The Heritage Orchard Year: Dorset's Orchard Heritage

A brief chronology of Dorset's Orchards

1291 The first written reference to cider in Dorset where there is mention of cider: cisera in an enrolled account of Shaftesbury Abbey.

1340 The Inquisitioines Nonarum tithes of cider are included in the parish of Beaminster. And by the reign of Edward IV (1461-1483) cider was being brought into Poole from abroad (most likely from Jersey or Normandy).
"A vessel batalla named the Mavye of Reyle, Wrench Herbert master, brought in amongst its cargo 1 pipe of 'sidre' valued at 3s 4d and Stephen Cressyn, a foreigner, paid thereon 1/2d in customs duty and 2d in subsidy."

Early 1500's Another vessel, the Barbaray of Rever Jobles entered Poole Haven under command of her master Thomas Viron. Amongst the cargo, besides great store of apples, pears, nuts and other fruits of the earth, were 3 'puncheons de perry' containing 1 cask (dolium) valued at 10s. On this consignment of liquor customs duty and 6d, as his share of the subsidy.

1700's The Vale of Blackemore noted as the pre eminent cider producing district.

1788 "...apples were raised in abundance on the land lying between Charmouth and Bridport. The cider from which being sold at 7s to 12s a hogshead"
Shaw Tour of West of England 1788 p 454

1793 Cider valued at a guinea to 30/- a hogshead of 63 gals (not the normal 56)
John Claridge - Agriculture of Dorset

1812 In Powerstock a single tree is known to yield 7 hogsheads in one season.
Stevenson Agriculture of Dorset

1800's — Netherbury labourers had 12 pints of cider a day at harvest. At Wootton Fitzpaine the men often drank 2 gallons of liquor a day.

Photographic credits:
Old apple tree Wytherstone, School Bramley's © David Squirrell
Lujen Robins’s old cider shed, Shillingstone, © James and Roger Crowden
Photographs of individual apple varieties © Liz Copas
Reproduction of Tithe Maps by kind permission of the Dorset History Centre

Old apple tree in Witherstone

Symondsbury: The story so far

Symondsbury is a large parish, nestled amongst the distinctive hills of West Dorset and close to the market town of Bridport. The parish runs from the coast at West Bay and Eype, inland through the village of Symondsbury and extends into the depths of the Marshwood Vale. Like many parishes in West Dorset, cider orchards were once a major part of the economy and added greatly to the character of the landscape with blossom, trees and fruit.

The last 2 remaining Bramley trees in the orchard

Symondsbury 2005 showing the school orchard's last 2 remaining trees

In Symondsbury parish there were over 100 acres of orchard in 1839. The largest orchard in Symondsbury was four acres, many were under half an acre and were attached to houses and cottages.

In 1839 15 orchards were recorded in Symondsbury village itself and these accounted for approximately 17 acres, this fell to around 16 acres in 1895. The survey shows, that between 1839 and 1895 some orchards were reduced in size or grubbed out, one was extended and 2 new ones were planted, notably an orchard at Crepe farm of 3.5 acres.

In 2005 there are 2 productive standard orchards in the village totalling about 2 acres , Hales orchard found on the 1839 tithe map (renamed Willy Tuck’s orchard) and Billets Mead orchard, found on the 1895 OS map. The remnants of 3 other orchards of 1839 are home to a handful of ancient trees that still bear fruit. Old espaliers, the remains of domestic orchards or single garden trees have also been found and will no doubt continue to be unearthed. It is difficult to verify how many small domestic orchards have been planted on new sites in the last 50 years. This information relies on individuals coming forward, to date only one 2 have been identified, amounting to about half an acre.

1839 tithe map

Plot numbers on the map relate to the apportionments, which list owner, occupier, plot name, cultivation, area and tithe payment. Cross-referencing this information with parish records, studying old photographs, gathering oral histories, on the ground exploration and apple identification have all helped to give a fuller picture of the history of Symondsbury orchards.

Detail of the 1839 Symondsbury tithe map

558 Westernfield orchard and willow An unusual combination of orchard and withy and still home to a Crimson King planted in the early 1900s and a Scots Bridget, which is a later addition.

Crimson King

597 Miles Cross House garden and orchard
Amongst the remains of Miles Cross orchard is a Kings Favourite cider apple, which along with the Tom Putt is remembered by many local people as a popular dual purpose apple.

Tom Putt apples

619 Ilchester Arms, Barn Garden and Orchard
This 15th century pub has the remains of the pub orchard that used to supply apples for the house cider. All that remains of this orchard are 3 Bramley trees (severely cut back in 1999). A Sweet Coppin cider apple can be found in the pub garden.

The Illchester Arms circa 1900 the school orchard is also included in the photograph. The 2 saplings near the wall are most likely the trees that are still in the school grounds today (photo left).

620 Garden and Orchard
Owned by Reverend Gregory Raymond in 1839 this orchard later became part of the school grounds and now has 2 old Bramley apple trees. In the 1920s - 40’s, boys from the school were each given a plot and the school became well known for turning out fine gardeners. The school was built in 1868 on the site of the old poor house listed as unoccupied in the 1839 apportionments.

623 Cottage and garden
Levi Tuck was a thatcher and owned a house and garden in the middle of John Pitfield’s orchard. When the apportionments are cross referenced with the 1841 and 1851 census we discover that Levi Tuck was 69 when the tithe map was drawn up in 1839 and lived with his wife Elizabeth, his daughter Harriet and 8 year old James Tuck.

The 1839 tithe map (below left) shows the orchard plot numbers 620 and 624. The school was built on these plots in 1868. The 1902 OS map (below) shows the orchard on plot 620 has been slightly reduced in size.

The larger orchard (624) and Levi Tucks cottage (623) have disappeared altogether to make way for the school and a row of farm cottages.

646 New farmhouse at Crepe (Glebe land)
Described as a ‘new build’ in 1839. The later addition of an orchard is shown on the 1895 OS map. The orchard at Crepe, which was home to Quarrendon, Tom Putt and Kingston Black varieties, gradually declined and finally made way for a piggery in 1959.

Crepe Farm detail of 1902 OS map

611 Hales Orchard
Now about ½ an acre smaller and named Willy Tuck’s Orchard, Hales orchard was owned by the Earl of Ilchester and was rented to John Pope who also occupied a good deal of land in the parish belonging to his father-in-law John Pitfield. The orchard has one old tree and 47 trees planted about 35 years ago by Sir John Colfox. The orchard has undergone 5 years of restoration pruning and is used as a training orchard and for seasonal celebrations.

Estimated acreage of 6 West Dorset parishes in 1839
Parish	Acres
Beaminster	232
Netherbury	350
Powerstock	132
Stoke Abbott	99
Symondsbury	100
Whitchurch Canonicorum	172
Total	1085

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