Cranage Orchard was established in December 2024, with the planting of 25 mixed fruit trees at the start of December. 

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The orchard has been planted on the paddock, at the junction of Middlewich Road  and Knutsford Road (A50).  The Paddock, gifted to the community of Cranage in the 1800’s, has for many years been used as grazing land by local farmers which brought a small annual income to the parish council.  The Parish Council were keen to preserve the beauty of this space and enhance its use by and for our community, while increasing biodiversity and wildlife on the site. 

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The orchard features a carefully selected mix of trees – comprised of apples, pears, damsons, gages, quince and walnut.   After detailed research, we are pleased to have been able to include some historic Cheshire varieties in the mix, keeping these heritage species alive!  We also included several pear trees as there is a strong heritage of pear growing in our area.  

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Whilst we are excited to see the orchard grow and flourish, it will be two or more years before the trees are sufficiently established to bear fruit.  The trees will be allowed to settle and mature sufficiently before we can gather a fruit harvest, but then they will be a valued community source of fresh fruit for many years to come. 

Complementing the orchard is a newly planted 50-metre stretch of native hedgerow along the perimeter of the site near the A50 – a mix of blackthorn, gelder rose, holly, hawthorn, rowan and hazel.  Not only will this go some way to offsetting effects of noise and pollution from the A50, the hedgerow will enrich the biodiversity of the site, creating a valuable wildlife habitat for birds and pollinators. It will also add to our system of wildlife corridors through the parish, connecting different habitats and providing rich pollination to the new orchard.

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The remainder of the land in the orchard has also been converted to Wildflower meadow – click here for more information on our Wildflower Meadow Areas.

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We hope the orchard will grow into a serene space for everyone in Cranage to connect with nature and enjoy moments of tranquility in our parish.