Fruit at River Cottage
new
Product Details
Join River Cottage Head Gardener Mark Diacono for our new Fruit course and enjoy bountiful fruit harvests, and tasty fruity treats.
There are few pleasures to match eating fruit in the shade of the tree that you grew - the flavour is better than anything you can buy, you have the pleasure of knowing it is at the very top of its game and that it comes chemical free and cared for by you. Whether you've a small holding to plant or a small balcony, you can grow some of the fruit you eat, and here's the course to help you do just that.
The fruit course at River Cottage will help you choose what to grow, familiarise you with all the options for rootstocks and training your fruit, and give you advice about caring for your fruit plants from planting through to harvest.
You'll learn about berries, currants, top fruit, shrubs, vines, rhubarb and other fruit. We'll cover the familiar as well as the forgotten fruit, some risky possibilities such as apricots and peaches, wild fruit you may be able to forage for and some recipes to make the most of your harvest.
Your day at River Cottage
COURSE DETAILS
Arrive: Tractor ride down to the farm
Welcome: Meet your hosts Steve Lamb and Head Gardener Mark Diacono, see for yourself the famous River Cottage farmhouse and kitchen garden. Enjoy a morning tea or coffee and tasty River Cottage treats.
Session one: Choosing what to grow - Mark will get you started and offer advice on getting the most out of your plot.
Practical session one: Tour the River Cottage gardens, and see examples of different fruit plants and growing techniques.
Demo: Cookery Demonstration with the River Cottage chefs; Gill, Neil and Ollie. The chefs will demonstrate some fantastic seasonal fruit recipes, for example; Plum and hazelnut cake, Poached Pears and chocolate sauce or Lamb and apricot tagine.
Lunch: At River Cottage food is very much the focus and your sumptuous two course lunch of local seasonal fare prepared by the River Cottage team will not disappoint.
Practical session two: Care and Maintenance - Mark will teach you various techniques for keeping your fruit garden healthy including; grafting, cuttings, pruning and feeding.
Q&A: By now you will be bursting with ideas and no doubt have a few questions to ask Mark, this is the opportunity to take away those invaluable tips for success at home.
Close: Get your books signed by Mark Diacono, have a chat with fellow course attendees and members of the River Cottage team, before jumping on the tractor to take you back up the hill.
This is a guide to the activities that will make up your course at River Cottage. This is by no means set in stone and will depend on the season as well as the group's interest.
MEET MARK DIACONO
River Cottage Head Gardener Mark Diacono also runs Otter Farm, the UK’s only climate change farm, home to orchards of olives, peaches, almonds, szechuan pepper, apricots and a vineyard.
He hopes to revolutionise the British larder by growing delicious food normally sourced from overseas. His idea is beautifully sustainable - taking advantage of climate change to grow low carbon food helps arrest its acceleration.
Mark has lead the Garden Team at River Cottage for 3 years, runs the growing courses, gives talks and hosts events at RCHQ and appears in the River Cottage TV series.
When it's rainy, he writes. Diacono's credentials include a string of books, writing awards and a new farm shop at Otter Farm for 2011. He writes every month for The English Garden, and wrote the River Cottage Veg Patch and Fruit Handbooks. He won the 2011 Guild of Food Writers Award for 'Best Food Book', for his latest publication Taste of the Unexpected and was named 'one to watch' in The Guardian's Gardening Hot List .
Follow Mark on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/markdoc
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
Location: This course is run from River Cottage HQ on the Dorset/Devon borders. Full address details of HQ will be provided once you have booked.
Wine/drink: We are a licensed venue. We have a wide selection of the finest organic wines.
Accomodation: If you need local accommodation please click here.
Age: We would advise that this course is only really suitable for 12yrs of age and upwards. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult. We put these guidelines in place for the safety, comfort and enjoyment of all our guests.
Time: 9.30am - 5.00pm
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