New fruit trees planted at Flintshire school as part of Airbus orchard project

Pupils from Ysgol Y Waun in Gwernaffield spent the day creating a new mini-orchard at their school yesterday, in a project to promote biodiversity and reverse the decline of local fruit varieties.

They were joined by TV naturalist Mike Dilger, who equipped them with the skills they need to nurture the trees as they grow.

The event kicked off this year’s Airbus School Orchard Project, run in partnership with the North Wales Wildlife Trust.

Besides planting six fruit trees on the school grounds, the pupils enjoyed a full day of fun workshops including a scientific study of the soil, and introduction to earthworm species, as well as apple pressing and tasting.

Had a fun day in nature with pupils at Ysgol Y Waun, Gwernaffield. A lovely start to this year’s Airbus #SchoolOrchardProject! pic.twitter.com/upFKyyBZb8

— Balint Brunner (@balintbrunner) October 9, 2017

The Airbus School Orchard project has been running since 2012, helping to prevent further orchard decline by creating six new mini-orchards each year at employee-nominated schools in the region.
[miptheme_quote author=”Phil McGraa, Community Relations Manager for Airbus” style=”text-left”]The School Orchard Project has created a network of new orchards across North Wales, helping to preserve our local environment and educating hundreds of children in the process.
By the end of the year, the project will have created a total of 40 new orchards across the region, and we hope that there will be many more to follow.[/miptheme_quote]

By the end of 2017, Airbus will have funded the creation of 40 new orchards across North East Wales which support a wide range of wildlife and plant species.

Mrs Ankers, headteacher at Ysgol Y Waun, said;

“We are delighted to have been nominated for the scheme. It is great to see an employer such as Airbus partnering with the NWWT to teach children about the importance of preserving and maintaining orchards.

This project has helped us to develop our school grounds and we look forward to the day we can go out and collect our first piece of fruit.”

Orchards are an important part of the North Wales landscape, providing displays of blossom and green spaces for people to enjoy.

In the past 50 years, however, orchards have faced rapid decline and are now listed as a UK Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Habitat.