Coronation Living Heritage fund - Upcoming orchard care and planting

Luton’s Parks and Countryside Service is launching a programme of works to care for and improve community orchards across the town, running now through to spring 2026.

Looking after Luton’s orchards

Press release 18 August 2025

Coming to a community orchard near you - orchard work this autumn, winter and spring.

Luton’s Parks and Countryside Service, supported by Luton Orchards, Penrose Roots to Recovery, BCN Wildlife Trust and others, is launching a programme of works to care for and improve community orchards across the town, running now through to spring 2026. The project is funded by the Defra Coronation Living Heritage Fund.

We’ll be giving some care and attention to these and other orchards:

People’s Park community orchard
Bide-A-While orchard
Stockingstone Meadow fruit trees (near Bide-A-While)
Limbury Meads community orchard
Chaul End community orchard (by sports ground behind the community centre)
Wigmore Valley Park Peace Garden orchard
Runley Road orchard
Riddy Lane Folk Fruit orchard
Grasmere Nursery

What will be happening?

Works will include improvements to access, new information boards as well rainwater harvesting or access to water. Contractors will clear scrub and add post and rail fencing where needed. We’ll also be planting a small number of carefully selected trees as well as repairing damaged and missing tree stakes and guards on existing ones. You can also expect some tours and apple-themed activities popping up across Luton.

Get involved

Whether you’re a regular visitor, a local resident, or just curious, we’d love you to get involved.

As part of the project, there will be volunteer workshops and seasonal 'orchard blitzes' where you can learn new skills and help care for these valued community spaces. We’ll share the event schedule soon.

Konni Deppe, Project coordinator, Luton Orchards said: “We want to let people know something’s happening in their local orchard, spark interest and maybe even inspire new orchard champions.”

Hazel Simmons MBE, Leader of Luton Council said: “Our community orchards are more than just green spaces – they’re part of our town’s heritage and a valuable resource for people to enjoy, learn from, and care for. This project is a great opportunity for residents to get involved, whether that’s by lending a hand, picking up new skills, or simply appreciating what’s on their doorstep. By working together, we can make sure these orchards continue to thrive and benefit Luton for years to come.”

Contact

To find out more, or express interest in volunteering, please contact konni@lutonorchards.org . Dates will be on our What's on.

Coronation funding update March 2026

Thanks to Luton Council’s Coronation Living Heritage funding, a lot of work happened this winter across Luton’s fruit tree locations.

Council staff and over 40 volunteers from LBC, Stockingstone Road Allotments, Barnfield College, Grasmere Nursery, Good Gym, Penrose Roots and the Wildlife Trust Youth Rangers were involved.

Skilled contractors laid hedges, pollarded willows and hazels and cleared encroaching scrub to allow for more light into orchards. This will improve the biodiversity and help create the mosaic habitat that orchards are so valued for.

Walking across Limbury Meads, Riddy Lane or Runley Road, you’ll notice brand new guards and posts around younger trees. Still to follow are People’s Park, Stockingstone Meadow and Wigmore Valley Park. This will protect the trunks and branches from deer, dogs and mowers for years to come - for many of the trees, this was a much-needed rescue mission!

Rather than creating completely new orchards, we carefully added a good dozen fruit trees to existing orchards at Grasmere Nursery, Stockingstone Meadow, Wardown Park Arboretum and Bide-a-While. This ensures these orchard habitats survive. It is often a more sustainable approach to starting an orchard from scratch.

With help from my colleague Sal, I pruned well over 100 fruit trees, old and young, at 7 different sites across town.

Last but not least, I grafted 20 heritage trees for planting next year. One of them is a new Luton variety - but more of that another time. Do let me know if you’d like to adopt one of the little trees in your garden or grounds - there will be some going spare.

Thank you to everyone who supported us hands-on or in spirit - and thank you to the Coronation Living Heritage Fund for paying for much of the work and materials.

I am so pleased that much of this urgent orchard work could be done this winter.