Carhampton Community Orchard hosted an apple-tasting event to celebrate this year’s Heritage Open Days theme of ‘Edible England’ - and there will be another apple day later this month.

Orchard co-founder Keith Jones took the visitors from tree to tree explaining the characteristics of each, and offering samples of the apples for tasting, as well as the very last of this season’s Dunster plums.

While the season was already over for orchard’s earliest fruiters, the visitors were able to sample the bright red Tom Putt, a West Country apple formerly used for cider-making as well as for eating, and the last of the Devonshire Quarrendens, a tiny jewel-like apple with a strawberry flavour.

And there were plenty of mid-season apples to enjoy – the Charles Ross with its hint of pear flavour, the Worcester Permain with a hint of strawberry, the sharper James Grieve and Lord Lambourne and the deep red, wine-flavoured Taunton Cross.

Perhaps the most popular of all was the Gascoyne’s Scarlet, with its bright red skin, pink-tinged flesh, crisp juicy texture and complex sweet flavour.

Apple scones and orchard chutneys, made by orchard volunteers, were for sale at the produce table. Many of the participants will be back for more on October 16 when the orchard will be holding its open-air Apple Day from 11am to 3pm.

For more information, or to join the Orchard Friends email list, contact [email protected].