Blossomtime 2025

Blossomtime 2025

Apr 28, 2025

Blossomtime 2025 – Putley and Aylton join forces to celebrate their orchards, apples and cider

This special springtime opportunity to enjoy the local orchards, famed for their cider, dessert and culinary fruit, takes place over two days on Sunday 4th and Monday 5th May.

Blossomtime 2025 will see community organisers the Big Apple Association bring together four venues around Putley and Aylton.  Starting with Putley Parish Hall, Court Farm Barn and Yew Tree Farm in Aylton and Putley’s Dragon Orchard will each offer a collection of different experiences.

Putley Parish Hall will be the welcome hub, where visitors can park, buy their entrance ticket (£5 for adults, children under 16 free, valid for one day at all four venues), and start guided walks around the orchards.  It is also the centre for Blossomtime lunches and teas, provided in turn by Aylton Church, Munsley WI, Ledbury Young Farmers and Putley WI.

Court Farm Barn, Aylton will be the centre for arts, crafts, demonstrations, workshops and talks, including national and local speakers Steve Oram, Anna Stankiewicz, Jonathan Keyte and Will Masefield talking about the many reasons why orchards are so important to us and ways in which we can all support their future.

A stop at Yew Tree Farm will find local varieties of perry pears, and perry made from its own perry pears.

At Dragon Orchard, tastings drawn from over 140 entries to the 2025 Big Apple Cider and Perry Trials will be on offer, while seven different cider and perry makers will be selling their wares surrounded by music, poetry and entertainment in the orchard.  Or just wander amongst the fruit trees, soaking up the sounds and scents of nature.

Visitors are encouraged to walk between the four venues – they are all within easy reach of each other – but for those who may need some assistance or just for the sheer fun of it, a tractor and passenger trailer will be available.

Full programme details are available at https://www.bigapple.org.uk/blossomtime/

Plenty of blossom but no Blossomtime in Putley!

Plenty of blossom but no Blossomtime in Putley!

May 5, 2020

This coming weekend should have been the Big Apple’s thirtieth year of running Blossomtime in Putley, but of course it won’t be happening.  This annual opportunity to enjoy the orchards full of apple blossom and to taste many different local ciders, perries and apple juices has become an established part of the calendar in this corner of Herefordshire.  This time of year sees the new product from last year’s harvest becoming ready to drink – and there’s no stopping it!  Many craft makers depend on local events and tourism and hospitality businesses to sell their cider, perry and apple juice – and so they are taking a big hit from lockdown.  This year’s blossom is the start of next year’s cider – but first there is a need to sell last year’s stock.

The Big AppleFor the past thirty years, the Big Apple has been organising community events to support their local orchards and apple, cider and perry producers.  Normally, Putley Parish Hall would be heaving with visitors buying cider, perry and apple juice next weekend.  The nine producers who had arranged to be there are working hard to find extra ways to make their drinks available within the licensing laws – whether that is through online orders, local deliveries, click and collect, farm shops and village stores.   The Big Apple is supporting them through a special information area on their website at https://www.bigapple.org.uk/blossomtime-2020/

 

Many regular Big Apple venues are to be found there, including Once Upon a Tree, Gregg’s Pit and Woodredding Farm, Pope’s Perry, Yew Tree Farm and Jus Apple Juice.  And two special guests who each won awards at last year’s Big Apple Cider and Perry Trials: Bartestree Cider, last year’s Champion Perrymaker, and Halfpenny Green Cider, winner of the bottle fermented/conditioned cider.