We have been advised that our brand new and shiny Piggeries banner has become a pokestop, a landmark worth visiting by those who play Pokemon Go.
Pokemon Go or not, the new sign is definitely worth a visit and a great excuse for taking a walk!
We installed the new banner last week and think it looks fantastic. Many thanks to our designer in residence, Leo!
You thought it’s all over, didn’t you? Far from it!
We’ll be meeting
Today, Saturday December 9th at 11:00 o’clock at the
Piggeries Orchard
We’ll fill some gaps in the hedges at the Piggeries and St Margaret’s Orchard (if the in-fill plants arrive on time). We also have Yellow Rattle seed to sow, willow whips to cut and plant and a number of similar tasks suitable for people of all ages and abilities.
We’ll have all the tools, but please wear sturdy shoes and suitable clothing. A pair of gardening gloves and a pair of secateurs is always useful.
We’ll probably be done and headed to the Fox for refreshments at 13:00, with luck just before the rain arrives.
All members are invited to attend the fifth Annual General Meeting of the Hanwell and Norwood Green Orchard Trial, which will be held at 19:30 on Tuesday 19th November 2019 at 72, St Margaret’s Road, Hanwell W7 2HF.
All members are invited and encouraged to attend and vote at the AGM. It’s free of charge.
There’ll be refreshments and we look forward to an informal chat once we conducted the formal business.
Please notify us to confirm your attendance.
You can download the complete notice, which includes the full agenda, here: HANGOT AGM 2019 Notice and Agenda.
Our constitution is also available for download: HANGOT Constitution.
Happy Birthday, Hanwell and Norwood Green Orchard Trail!
HANGOT turned five this week!
Sorry this is a tiny post with a large photo gallery, but really! Just looking through the media archives makes me feel proud. There are so many good photos, so many excellent memories, so many superb friendships born from those five years, it’s just amazing.
Not to speak of 160-something trees along several miles, all managed and maintained, looked after and cared for. Well done you, HANGOT, and thanks for everyone who supported the project in spirit, in the flesh, in sweat, rain and shine!
And we are still going strongly and with a passion! It is never too late to join.
The apples are ripe and the weather’s got a chill. What can be better than a baked apple?
Wash and dry the apple, remove the core with a sharp spoon or a small knife from the to, leaving the bottom intact. Insert a hazelnut-sized piece of butter, half a teaspoon of chopped toasted hazelnuts or foraged cob nuts, half a teaspoon of brown sugar.
Bake at 180 C for 20 minutes and enjoy by itself, with custard or ice cream, or as a companion to a savoury meal such as a seared duck breast or a grilled goats cheese.
It couldn’t be easier and as heart-warming comfort food goes, it could hardly get any better!
Traditionalists will prefer a proper cooking apple but I find that Russet or Braeburn are good versatile all rounders.
Surely, nobody can say that we aren’t planning ahead!
Nature begun its journey into the dormant season and low ambient evening light stops us from playing The Knights of the Orchard and The Wizard of the Towpath on Tuesday evenings until light conditions improve again in spring, but we are busy making plans and offer a series of activities:
Today, Saturday October 5th, 11:00
Reptile survey and – training in Glade Lane Canalside Park (click for details).
The next event after that is on Saturday November 9th (hedge infill planting and Yellow Rattle sowing, St Margaret’s and Piggeries orchards, followed by the members’ Christmas party (December), Winter pruning (January), and several clearing and maintenance jobs throughout 2020. The full list is available on our Schedule and Status page.
Those of you with electronic calendars and diaries can also add the HANGOT calendar (viewing only) using our calendar link (right-click, select Copy Link or similar). To add the calendar to your electronic diary, look for a function to “add a calendar” using an “ical link” or using “an URL.”
Our friend and volunteer Gareth Matthews, a professional ecologist with local conservation projects, invites HANGOT volunteers to join him for a short
Reptile Survey
Glade Lane Canalside Park
Saturday October 5th, from 11:00
Meet just west of the pond.
The aim is to learn the necessary tools of the trade so that we can monitor the reptile population in some of the orchards. The Piggeries, St Margaret’s and Osterley Lock orchards are all known to have local amphibians and quite possibly reptiles. Gareth even offered to donate a starter kit of “tin and felt” for us to use; I guess we’ll learn there and then what exactly that means 😉
Bring gloves, litter pickers and bin bags (if you’re up for helping with some litter picking along the way) or a pair of secateurs to help pruning some younger trees. Undoubtedly we’ll work up a thirst and hope to retire to the Fox for refreshments at approximately at 1 o’clock.
How, or rather when to pick an apple, seems a challenging question given how much fruit is taken from publicly accessible fruit trees well before it is ripe.
Perhaps some fruit enthusiasts want to ensure their fair share (while deploying a rather liberal interpretation of the fair share in some cases), perhaps other friends of the fruity delight simply don’t know. Whatever the reason, here is the simple rule:
When ripe, the fruit will come off at a light touch.
That’s it!
Apples, pears, quinces, plums or raspberry. If it needs a yank then it is not ready to go. Fruit colour, presence of windfall, time of the year and other indicators don’t matter.
Fruit harvested before it is ripe may ripen on a shelf but won’t be as delicious as its cousin that was allowed a fulfilled life in nature.
Our friends from The Orchard Project described it in more detail but to the same effect.
Did you know that you can find us in the orchard of Horsenden Farm on September 28th, where we will help celebrate all thing appley with the Apple Day at Horsenden Farm?
See their Facebook page for full details.
Horsenden Farm is a fantastic site “on the other side of Ealing” with a vibrant and enthusiastic community, the Friends of Horsenden Hill, offering a diverse range of activities for all ages. Apple Day is just one of many excellent reasons for visiting Horsenden Hill Farm and surroundings. Be sure not to miss it.
You won’t get points but you might get prizes!
Come and join us for a casual walk across the Hanwell Meadows for this year’s summer pruning!
It’s an excellent opportunity to learn or to share your knowledge in subject matter, or to advocate yet another preferred pruning regime. Or you can simply come along, enjoy a lovely walk across the meadows in the company of our friendly volunteers.
Saturday September 14th at 11 o’clock
Jubilee Meadows
By the railway crossing
No experience is necessary, but please wear sturdy shoes and dress for the occasion. We hope to retire to the Fox for refreshments at around 14:00.
