Some of our plums have blossomed a week earlier, hopefully we will be spared from severe frosts and cold northerly winds
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
A Complete Service In Fresh Produce
About Us
Located in Kent, the Garden of England, Mansfields is one of the largest growers and packers of top, stone and soft fruit with over 35 years of experience.
The family run business is the biggest UK apple grower and the largest UK cherry grower, whilst also growing pears, plums and strawberries in significant volumes. Mansfields is one of the only UK top fruit operations that is expanding both fruit production and packing facilities. The company comprises of over 3,000 acres of top fruit (dessert apples, culinary apples and pears), stone fruit (cherries and plums) and soft fruit (strawberries), which are grown on 15 locations in Kent at varied geographic locations in order to extend harvest seasons and to mitigate weather related risk. The main storage and packing site is located at Nickle Farm on the outskirts of Chartham village, six miles south of Canterbury on the A28
Paul Mansfield
Through the years Mansfields have won numerous awards including Grower of the Year Award 2005, Top Fruit Grower of The Year 2003 & 2005, Orchard of the Year Award 2005 & 2006
Our Farms
All of our sites are situated in Kent, spread between Rainham and Canterbury to the south and north of the A2
Nickle Farm
Nickle Farm is situated on the A28 at Chartham near Canterbury in Kent, it is bordered on one side by the Great Stour River and to the North by the North Downs and consists of apples, pears, cherries and plums orchards.
Nickle Farm
Broad Oak Farm
Broad Oak Farm is situated just off the A291 at Broad Oak near Canterbury in Kent, growing apples, pears, cherries, plums and strawberries.
Middle Pett Farm
Middle Pett Farm is situated off the A2 at Bridge near Canterbury in Kent and is bordered to the Northwest by Whitehill Wood and the south by Gorsley Wood, producing apples, plums and strawberries
Strawberry field
Loyterton and Moonfield Farms
Loyterton and Moonfield Farms are managed as one unit. Farms are situated off the A2 between Sittingbourne and Faversham and are in the parish of Lynsted, growing apples, pears, plums and strawberries
Table top strawberries at Loyterton
Pitstock farm
Pitstock farm is situated off the A2 between Sittingbourne and Faversham, in the adjacent parish of Rodmersham, and consists of apples, pears and plums plantings.
Wakeley, Street and Chesley Farms
Wakeley, Street and Chesley Farms are managed as one unit. The farms are situated off the A2 near Rainham in Kent; Wakeley and Street Farm are in the parish of Upchurch and Chesley Farm in the adjacent parish of Newington
Swanton Farm
Swanton Farm, our highest altitude farm, 165 metres (536 ft) above sea level, is situated off the A249 at Bicknor near Mainstone in Kent, on top of the North Downs and is bordered to the West by woodland, and consists of apples, pears, cherries and plums orchards.
Norton farm
Norton farm is situated just off the A2 at Provender Lane near Faversham in Kent and is bordered on the South East side by Putt Wood, growing cherries and plums
Cherry orchard at Norton
Home Farm
Home Farm is situated south off the A299 at Marshside near Canterbury Kent and bordered to the south Chislet, planted with apple trees.
Waddenhall Farm
Waddenhall Farm is situated west of Stone Street (B2068 road) and east of Waltham village and is bordered to the North, South and West by woodland where we grow mainly apples.
New Apple Plantings at Waddenhall
Guilton Farm
Guilton Farm is very close to the village of Ash, which is east of Canterbury and is placed either side of the A257 the Canterbury to Sandwich road. Only strawberries production on this farm.
New Place Farm
New Place Farm, Ickam is sited on the outskirts of the picturesque village of Ickham, and consists of strawberries and fallow, surrounded by productive grade 1 farmland.
What we grow
Every year we produce over 15,000 tonnes of apples and pears, 2,000 tonnes of strawberries, 600 tonnes of plums, 300 tonnes of cherries
Apple varieties from our orchards
Braeburn, Bramley, Cox, Discovery, Early Windsor, Egremont Russet, Empire, Gala, Galaxy, Golden Delicious, Grenadier, Idared, Jazz, Jonagored, Katy, Mondial Gala, Red Pippin, Spartan, Worcester
Pear varieties we grow
Beurre Hardy, Comice, Concorde, Conference, Taylors Gold, Williams
Paul Mansfield in one of the plum orchards
Our plum varieties
Avalon, Excalibur, Jubilium, Jubille, Majories, Opal, Reeves, Victoria, Violetta,Voyageur
Our cherry varieties
13s36 18, Celeste, Colney, Hertford, Kordia, Lapins, Penny, Provender Black, Regina, Sascha, Schneider, Skeena, Starkcrimson, Stella, Summer Sun, Summit, Sunburst, Sweetheart, Sylvia, Van, Vega, Xsymphony
Strawberry varieties from our fields
Albion, Elsanta, Sonata, Symphony
Corporate Social Responsibility
Mansfields seeks to recognise our responsibilities to our suppliers, customers, and staff and the way we impact on our social and physical environment. We have adopted a Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy (CSR) to position ourselves as a leading company in the provision of English fruit that meets the very high social and environmental expectations of our customers.
Our CSR strategy details our visions, governance, structure and management systems and our key targets and objectives. We have set objectives and targets against our key environmental, social and economic priorities.
Key CSR points
We have identified key issues where we will have to deliver high levels of performance if we are to achieve our aspiration to be leaders- Food Safety, Hygiene Management, Health and Safety, Ethical trade, Assurance Schemes, Sustainable food sourcing, Biodiversity and Conservation, Agrochemicals, Logistics, Social policy and practice, Nutrition and Health and Customer information, Packaging, Resource management and waste reduction, Training
Favourite links
Favourite links
The links above are to both grower and associated web sites, we have no control over these sites and accept no responsibility for their content. We cannot guarantee that these links will work all of the time and have no control over the availability of the linked pages.
2 comments:
What will you do to protect your plums, that have bloomed early, against frost or cold stress?
Do you fleece them all which only gives frost protection, but not cold?
The cold weather during the spring is dangerous as the emerging flower buds are susceptible to frost damage, but it can also assist with the natural thinning of the blossom which potentially improves the size of the fruit, this is particularly true with plums.
This year looks as though it will be a difficult year, but not only because of frost. The cold days prior, during and after bloom are always an issue, but we then do a quality thin in mid June when the plums are of a size that is easier to see.
We do not use any special treatments to protect our crops against frost, apart from our main cherry plantation where we have invested in Wind Turbine Frost Protection. We have minimised the risk of crop lost from bad weather by geographically spreading our crops over various sites across Kent. We are try to avoid a spring frosts by locating the fruit sites with various altitudes and soils which can be beneficial in reducing crop loss. Using some of the following protective farming practices can also be advantageous:
• Avoid planting in frost pockets
• Lay out planting rows parallel to the prevailing direction of the cold air drift
• Prune trees properly to avoid blocking air movement
• Prune out the lower portions of windbreaks to allow air to pass through to avoid the formation of a frost pocket
• Keep natural swales or other air drainage pathways open to ensure good air drainage and elimination of frost pockets
Post a Comment