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Swinford Tidy Towns, in conjunction with Mayo county council, initiated a biodiversity plan to be drawn up for Swinford in 2018. Karina from Giorria Environmental Services drew up a very detailed plan for the town. In the biodiversity plan for Swinford, establishing a community orchard at the entrance to the Dun na Ri housing estates was identified. This is an ideal location which is situated on the north west end of the town.
From the biodiversity plan:
Dun na Ri Community Orchard
Swinford Tidy Town’s were looking for an
area to develop a community orchard.
There is an area of grass off the Dun an Ri
road approximately 600m2. The area is
sheltered to the west by a wall and
partially sheltered to the east by houses.
Fruit trees flower early in the season and
provide pollen and nectar to hoverflies
and bees. See Table 6 below for some
recommend apples.Management Recommendations
1. Apple trees should be planted a minimum 7m apart, to allow space for the trees to grow and mature.
2. While trees could be planted in holes in the ground it is recommended that beds approximately 1.4 x 1.4m and at least 30cm high are built and filled with good quality top soil and compost.
3. The trees can then be planted into the centre of each bed.
4. The beds should be at least 7m apart and place in the centre of the green area. The beds have the effect of raising the trees up from ground that could potentially become waterlogged. It also makes keeping the tree trunk weed free easier and prevents damage from mowers.
5. Trees should be staked. Round 75mm x 1.8m fencing stakes make good tree stakes.
6. Stakes need to be driven well into the ground. Put in the stake before planting the tree. Cut off the stake approximately 100mm above the tying point with the tree as this reduces the likelihood of the tree rubbing against the stake during windy conditions.
7. The raised beds can be planted with various plants. Herbs, comfrey and wildflowers would encourage pollinators to visit the fruit trees and pollinate the trees.
The Hare’s Corner
In 2023 Swinford Tidy Towns applied to take part in The Hare’s Corner mini orchard programme. The native Irish apple trees to be planted as part of the initiative were ideal for our Dun na Ri community orchard project The programme requires groups to plant a number of heritage apple trees (minimum of 5, maximum of 8 ) fruit trees, which are supplied by Irish Seedsavers. In 2024 Swinford Tidy Towns Dun na Ri community orchard were accepted to take part in the mini orchard programme.
Due to the mild weather, there was a delay with distributing the bare root apple trees. In mid March 2025, we finally received our allocation of apple trees and set about planning to get them planted.
Planting
Planting….
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