Celebrate the Plum
August 14, 2011, is Plum Day at Brogdale Farm, Brogdale Road, Faversham, Kent, England. This non-profit is the United Kingdom’s “national center for fruit”, and celebrates its diversity.
During Plum Day, you can taste plums, buy plums, see plums growing and check out the various varieties of plums. Of course, there also are craft stalls and other kinds of Kent produce available, plus cookery demonstrations, tastings of the food cooked and new recipes.
If you’re not going to be in England in August, consider timing a visit for Nut Day (September 18, 2011), the Cider Festival (September 24 and 25, 2011) or the Apple Festival (October 22 and 23, 2011).
The National Fruit Collections at Brogdale are the largest fruit collection in the world growing on one site and comprise over 4,000 fruit varieties: around 2,000 apples, 500 pears, 280 cherries, 300 plums, 50 hazelnuts, 150 gooseberries, 200 currants (black, red, white and pink), as well as small collections of vines, quinces, medlars and apricots.
Brogdale Farm is open daily (except from Christmas to New Year’s Day).
The National Fruit Collections are owned and supported by the UK Government Department for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) as an internationally recognized genetic resource. The Collections are managed and maintained by the University of Reading in partnership with The Farm Advisory Services Team (Fast Ltd).
(Photo by Mira Pavlakovic)
