Ross-on-Wye Cider & Perry Company is opening its doors for its annual charity blossom walk, which will take place on Saturday, 4th May.
Visitors enjoy cider and perry at a previous event
The visitors will be welcomed to Broome Farm for a self-guided orchard stroll, ambling up and down hills of blossoming cider apples and leafy perry pear trees.
The orchard walk starts and ends at the Yew Tree Inn, Peterstow, on the A49, so access is simple via car or bus route 33. The walk is officially from noon to 4pm on the Saturday, but visitors are welcome anytime, and the route remains open through the summer.
“It’s lovely to welcome neighbours and local visitors to our orchard to celebrate the blossom,” said Albert Johnson, of Ross-on-Wye Cider & Perry. “Our ciders are all made with that sense of place in mind. We want people to feel connected to our farm and the nature on it. There’s no better way to really enjoy a drink than to see the place where it is made.”
Visitors have the option of selecting the Green route for a 2.5km walk through some of the key orchards at Broome Farm, or for a longer walk, the Red route, for a 5km hike that takes them around the marsh and along the perimeter of one of the most historic and celebrated orchards of the company, named Gameoolands.
The marsh at Broome Farm has been recognised by the Herefordshire Wildlife Trust as a special Local Wildlife Site and is sometimes home to the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. Lucky visitors might catch sight of one, last reported in 2020!
While on the walk, which is in aid of Hope Support Services, guests have the opportunity to visit the patio at Broome Farm Guesthouse for cream teas.
As well as scavenger hunt activity packs that can be collected at the Yew Tree Inn, this year there is the addition of a crafts station, for adults and for children.
Thanks to landscape artist Abigail Devenny, walkers have the chance to participate in the painting of a communal canvas capturing the orchards in blossom. Each individual can contribute to an area of the painting, with the goal of creating a legacy of the 2024 blossom season.
For children, Abigail is creating unique templates to be painted or coloured in as souvenirs to inspire them to feel a connection to nature and the landscape, and to be inspired to be creative and pick up a paintbrush in the future.
