Youngsters help plant trees in Ancaster community orchard

Schoolchildren have helped to plant a number of trees to complete a community orchard in Ancaster.

The children from Ancaster Primary School helped to plant the trees on Monday in the orchard which can be found at the back of the parish cemetery, off Church Lane.

Andrew Newton, of Ancaster Parish Council, said the orchard will provide a point of interest to bring the people of the community together and a feeling of wellbeing. It will also be an outside education point for schoolchildren.

He said: “It will provide in time produce for the community as well as a suitable habitat for wildlife and help with education towards protecting the environment.”

District councillor Rosemary Kaberry-Brown allocated £500 from her annual community project grant last year to buy 22 commercial variety fruit trees which were planted in 2021 while Matthew Davey, from the Lincolnshire County Council Community Wildlife Scheme, allocated £500 for 22 Lincolnshire heritage fruit trees.

The fruit trees include apple, plum, damson, cherry and pear varieties. Some of the heritage varieties date back to the 1700s.

A team of keen gardeners, a church warden, and Lincolnshire Community Volunteer Service will help look after the orchard.

Mr Newton said the original idea for the orchard came from a Rick Stein TV programme in which the celebrity chef visited the Eden project in Cornwall where they had planted 300 fruit trees.