The early May Bank Holiday weekend brings the perfect opportunity to enjoy a good value family day out (or two!) amongst the lovely Herefordshire countryside and orchards of the Marcle Ridge.
This popular two day event will take place on Sunday 30 April and Monday 1st May in and around Putley and Aylton, just a ten minute drive to the west of Ledbury.
Big Apple Blossomtime HQ is Putley Parish Hall (HR8 2QN) where you can purchase locally made cider, perry and juice and meet the artisan makers. The cognoscenti of the cider making world compete in the highly revered Big Apple Cider and Perry Trials on the preceding day and tastings of their competition entries can be enjoyed for just £2.50 per adult.
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On both days, guided walks will start at Putley Parish Hall, each one explaining part of the apple growing story in the area over the past 150 years – choose between Dorothy’s Delight, Nigel’s Pride and Norman’s Gap!
Enjoy a ploughman’s lunch on Sunday in Aylton’s restoed cruck barn at Court Farm, followed by David Marshall’s “Apples and People” talk in the adjacent church, telling the global story of the apple. Leominster Morris will round off Sunday’s festivities with their lively and colourful dancing back at Putley Parish Hall. Sunday’s other attractions include pruning demonstrations and how to make “Black Gold” biochar out of orchard waste!
On Bank Holiday Monday, there’s a unique opportunity for a guided tour of a recently planted and thoroughly modern organic apple orchard, where varieties including Scrumptious, Natyra, Pirouette and Red Topaz are grown.
You’ll also find Tools for Self-Reliance, Anne Crane’s Plants for Pollinators, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, Paul Hand of Bees and Trees, and “Dan the Sharp” with his tool sharpening service all at Putley Parish Hall. You can enjoy a delicious lunch prepared by Ledbury Young Farmers and maybe another guided walk, before returning for tea and cake with Putley WI. The delightful “Fiddlers Two will entertain you with their eclectic mixture of traditional jigs and reels in the afternoon.
The Big Apple is a Community Benefit Society run entirely by its volunteers. If you’d like to help out with future events, do come along and talk to the organisers during the two days of Blossomtime!
Full programme details and timings can be found online at www.bigapple.org.uk