STALYBRIDGE is to feature in a brand new podcast detailing how the town’s fruit trees tell the story of the ecological and food heritage of orchards.
It will also encourage people to get out into nature and explore the town for themselves.
Lost Trees follows the route of a specially designed walk from the town centre through the lost kitchen garden of the now ruined Gorse Hall to another more recently planted orchard.
Commissioned as part of Stalybridge’s Town of Culture celebrations, the show has been produced by Tameside-based community food organisation Operation Farm.
Launched on Tuesday, February 21 over three parts, host Anna Seward speaks to local fruit tree enthusiasts and experts, uncovering some of the ‘Lost Trees’ in Stalybridge, from which the
podcast takes its title.
Contributors include orchardist and cider maker Rob Muir, local volunteer Alan Pickles of the Friends of Gorse Hall and Sam Bolton of the Greater Manchester Ecology Unit.
As well as the podcast, there is a downloadable route map enabling members of the public to track the route for themselves.
It is part of a project to map and explore Stalybridge’s fruit trees and local listeners are invited to add local fruit trees they know to an online map on the Operation Farm website.
The show also highlights how many of our historic natural assets have been lost or forgotten with Operation Farm hoping to raise awareness and for people to spot forgotten orchards and fruit trees in areas where they live.
Anna said: “I wanted to try and communicate the sense of place to the audience, to offer an idea of where these trees are and recording the walk seemed a good way to do this.
“The sounds of climbing through the undergrowth of an old orchard gives a real feeling about what it’s actually like there and encourages others to get out and experience it for themselves.
“It was really fun to make this and speak to people who have so much knowledge and enthusiasm to share, be that about history, ecology or cider making!”
The podcast will be available via https://anchor.fm/operation-farm.