COMMUNITY ORCHARD
This orchard has been planted as a memorial to the sixty men from the Parish of Wendover who died in WW1 and is in memory of their lives and their bravery.
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This orchard of 60 trees, two of which are planted in the adjacent Hampden Meadow, was planted in 2014, marking one hundred years since the outbreak of the First World War on 28 July 1914. The Parish of Wendover lost 59 brave men during the four years of fighting. The names are inscribed on the Wendover War Memorial in the High Street and in St Mary’s Church – both only a short walk from this orchard. We hope that on visiting the Wendover Memorial Community Orchard you will reflect on the sacrifice these men and their families made for us.
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If you want to know more about the local people who died in World War One and what happened locally, you can visit the month by month accounts published in Wendover News.
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Read the latest Tree Inspection Report.
What is a Community Orchard?
This Community Orchard contains varieties of fruit grown to be enjoyed by local people. It is a place where you can relax, play and learn. It offers a harvest of healthy fruit that can be shared and a host of activities from education to celebration.
Wendover Parish Council hopes that this Memorial Community Orchard becomes an important part of our local heritage.
The trees and their fruit
A mix of apple, pear, cherry, plum, gage, mulberry, quince and medlar have been planted. The tree varieties include Buckinghamshire Sheep’s Nose (cider apple), Bazeley (desert apple), Long Reinette (desert apple), Mary Morgan (desert apple), Aylesbury Prune (desert plum), Stewkley Red (desert plum), Duke of Buckingham (pear), Prestwood White Heart (cherry) and Ronald’s Heart (cherry) to name but a few. View the full list of trees.
Biodiversity Hot Spot
Orchards and meadows are well known as hotspots of biodiversity. They often contain a mosaic of habitat which means there is a wide range of places for animals and plants to live.
Funding
This project has been funded by Wendover Parish Council, which will continue to maintain both the orchard and the meadow around it. Grateful thanks also go to Aylesbury Vale Community Chest, a Community Grant Scheme run jointly by Aylesbury Vale District Council and Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust for their contribution towards the cost of planting the orchard.
Picking Fruit
The orchard is open to everyone and free to be enjoyed. You are welcome to take a reasonable amount of fruit for your own consumption.
With the variety of trees planted there will be fruit available from July to November, starting with cherries and ending with late season apples.
WARNING: Some fruits are not to be eaten raw - look out for the orange tags on the trees which show fruit that should not be eaten raw. If you are in any doubt whether fruit is ripe and whether it can be eaten raw please contact the Parish Council.