Hackney Harvest had a hugely successful and enjoyable time showcasing the project at the Growing Communities apple day today.
We gave out lots of apple tasters as well as super-ethical, vegan, sugar-free flapjacks made with apples from Lordship road (I should point out, they were also super tasty).
We were lucky enough to be joined by Jim Arbury from the Royal Horticultural Society who is an expert in identifying fruit and was able to establish what varieties our Hackney apples and pears were.
Jim wins the prize for best fact of the day, informing us that it’s currently believed that apples originated in Kazakhstan. From there they spread throughout Europe and were popular with the Romans, who helped their migration. The first recorded instance of apples in the UK is in Edward 1st’s court record in 1200.
Our map of fruit trees was also on display and a number of trees were added to it by people we spoke to.
The project seemed to capture the imagination of many and we look forward to involving more people next year whether it be pitching in as harvesting volunteers or as fruit tree owners.
We had a fantastic day and really enjoyed meeting and speaking to lots of Hackney residents. Big thanks are due to Kerry from Growing Communities, Jim from the RHS, Carina from the London Orchard Project, Lisa from Happy Kitchen (responsible for our wonderful flapjacks) and all the Hackney Harvest organisers and volunteers.
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