comfrey and many more. Contact: Geoff Rigden, 21 Nargate Street, Littlebourne, nr Canterbury CT3 1UH, +44(0)1227 721395, geoffandanne[at]hotmail.co.uk
Woodlands Farm Trust Orchard, off Shooters Hill (A207), Welling. A 2.2ha standard orchard was planted in 2002/3 within the 89 acre community farm, Woodlands Farm, by the Woodlands Farm Trust with help from Groundwork Thames gateway. In the 1980s and 90s the farm was threatened by the proposed road development for the East London River Crossing but it was saved after a massive campaign by PARC, People Against the River Crossing. The farm also survived a proposed housing development in 1995. The Trust manages the farm under the Countryside Stewardship Scheme and has developed a conservation programme. The Trust encourages involvement from local community groups, schools, volunteers and businesses. Apple varieties from Kent have been chosen including Beauty of Kent, Bountiful, Colonel Vaughan, Falstaff, Foster’s Seedling, Gascoyne’s Scarlet, George Neal, Golden Knob, Greensleeves, Kentish Quarrenden, Lady Sudeley, Lamb Abbey Pearmain, Redsleeves, Tydeman’s Early Orange, Tydeman’s Early Worcester, Chips, Cobham, Christmas Peamain, Bow Hill Pippin, Orange Goff and Gooseberry apple. There are also Kentish Cobs, Concorde pears, Kentish Red Cherries and the Kentish plums Black Diamond, Farleigh Damson, Kentish Bush and Orpington Prolific. From the London area there are the apples Cellini, Fearn’s Pippin, Merton Charm, Merton Russet, Storey’s Seedling and London Pippin plus many varieties of apples, pears, plums, cherries from the south east. Five more apple varieties have been chosen for their historical importance, all dating from 1400-1600: Calville Blanc d’Hiver, Court Pendu Plait, Golden Reinette, Leathercoat Russet and White Joaneting. There are also quince and medlar trees. While the orchard is maturing and the crop is small, much of the fruit is left for wild life. There are some mixed hedgerows including one newly planted. Apple Day is held each year and there are pruning and grafting demonstrations in the orchard. The Farm is open every day except Christmas Day from 9.30am-4.30pm. Contact: Dave Smith, 331 Shooters Hill, Welling, Kent DA16 3RP, +44(0)20 8319 8900, woodlandsft[at]aol.com, www.thewoodlandsfarmtrust.org
Where to buy apples and orchard produce
Biddenden Vineyard, Little Whatmans, Biddenden TN27 8DH, +44(0)1580 291726. Produce premium ciders and apple juice from locally grown apples, as well as wine from their own vines. They also produce a 13% Special Reserve cider matured in oak whicky casks, and a ready-to-mull mix of cider, honey and spices. Vineyard and shop open daily, closed Sundays during Jan / Feb and over the Christmas / New Year period.
Brogdale Collections, Brogdale Farm, Brogdale Road, Faversham ME13 8XZ, +44(0)1795 536250 sell hundreds of varieties of apples, plums, pears, cherries, quince, medlar. Apple juice is available from the shop. Visit their web-site. Brogdale also sell lots of varieties of apples to local shops in Faversham, so they often have unusual varieties on offer.
Castle Cider Co., Nestlewood, Wickhurst Road, Weald Nr Sevenoaks TN4 6LY, +44(0)1732 455977.
Nick Chard, Sepham Farm, Otford, +44(0)1959 522774. 18 varieties of apple are for sale in the farm shop.
Chegworth Valley Fruit Farm, Chegworth, Maidstone ME17 1DE, +44(0)1622 859272. Sell around 40 varieties of their own apples and pears and produce apple and pear juices and other fruit juices from own orchards, including single varieties. Much of the farm is certified organic, and the rest is currently under conversion (2005). The juice won 7 awards at the Great Taste Awards in London's Speciality and Fine Food Fair in 2004, they are also one of Rick Stein's Food Heroes. The fruit and juice is NOT sold direct from the farm, but is sold at 11 farmers' markets across London plus other outlets. For details see their web-site.
Duskin Apple Juice, The Ruffett, Duskin Farm, Kingston CT4 6J5, +44(0)1227 830194. Farm pressed single variety apple juice. Available from shops or the farm.
The Hop Shop, Castle Farm, Shoreham, Sevenoaks Kent TN14 7UB, +44(0)1959 523219, sales[at]hopshop.co.uk or see www.hopshop.co.uk located in the Darenth Valley. The farm has an orchard of Norfolk Royal apples, also available in the farm shop, as is the Norfolk Royal and Bramley apple juice.
Moor Organic Juice, The Old Farmhouse, Nichol Farm, Deerton Street, Teynham ME9 9LJ, +44(0) 1795 522612 or email nick[at]moororganicjuice.co.uk. Nicolas Moor harvests from the King’s Orchard (known as such because Richard Harris planted apples and cherries here for Henry VIII in the 16th century), in his family for three generations, and now certified organic. Blended, and single variety juices are made, and sold direct from the farm and at farmers’ markets and local shops. Also offer a juicing, pasteurising and bottling service, minimum load 4 tons of apples.
Mount Ephraim Gardens Tea Room, Faversham, Kent ME13 9TX is surrounded by orchards. +44(0)1227 751496.
Owlet Apple Juice, Owl House, Lamberhurst TN3 8LY, +44(0)1892 890553. Single variety juices from Cox, Russett and Worcester and blended Cox / Bramley. Available in local shops or in cases of 12 from the farm.
Pawley Farm Cider, Pawley Farm, Painters Forstal, Faversham ME13 0EN, +44(0)1795 532043. Traditional Kent recipe for their cider made from apples from the farm’s own orchard. The cider is matured in oak casks for up to 2 years. Juice is also made, and a spiced cider for mulling. Pawley Farm has been chosen by Rick Stein as one of his Food Heroes. Tours can be arranged to see the orchards, and cidermaking equipment.
Penshurst Place and Gardens, Penshurst TN11 8DG, +44(0)1892 870307. 11 acres of walled Tudor garden noted for its apple blossom in spring. Look at their web-site for more information.
Perry Court Farm, Bilting, Ashford TN25 4E5, +44(0)1233 812408. Over 100 varieties of apples and 10 pears grown in their own orchards, available from the farm shop and local farmers markets. See their website
Pippins Fruit Farm, Maidstone Road, Pembury, Tunbridge Wells TN2 4AB. Fruit includes 30 varieties of apples, plums and cobnuts plus apple juice, wine and cider from the farm shop. PYO. Open mid June - December. Holds an Apple Day celebration each year. Contact DJ Knight, +44(0)1892 824569.
David H. Simmons, Whitehill House, Whitehill, Faversham ME13 0DN sells boxes of fruit by mail order. +44(0)1795 532100
Theobolds Cider & Apple Juice, Heronsgate Farm, Stourmouth, Canterbury, +44(0)1227 722275. Cider and juice made from Cox and Bramley apples. Available from shops or cases of 12 from the farm.
Cobnuts:
Cobnuts are marketed fresh - not dried like rnost other nuts, such as walnuts and almonds. Consequently they can usually only be bought when in season, typically from about the middle of August through to October, although stored nuts may be available from selected outlets through to Christmas. At the beginning of the season the husks are green and the kernels are particularly juicy. Nuts harvested later on have brown shells and husks, and the full flavour of the kernel has developed.
Apple Trees, Comp Lane, St Mary's Platt, Sevenaoks, Kent TN15 8NR. Phone +44(0)1732 882734, +44(0)20 7408 1010, fax +44(0)1732 882877. Ready picked cobnuts.
Silverhill Barn, Dunks Green, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 9SD; phone +44(0)1732 810745. cobnuts available mail-order, PYO and ready-picked. Open weekdays 1 pm to 4pm, weekends 10am to 4pm. Closed when wet.
Oldbury Farmhouse, Ightham, Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 9DE; phone +44(0)1732 882397. cobnuts by mail-order.
Oldbury House, Ightham, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 9DE, phone +44(0)1732 882320. Cobnuts by mail order.
Stone Cottage, Roughway, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 9SH, phone +44(0)1732 810933. Mail order and PYO: cobnuts - ready picked by arrangement. Open daily, 9am to dusk.
Belks, Otham, Maidstone, Kent ME15 8RL; phone +44(0)1622 862150, fax +44(0)1622 863589. Cobnuts mail-order or direct from the farm by arrangement.
Allens Farm, Allens Lane, Plaxtol, Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 0QZ; phone +44(0)1732 822904, 810263 or 812200, fax +44(0)1732 812219. Organic. Cobnuts by mail-order, ready-picked and PYO. Phone for opening times. Closed when wet.
Oast Cottage, Ightham, Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 9DG; phone +44(0)1732 780764. Cobnuts - PYO, ready-picked by arrangement; mail-order. Phone for times.
Golding Hop Farm, Bewley Lane, Plaxtol, Kent TN15 0PS; phone +44(0)1732 885432. Cobnuts - PYO by arrangement daily except Satuday. Mail order.
The Fruit Garden, Mulberry Farm, Woodnesborough, Sandwich, CT13 0PT, +44(0)1304 81345. 75 varieties of apples and pears, plums &c.
Keepers Nursery, Gallants Court, East Farleigh, Maidstone, ME15 0LE, +44(0)1622 726465. 400 varieties of apple, more than 80 pears, plums, cherries and other fruits; they also offer a grafting and budding service. See their web-site for more information.
The East of England Apples and Orchards Project. Contact: treesales [at] applesandorchards.org.uk or call +44(0)1328 838298 for a catalogue of 170 varieties local to the East of England. See their web-site.
