Volunteer stories: Elisabeth Crafer and pruning.
Written by Elizabeth Waugh
Published on August 1, 2025.
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The story of the Rivers Heritage Orchard is also the story of the volunteers who have developed it over time. These people have stayed for the period their lives have allowed and that time in the Orchard has become part of their own story. Those who have been able to make a significant contribution have picked up on some aspect of the Orchard idea that called their skills into service. One such is Elisabeth Crafer. Never a Sawbridgeworth resident, she came to the recently discovered Orchard sometime in the early 2000s.
The way I became involved is by seeing an advertisement in a gardening magazine (Kitchen Garden?) asking for volunteers to help develop Rivers Orchard. I had just moved to East London but I was aware of the Rivers Nursery as I had lived sometime prior to this in Bishops Stortford in Pig Lane where was a small old orchard that I worked on near my flat. Then I moved to a historic village in north Hertfordshire, Ashwell. There for twenty years I worked to restore a tiny orchard. So I had an interest in apple trees and old apple trees in particular. I thought what a good idea to volunteer at Rivers as that would get me out of London and doing something physical.
The day I first went to the Rivers Orchard was a cold snowy day. There were a few volunteers there. I could see that with the best will in the world what they were doing would encourage a lot of new growth rather than restoring and generating the old trees. So I said I do know a bit about this and here are some ideas I’ve tried out. The first tree I worked on was one of the Newton Wonders.
By the time I went there you could see that it had been a real orchard as the amazing volunteers had cleared away all the brambles. I was impressed by what had been achieved though there were still areas that hadn’t been tackled as there weren’t enough people. But I loved the enthusiasm of the volunteers and the fact they had committed their time and energy to restoring it for the community really. I met Diana once and Eugene and Hazel and David. Kate Yarnold was there and Joseph Fitzgerald and a young woman with a new baby, Katie. She was starting a business with her husband. Rob Richardson came along later, just as for various reasons Joseph and Katie were leaving. Rob stepped in and spread the knowledge to new volunteers and even incorporated the ideas I was talking into the Rivers website he was creating.
I came regularly for about ten years. I pitched up regularly on work days. I loved seeing there were such a lot of varieties and we were there where the great nurserymen had worked. I had taught myself from a secondhand book by Raymond Bush, Tree Fruit Growing 1, Apples, revised 1949. There would be me up a tree with pruning saw in one hand and Raymond in the other. But the results were wonderful because his methods worked. I really learned how to enable a few little branches on the stump to become a tree. There’s a wonderful sentence: “Many old trees are like the sleeping princesses in a fairy tale. They simply need waking up to become profitable investments and live happily ever after, - well almost.” I was hooked. Demonstrating to new volunteers that a tree needs to look happy, I stood holding my arms out. I became that tree open to light and air.
I loved doing it and as I was on the right side of London, the trip wasn’t too bad. Covid came along. Then three years ago I got some health problems and wasn’t able to come regularly. But I kept coming twice a year just to visit.
I am surprised and delighted that my contribution is valued. It’s part of the process of survival and revival. I love that the restored Orchard is a community asset as that is so important.
Elisabeth Crafer, July 2025
Interviewed by Elizabeth Waugh
Elisabeth, Katie, and John with pruning saw, early 2000s. |
A veteran Beauty of Bath apple tree that had extensive regenerative pruning by Rob Richardson under Elisabeth’s supervision. |