Pear orchard trees (7 plus 27), Apted's Glen Ard orchard

864 COTTLES BRIDGE-STRATHEWEN ROAD ARTHURS CREEK, NILLUMBIK SHIRE

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Pear orchard trees, Figure 1 Tree group 1,Frenchs seedling tree base, former Buerre Capment graft, now Packham Triumph

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • Physical Description 1

    Pear orchard trees (7 plus 27), Apted's Glen Ard orchard - Physical Description 1

    ELTHAM STUDY DESCRIPTION:

    There are (thought to be) up to 60 Pear trees that are 120 years of age in the orchard, all of which are commercially productive. The orchard contains a variety of other trees of various ages which are maintained as long as they are commercially viable. 9

    REVISED DESCRIPTION & CONDITION, 2006

    (see annotated aerial photograph, 2006, showing tree locations and digital images)

    The old pear tree plantings are thought to have been reduced in number since the above estimate and are in now two major groupings, set among other fruit trees 10.

    In addition to the main orchard building complex, a Californian Bungalow further west (CA4, also cited in the Shire of Eltham Heritage Study) was built for George Apted's third son, in the 1930s. ltis now owned by Leslie Apted and Sons P/L of 864 Cottles Bridge-Strathewen Road, Arthurs Creek (97148201). This building is a well preserved example of its type and era.

    Physical Description 2

    Pear orchard trees (7 plus 27), Apted's Glen Ard orchard - Physical Description 2

    Group 1 French seedling tree base, former Buerre Capment graft, now Packham Triumph (5), at310 Eagles Nest Rd

    (Five trees, photographed individually and located as a group via GPS, annotated onto aerial image, see Figure 2).

    Located in an orchard at a bend on the north side of Arthurs Creek, these trees have been grafted (reworked) three times in their history as far as the Apted family is able to discover. The original graft is thought to have been in .(" the 1880s as Buerre Capment onto seedlings grown from French imported. . seed. When George James Apted took over in 1914 these trees were large and 'unwieldy'. He trimmed them back with an axe and reworked them, removing the Buerre Capment. These were reworked or grafted to either Vicar Winkfield or Napoleon in 1914. In 1938 they were reworked, this time to Packham Triumph. Thus the only original part of each tree is the base trunk of an unknown French seedling which is less than a metre high in all cases. Grafting (top working) is a way to change a large tree from old to a new variety. It is also a method of using a root system better adapted to soil or climate than that produced naturally by an ungrafted plant. The girth of a representative tree was 1270mm measured at 762mm above the ground, so they are not large trees. Being part of a productive orchard these tree have always been pruned regularly and generally maintained. As these trees are grafted, the trunk branches dramatically at a low point. fC" Cavities in the forked part of the trunk are already leading to rot and disease. .One tree is badly affected. Bark is flaking off some branches, indicating death of those limbs.

    In order to preserve these trees the cavities would need appropriate arboreal treatment to prevent further moisture congregating in that location. All dead and diseased wood should also be destroyed.

    More research needs to be done to establish the credentials of the Buerre Capment variety of the stock as no reference can be found to this variety by a search on the internet or early references. The current top worked variety of 'Packham Triumph' is common.

    Physical Description 3

    Pear orchard trees (7 plus 27), Apted's Glen Ard orchard - Physical Description 3

    Group 2 Williams pears (7 plus 27) at 864 Cottlesbridge Strathewen Rd (

    Groups of seven scattered trees and twenty seven rowed trees, the 27 photographed individually, and the main group located via GPS, annotated onto aerial image, see Figure 3 ).

    Located in an orchard on the north side of the Cottlesbridge Strathewen Road, seven Williams pear trees of 1880s vintage are intermingled with younger trees set out in five rows, with another larger group of old trees to the east of them,'

    Of those seven trees, only two were relatively robust. The other five were showing signs of senescence: flaking bark and dead or dying branches. The, main block of 1880s Williams pears consists of 26 out of 27 trees within 3 rows, 9 in each row, with one of the 27 thought to be a Packham pear planted in the 1930s. These trees were thought to be planted by the Hempels around 1880, about the same time as the Arthurs Creek Hall was built". This block of trees was horse worked. The trees had been horse-worked, being trained or pruned initially so they branched out at a higher level than with modern cultivation techniques. This was to enable horses-drawn ploughs and harrows to pass beneath. Orchards were unirrigated in those days. The ground was ploughed and/or harrowed to conserve moisture and eliminate weeds which compete for moisture and prevent air circulation. The Apteds used three horses abreast in those rows of trees and could drive up and down between the rows with a truck when harvesting. These Williams Pears are still growing and fruiting well. They grow well in this district but do even better in the Goulburn Valley. The 'Williams' variety of pear is probably the most common variety grown in orchards. Lindsay Apted says there are many old pear trees around the general area, similar to these specimens but none was specified. Within this group of 1880sWilliams pears, a number of them need arboreal attention to deal with rot (see photos), either in the fork of the tree or up the trunk. All show vigour in the new growth.

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Nillumbik - Shire of Nillumbik Planning Scheme Amendment C13 Part 1

    Author: Graeme Butler & Assoc.
    Year: 2006
    Grading:

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