Saving Devon’s Forgotten Orchards

Available for over a year

The traditional English orchard is in trouble. Once a prized feature of many farms, earning its keep through sales of cider and fruit, it has been undermined by cheap apple imports and incentives to grow other crops. It's estimated that two-thirds of English orchards have disappeared since 1950. Now a young couple in Devon have come up with a way of saving remaining orchards from abandonment and further decline. Polly and Mat Hilton harvest the apples usually left to rot and turn them into cider. In exchange they foster and take care of the orchard. Rachel Lovell joins them during peak harvest season, to hear how they have created special ciders using wine-making techniques, and to talk about their hopes for the future of forgotten orchards all over the country. Produced and presented by Rachel Lovell.