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Located on the west-facing slope of the Stockingstone Road Allotment Association site, this orchard is well-stocked with productive apple, hazelnut, pear and plum trees for members of the association to enjoy.
Located on the west-facing slope of the Stockingstone Road Allotment Association site, this orchard is well-stocked with productive apple, hazelnut, pear and plum trees for members of the association to enjoy.
Summary
Summary
Location: High Town
Size: 0.09ha
Number of trees: 28
Crops: apple, filbert, gage, hazel, pear, plum, quince
Age of trees: established trees, planted 2008, new additions in 2024
Access: no public access. This orchard is only open to members of the Stockingstone Road Allotment Association, but you can visit once a year on the annual open day, usually around the first Saturday of September. For details, visit Stockingstone Road Allotment Association.
Natural England incremental ID: BEDF0427
History
History
The Stockingstone Road Allotment Orchard was planted on former plots in 2008 by Luton Council's Parks service and plotholders. Allotments have been on this site at least as far back as the 1878 OS County Series map.
Plotholders supplied this scan of the original map. Some of these trees no longer exist and it appears to be a little out of sync with what is on the ground. Luton Orchards is working on identifying the cultivars.
The earliest map we could find showing the names of the cultivars that were planted in 2008 (author unknown).
Watch a short video about the Stockingstone Road Allotments orchard
Watch a short video about the Stockingstone Road Allotments orchard
A framed photo showing the young orchard a few years later, still well-mulched.
A young helper making sure a tree stake is correctly positioned. Photo source: Rick Donnelly, Luton Council Parks and Countryside Service.
A photo of the planting day on 13 December 2008. Note the good ground preparation and the generous amount of mulching to help the trees establish themselves. The second person from the left is possibly the late Ken Price, who was pivotal in the creation of the orchard. The other people in this photograph have not yet been identified.
Photo source: Rick Donnelly, Luton Council Parks and Countryside Service.
Photo source: Rick Donnelly, Luton Council Parks and Countryside Service.
The orchard shown on the left of the 2011 information board that still stands on the site.
List of crop types and cultivars at the Stockingstone Road Allotment Association orchard
List of crop types and cultivars at the Stockingstone Road Allotment Association orchard
By 2024, this orchard consisted of 26 trees.
The varieties grown are still being identified.
Only the cultivars with a full tag number have been confirmed:
Apples
Apples
Tag Planting date Cultivar
Tag Planting date Cultivar
TBC 2008 Beauty of Bedford
6745 2008 Bramley's Seedling
TBC 2008 Laxton's Delicious
TBC 2008 Laxton's Early Crimson
6746 2008 Egremont Russet
6755 2008 Laxton's Exquisite
TBC 2008 Duchess of Bedford
6758 2008 Earl Cowper
TBC 2008 Hambling's Seedling
TBC 2008 Laxton's Peerless
TBC 2008 Laxton's Pioneer
6749 2008 Laxton's Superb
6748 2008 Lord Lambourne
TBC 2008 Owen Thomas
TBC 2008 Pam's Delight
TBC 2024 Irish Peach (grafted from tree at Keech Hospice car park)
TBC 2024 Reverend W Wilks (grafted from Penrose Roots garden)
Cherries
Cherries
6744 2008 Sweet Cherry
Pears
Pears
TBC 2008 Beurre Bedford
TBC 2008 Laxton's Early Crimson
6766 2008 Warden
TBC 2008 Laxton's Record
Nuts
Nuts
TBC 2008 Corylus Ennis (Hazel)
TBC 2008 Corylus Cosford (Filbert)
Plums
Plums
TBC 2008 Goldfinch
TBC 2008 Laxton's Gage
TBC 2008 Damson Merryweather
Other
Other
6747 2008 Quince
A medlar used to grow in the orchard, but the tree did not survive the 2021 season.
Apart from the trees in the orchard, there are many smaller fruit trees on individual plots within the allotment, which aid pollination and increase the site's habitat value.
Tag locations on our 'digital orchard' - still a work in progress
Tag locations on our 'digital orchard' - still a work in progress
We experimented with digitising an orchard and the Stockingstone Road Allotment orchard was our first pilot. You can read more about our efforts at: Digitising an orchard.
Maintenance and pruning
Maintenance and pruning
Pruning courses have been taking place at this orchard since at least 2020, when Bedfordshire-based fruit tree expert Colin Carpenter was brought in to help get the work started. Further courses were taught by Sal Wileman from the East of England Apples and Orchards Project. Plotholders have carried out weeding and mulching during the allotment association's work days on the site's communal areas. The trees were in generally fair condition by 2024, but deer and strimmer damage was and is a problem.
The orchard lost a plum tree that split under the weight of the fruit, likely due to lack of formative pruning in its early years. It was a sad lesson to teach us to look after our young trees, so that they develop a strong and balanced framework.
Summer pruning with Sal Wileman of the East of England Apples and Orchards Project (left) and plotholders.
Trying to rescue a plum tree that split along the main trunk.
A pruning course in 2020 with fruit tree expert Colin Carpenter (foreground). Also pictured (right): Luton Council Horticultural Coordinator and organiser of the course, Sam Mostyn-Willis.
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