“We drove here from Port Lorne,” said one couple.
“We wanted our children to see how it's done,” said the Moschelle father and mother of three, all under four years old.
Over five glorious sunny hours last Saturday, nearly 50 Annapolis County residents came together to chop, grind, and press local apples into fresh cider.
Angelika Waldow, arboriculturist, gardener, and the guiding mind behind the Annapolis Community Garden and Orchard, could not stop smiling all day.
“The apple press was part of the garden plan from the start. Cider-pressing is a great social family event,” said Waldow, whose grant-writing successes resulted in the garden's start-up funding.
One Annapolis Royal resident picked apples from wild trees around the town, another arrived with a precise mix of Northern Spy and Golden Russet, a third made sure to take his spent apple pulp home to his pigs. In a Tom Sawyer moment, organizers stood back as participants took over the grinder and press and learned how to use the machines themselves.
In all, 25 bushels of apples were turned into about 160 litres of cider.
Free will donations came to $70.
The Community Garden and Orchard's funding partners are TD Bank, Trees Canada, Walmart's
Evergreen program and the Annapolis Community Health Board, and is a project of the Annapolis Living and Learning Institute.
For cider press information: 902.532.0161 angelika-waldow@bellaliant.net
