Time to thank the trees in ancient orchard ceremony (From Enfield Independent)
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Time to thank the trees in ancient ceremony at Capel Manor College’s Forty Hall Farm Orchard in Forty Hill
11:00am Wednesday 16th January 2013 in News By Hermione Wright
The toast ready to be hung on a tree during last year's wassailing ceremony at Capel Manor College’s Forty Hall Farm Orchard
Pots, pans, toast, and apples will come in handy during an ancient rite in an Enfield orchard on Sunday.
The wassail in Capel Manor College’s Forty Hall Farm Orchard in Forty Hill at 3pm, calls on visitors to thank the trees for the fruit they produce to wake them up for the coming year.
In the quirky – and free - ceremony, visitors will bang pots and pans to ward off evil spirits, while toast will be dipped in apple juice and hung on a tree as a blessing.
A warm drink made with cider or apple juice will be served to everyone while they sing a wassail song unique to the orchard.
The ceremony, which has been held for hundreds of years, is most popular in the cider-producing west in areas including Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire.
Each orchard has its own wassail song, and last year artist Joe Robinson composed a tune especially for Forty Hall Farm Orchard in Bullsmoor Lane.
