VOLUNTEERS will have to wait a while to see the fruits of their labour.
On Sunday, 100 apple trees were planted in Winnersh Meadows to create a community orchid. Over time, it is hoped that they will both blossom and produce fruit that people can eat.
The project came about when Matthew Knight, co-founder of Freely Fruity, met Amrita of Wokingham Community Garden Project (WCGP) on a WBC clean air initiative conference call. After discussions with fellow Freely Fruity co-founders Ryan Simpson and James Whittingham, it was agreed the existing trees were in poor health.
Volunteers from both groups started clearing and repairing damage to them, while they were joined on Sunday by members of several Rotary clubs to plant the additional trees.
Mr Knight said: “We’ve already planted hundreds of fruit trees in the local area. But this is our first major community orchard; so it is quite special to our charity.
“We hope that the residents of Winnersh enjoy the fruits of the trees planted for years to come.”
Amrita said “When the orchard is fully restored and bears fruit, we can come together as a community to enjoy nature’s abundance and be proud that we made it happen.
“Our long-term vision is to hold apple pressings, picnics and other social events for our community in the future.”
The Rotary Clubs present were from Winnersh and Binfield, Maidenhead and Loddon Vale. A spokesperson for them said: “By working together we can achieve so much more.”
Councillor Parry Batth , the executive member for Environment and Leisure at Wokingham Borough Council, is a keen supporter of the Winnersh Meadows scheme and attended Sunday’s planting session.
He praised the teams for their work, and Freely Fruity for providing the trees, saying he was really excited about the prospect of the fruit coming through from next summer.
“This also contributes towards our objective, of being carbon neutral by 2030,” he said. “We’re planting 250,000 trees across the borough, and this is going to be part of that process, helping the environment.”
Freely Fruity said they are looking for new places to expand its work.
“If you have a public space or school that would benefit from the planting of fruit trees please get in touch,” Mr Knight. “People can request assistance from our charity by visiting our website at: www.freelyfruity.org.”
