Harvest approaches

As August draws to a close it time to think about harvesting the various fruits at Great Gutton. The big job will be the collection of the apples from the three on farm orchards. The apples are pulped and pressed on the farm to produce the very popular Great Gutton Apple Juice which forms part of the welcome pack for our guests. The 150 or so apple trees have all be planted in the last 10 years as part of the farms Countryside Stewardship Scheme (more of which another time). Traditional Devon cider varieties have been mixed with desert apples in an attempt, over time, to reproduce the three old orchards that would have surrounded the house at the turn of the last century. Apple harvest takes place during October and November the challenge being to pick and mix apples from different trees to make a tasty blend of juice for us all to enjoy over the coming months. The next step is gather the necessary equipment and convince the guests, kids, friends and neighbours to help out! Some will no doubt be more persuadable that others!!