Imagine if you could pick apples or pears without having to schlep the entire family to South Glastonbury.
For some Hartford residents, this is already possible. Everyone else, you’ll have your chance soon.
The West End Community Orchard, as its name suggests, begins in that neighborhood but does not have to end there said Tiffany Glanville, one of the volunteers behind this project. Erin Sheehan, another West End resident, is the other half of the team.
In its infancy, the West End Community Orchard is asking residents of any neighborhoods who would like to participate to register fruit and nut trees already on their properties. Partnering with KNOX, the trees will be rated for health and then indexed so that the organization has an idea of who is growing what where. Those locations will not be publicized, so nobody needs to worry about premeditated raids on their trees.
Glanville was inspired when she saw just how many apples from her own yard went to waste last year — approximately two-thirds of them. She knew about City Fruit, a non-profit from Seattle and thought it possible to “do a harvest” of excess fruits here. The produce could be given to area food pantries, she said.
She applied for a grant through the West End Civic Association and got to work.
After residents register their trees they can donate surplus fruit to the food pantry or contact WECO to pick up and deliver on their behalf. This pick up can include harvesting fruit that is on the ground or too high up in the tree for the property owner to easily reach. Right now, WECO is partnering with the Grace Seventh-Day Adventist Church, which runs a food pantry.
West End Community Orchard will be working to index any existing fruit and nut-producing trees in public spaces like Elizabeth Park, as well as in other areas like the median strip on Scarborough Street.
Those living in the West End without fruit or nut trees may purchase them at cost; WECO will help plant the cultivars so residents can “grow the source of local fresh produce,” Glanville said. With KNOX, they can provide some assistance to new tree owners by giving advice on pruning, watering, and so forth.
Glanville said the KNOX partnership is a sensible fit. Over this spring and summer, KNOX has been planting fruit trees in north neighborhoods of Hartford.
Having heard tales of plentiful fruit trees, including figs, already growing and producing in the South End, Glanville said she hopes that neighborhood will be the next focus area. And while there may not be time for it this season — the organization is just taking off — there are also hopes to teach people how to can fruit as another way to use produce and keep it from going to waste.
If you want to register your fruit or nut tree (regardless of neighborhood), use the form on the West End Community Orchard website. If you are in the West End and want to plant a tree, there is a form for that too; get that information in during the next two weeks if you want to participate this season.
