A potentially useful resource for groups looking at the history of local orchards is the forthcoming publication from the British Association for Local History. The second edition of its Directory of Internet Sites for Local Historians is due for release this month. Although the intended audience is those interested in local history, it also carries details of sites of with a national scope (eg Garden History, Abandoned Communities) and gives advice on assessing whether a particular site is reliable and trustworthy. The first edition of this directory sold out in a matter of weeks. The updated version (covering over 500 sites) is only available from the British Association for Local History (£4.99, inc p&p – email Dr Gill Draper on development.balh@btinternet.com) .
Another possible source of information on orchard history is the collection of aerial photographs taken of (mainly southern and eastern) England by German Luftwaffe pilots in August and September 1940. Oliver Rackham says ’these magnificent photographs, which record almost every tree, hedge, bush, pingo, and pond in several counties, were captured by the Americans and are now in the National Archives in Washington. The fortunes of war have preserved a convincing record of what was still, in many places, a medieval landscape, much of it since damaged or effaced.’ (O. Rackham, The History of the Countryside, J.M. Dent Ltd, 1993 p.22). I have made a brief attempt at searching the maze which is the online US National Archives, but have not managed to find these photographs. Others who are more persistent may have more success.
Heather Hooper
The users of this forum might be interested to know that in The Netherlands a comparable collection of aerial photographs is held by the Library of Wageningen University, though in this case the photographs were taken by the Royal Air Force and shot over The Netherlands.
Most conveniently, photographs are accessible on line. Please consult: http://library.wur.nl/speccol/
If you happen to be looking for old orchards in Norfolk, Norfolk County Council have put up some wartime aerial images on their website:
http://www.historic-maps.norfolk.gov.uk/Emap/EmapExplorer.asp
As a result, I found that my orchard was twice the size that is is now. Rackham is right, you can see every tree!
The value of the Luftwaffe photographs is illustrated by the case in 2010 when the National Trust used these archived resources to investigate the origins of the barely perceptible (at least eye level) concentric circles in grass at its Lyveden New Bield property in Northamptonshire. The photos revealed what is believed to be a lost Tudor labyrinth, originally planted with raspberries, roses and fruit trees.
Several national newspapers reported this discovery in 2010. An article in the Daily Mail reproduces the original Luftwaffe photos and also shows the garden as it looks today.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1327165/Luftwaffe-WW2-photograph-reveals-lost-Tudor-garden-National-Trust-site.html
Other articles which give further details include
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2010/nov/06/luftwaffe-spy-tudor-garden-lyveden
and
http://www.hudsonsheritage.com/lost-tudor-garden-revealed-by-luftwaffe-photograph-nid41.html
The National Trust is considering recreating the original planting.
( An account of the research into the creation of Lyveden gardens by Andrew Eburne is published in the Journal of the Garden History Society: see Eburne, A., ‘The Passion of Sir Thomas Tresham: New light on the gardens and lodge at Lyveden, Garden History, 2008, vol 36, I, pp.114-134.
Fruit Forum)