Louise Orton on how a Tottenham orchard’s trees have been awakened to help them bloom in the year ahead

The wassail event at Lordship Rec (credit Mike Downs)

This year’s Tottenham Wassail event to encourage a bountiful fruit harvest in the Lordship Rec was the biggest ever with over 300 people attending.

A wassail is an ancient pagan tradition where people sing to ward off bad spirits and please the spirits of the fruit trees to ensure a plentiful crop.

Event organiser Sally Haywill was thrilled with the turnout, with people coming from all over Tottenham and Haringey.

She explained: “It was wonderful to see so many children having fun in the orchard, which many have probably never visited before and I hope that gives them a good association with being outdoors in nature.

“In the face of climate change, it’s great for children to have an understanding that we are a small part of a big wide world and to think more about how we connect with nature and how we can protect it.”

The festivities began in Lordship Hub, where children and parents crafted paper lanterns and leafy headdresses and then everyone proceeded to the orchard, with musicians Zac and Poitr playing accordion and violin respectively.

Led by MC Nick Putz, the crowd toasted the trees with hot cider, banged pots and pans and sang Wassailing songs, accompanied by the musicians and members of the Tottenham Community Choir.

One apple tree in particular was the centre of attention, named ‘Max’ after a baby boy born six weeks early just hours after his mother and sister attended the 2019 Wassail. His sister, Lottie, was the first to toast the tree, which is a John Standish variety, a red variety with an intensely fruity flavour.

The Bridgeby family from near Turnpike Lane in Tottenham had a “brilliant” time at the event and three-year old Bob, who had his face painted as a tiger, said his highlight was “giving bagels to Max the tree”. Children hung bagels from the branches, a tradition symbolising fertility and prosperity.

Back at the hub, people warmed up with more hot cider, home-made apple cakes and a mini-Ceildh. They also listened to stories from Abe Gibson and Louise Rendle and folksongs from Hackney Songworks.

The orchard was first established in 2012 and then several families planted their own trees and gave them a name like Max’s family in 2019. They continue to look after those trees today. “It’s lovely to see the connection the families have with their trees and the orchard,” explained Sally.

“The children who planted them were about four at the time and now they’re about nine. It’s so sweet to see how proud they are of their trees.”

Plans are already underway for next year’s Wassail, with organisers promising to expand space in the hub to accommodate even more attendees. The £350 raised during the event will be donated to the Haringey Migrant Support Centre to assist refugees living in destitution.

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