National Register could prove fruitful for the future of Welsh apples

The register is the result of three years of collaborative working and workshops, bringing together apple and orchard enthusiasts including Welsh author and apple identification expert Carwyn Graves, the National Botanic Gardens of Wales and the Marcher Apple Network [2].

The announcement coincides with the National Trust’s annual #BlossomWatch #GwleddYGwanwyn campaign that encourages people to enjoy one of nature’s great spectacles – spring blossom - as apple trees across Wales burst with white and pink flowers.

Apples have been cultivated in Wales for over a thousand years. References to both the orchards and the fruit appear widely in myth, poetry, folk music and place names, including in the famous Mabinogi myth cycle, some of the earliest mentions of ‘Merlin’ in literature, and the iconic tradition of carving apple-wood love spoons.

Research undertaken by the National Trust in 2022 found that England and Wales have lost more than half of their orchards since 1900 [3] driven by changing land use, with rates of orchard loss likely to be much higher than this in Wales over the past half a century. This has resulted in loss of apple trees local fruit and habitats for nature, meaning fewer people can enjoy the beauty of blossom.

To combat this widely recognised decline, members of the Marcher Apple Network have been seeking lost and heritage varieties in old orchards and gardens throughout Wales and border counties of England for over 40 years. From their collections and those of the National Trust and the National Fruit Collection at Brogdale there is now the core of a Welsh National Collection.

The newly collated National Register of Welsh Apple Varieties aims to help combat this loss by recording and sharing a significant part of Wales’ cultural natural heritage and encourage continued cultivation of these familiar fruit, bringing Welsh apples and their associated blossom back to Wales.

Carwyn Graves, Apple identification expert and author of Apples of Wales, said,

“Wales’ unique apple heritage was almost entirely forgotten about a decade or two ago, but it has enormous cultural value – reflected in everything from well-known folk songs based on apples and orchards to a fascinating farmhouse cider tradition extending back to the Middle Ages!”

“We are building on the work many individuals and organisations have done over the past few decades to safeguard this unique genetic heritage. Excitingly, as far as we know, this is the first National Register of this type to group varieties – so including varieties that may have arisen elsewhere or in the historic ‘Marcher’ area on the border but developed strong cultural associations with Welsh communities.”

The National Register of Welsh Apple Varieties has three defined variety categories: ‘Historic’ that can be dated pre-1950, ‘modern’ identified as post-1950 and ‘associated’, which are apples not bred in Wales, but which are/or have been culturally significant.

Work to compile the list of Welsh apple varieties started in March 2022 based upon a preliminary list of over 120 possibilities provided by the Marcher Apple Network. All those named on the Register can be found flowering now, in the gardens and orchards cared for by The Marcher Apple Network, National Trust Cymru at Erddig near Wrexham, Penrhyn Castle and Garden near Bangor, Llanerchaeron in Ceredigion, and recently at the National Botanic Gardens of Wales which holds the Plant Heritage National Collection of Welsh Heritage Apples.

Alex Summers, National Trust Cymru’s Head Gardener at Llanerchaeron and part of the group that complied the National Register of Welsh Apple Varieties adds:

“At Llanerchaeron we are lucky enough to have six out of the 29 varieties of apples [4] on the National Register thanks in part to the sympathetic management of the garden that dates back nearly two centuries.

Varieties including Baker's Delicious, Bardsey, King of the Pippins (known in Welsh as Gwell Na Mil), and Llanerchaeron Peach can all be found growing in the Walled Garden. Some are veteran trees, and some are more recent plantings, but all contribute to the heritage orchard.

“By choosing varieties listed on the Register when planting apple trees, people will not only have a tree that is suitable to the changeable Welsh climate and resistant to the diseases which are more prevalent in western Britain, but they will also be helping to safeguard Welsh cultural heritage as we strive to do here at Llanerchaeron.”[4]

A further 35 varieties remain under consideration by the group for the National Register and there are lost Welsh apple varieties that could still be found such as Forman's Crew, Bassaleg Pippin and Pêr Gwenyn.

With the register now established, the partnership are keen to receive further information and are inviting anyone in Wales with an old apple tree associated with an old orchard or farmstead to send details , providing the location (what three words, grid reference or co-ordinates), photographs of the tree and apples, and a brief description about the tree and fruit to: WelshAppleTrees@marcherapple.net and carwyn@ceginybobl.co.uk

A list of the 29 apple varieties designated by the National Register of Welsh Apple Varieties can be found on the National Trust website.