Wakefield and Pontefract Plant a Tree to celebrate 150 Years of BBKA

After years of negotiation with Wakefield Council we moved into our new Apiary site two years ago,

The running and development of the site is funded through the beginner’s course which we run each year, and the sales of honey produced by the Apiary.

This year we are developing the remainder of the land forming a patio / seating area and planting of the land directly in front of the Apiary.

We took the opportunity to plant a tree to celebrate 150 years of the BBKA.

We wanted to plant a native tree that would benefit the bees and other pollinators on site.  One of our members, Peter Lewis, suggested a ‘Ribston Pippin’ which owes its origins to Yorkshire.

Origin and history of ‘Ribston Pippin’

According to legend, in the year 1690 (or around that time), a man named Sir Henry Goodrick sent an apple from the town of Rouen in Normandy to Ribston Castle near Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. A seed from this apple was sown at Ribston Castle and produced an apple tree whose fruits had superb flavour: the ‘Ribston Pippin’ was born.

The tree was planted on Friday 15 March 2024 whilst the small team of volunteers were working on the site.