Hello – wow  - what a day we had last Saturday at our Annual Celebration of all things apple!!

The busiest and the best yet!   We were blessed with summer-like weather and the masses came to see us in their droves!!  Over 150 cars were parked during the day – and hundreds of people munched hundreds of apples – played apple-related games – ate apple-related food and drink – and bought loads of fruit trees for their gardens!!

A huge THANK YOU to you all for your support – and kind words about the day – we really do appreciate it – and it does make all the many hours of hard work well worthwhile!

On a personal note I must place on record huge thanks to all of the Crown Nursery team – Brian and Simon did a superb job on the car parking – which was very busy at times .Dick for his usual brilliant job putting up advertising signs all over the place and erecting the marquee in record time – to Sue who did her usual superb job on ‘meet and greet’ as people came down the drive  - to Graeme, David and Liz who flew round selling trees left right and centre – and again to  Liz who also did sterling work re-stocking the hundreds of apples in our Tasting Tent – as they were steadily eaten away by customers!!  To Emma and Michael who had great fun in the games tent – there was a lot of enjoyment from the youngsters – and also from some not so young who obviously enjoyed themselves!!  And the superb refreshments from Jill and her many helpers quenched the thirst of many on such a warm day – and finally Michelle who was nearly rushed off her feet taking money and answering the phone!

The whole team worked like trojans to make the day such a resounding success!!  THANK YOU TO YOU ALL!!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME,

RICHARD

It’s nearly here!!!   Tomorrow (Saturday 22nd) is our biggest event of the year – APPLE DAY 2011!!

We have been working hard for months getting everything ready – and now it has all come together – we have 100 apple varieties available to taste – refreshments are available – and there will be fun games and plenty of advice from the experts – plus there is also the added bonus of a 10 % discount off all apple trees ordered or paid for on the day!!

The event is totally free and runs from 10-4 – the weather looks set fair – so it should be a great day!!

Do come down and see us!!

UNTIL THEN – RICHARD

Wow – what a change in the weather this week!!   From 29c last Saturday to 13c today – no wonder the plants – and the staff – are confused!!   The shorts have gone and the staff are back in their winter gear!!

This week on the nursery has seen another busy week – we have now finished picking all the apples and pears on the nursery.  Our apple store is bursting at the seams and that lovely smell is wafting around – the sweet smell of ripening fruit.

The sign has also gone up on the apple store door – ‘No Scrumping’ – since apples do have a habit of ‘disappearing’ overnight!!  We are now in the process of sorting the varieties out into their own trays – and checking them over for rots or anything that will prevent them from storing over the winter.

It is now only a few weeks to our annual Apple Day celebration  - on Saturday October 22nd – we will have our biggest day of the year.  The event runs from 10-4 – is completely free – and as well as Apple Tasting – also is a great fun day out – there are Apple-themed games for everyone – and also the chance to ask the experts for their top tips – and there is also a 10% discount off all apple trees ordered or bought on the day – so there is no excuse to get your orchard planning off to a good start!!

UNTIL THE NEXT TIME,

RICHARD

Wow – what a week – the Indian Summer continues! With temperatures soaring up into the 80′s it has been a very hot week on the nursery. This feels more like late-July than October – but I suppose we really should enjoy it – because we all know it cannot last!!

The plants are very confused though – many of the trees are now starting to shut down – and it does look like being a bumper year for autumn colour – the Liquidambars are just superb at the moment – and many of the trees are weighed down with fruits and berries – yet here they are running short of water and being encouraged to regrow rather than shut-down by this balmy weather!!

The ground has become very dry at the moment – so it is well worth pushing on with watering – particularly any fruit trees that still have a crop on since you can still influence the size and quality of the fruit in the last few days before picking. Talking of fruit picking – that has been a major job on the nursery this week – with our annual Apple Day just a few weeks away on October 22nd – we have been busy harvesting the many different varieties we grow as they ripen. Currently we have 37 different types in our Apple Store – but that will increase rapidly over the next few weeks!!

If you have never been to one of our Apple Days before – do come down and have a look – they are great fun – and it is a good day out! It is not just about tasting apples either – as there are apple-themed games for the whole family – plus teas and cakes available at the nursery. The day runs from 10-4.

All of our new catalogues are now available – here at the nursery – and will be also be available as a PDF file to dowload from the website very shortly so you can begin your autumn planning!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME – ENJOY THE WEATHER!!

RICHARD

We have a new and superb selection of specimen plants in at the nursery right now. From large evergreens for screening purposes to multi-stemmed silver birches for winter stem colour – from black and green-stemmed bamboos to half-standard evergreen trees – if you are looking for a slightly larger specimen to fill that prime spot – then we may just have the right plant for you!

Pop down to the nursery and take a look!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME, RICHARD