Seed orchard Newton Nursery near Elgin?
Photograph courtesy of David Foot, Surrey.
Lovely late autumn action shot of research workers collecting cones from a seed orchard planted with larch trees which originated from the seed of the best quality selected trees located in forests around the country. Note the use of tree planting bags to hold the collected cones.
The seed from these open pollinated orchard trees would be used for sowing in nursery seed beds and supplying forests at a later date.
This is thought to be in the tree nursery at Newton, Elgin, around 1971 but can anyone identify the people doing the cone collecting?
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7 Comments
This is A grafted seed orchard at Newton nursery the scions having been obtained from Plus Trees selected from forests private and F.C. throughout the UK. The man looks like forester Charlie Fleming but cannot confirm if it is Charlie Fleming (Not Charlie Fleming). The orchard lies adjacent to the cold store.
Comment left on 05 November 2016 at 09:50 by John Keenleyside
Definately not Charlie - he was working over in the west as a Forester at this time.
Comment left on 05 November 2016 at 14:59 by Norman Davidson
This I think was the seed orchard by the size of the grafts planted in 1958/60 and was situated in the nursery close to the research office. The cones were collected from the individual species at different times, the JL in October and the EL in February /March to allow them to be subjected to cold temperatures to make seed extraction easier. The cones are being picked by part of the research squad of Mrs Ealand and Fred Legge. Mrs Ealand worked part time and stayed in the Forestry Cottages at Newton and her husband was a driver in the Conservancy nursery.
Comment left on 30 December 2016 at 19:45 by Alan Fletcher
Hi Allan, Nice to hear from you and have your comment. You are correct it was a grafted clonal orchard. The location was West boundary, near the Research office, two polyhouses away. North boundary was the road leading into Rosehaugh. The East boundary ran out to agricultural land. The South boundary was the cold store erected in the eighties and hidden from the landscape by the seed orchard and accessed by the nursery road system. The persons in the picture are more difficult to identify. I know Charlie Fleming was not at Newton at this time. Fred Legge was, but not such a big man. The lady looks rather young for Mrs Ealand who was in her fifties at this point. She lived in Elgin Bishopmill and her husband was a retired Nursery worker. Mrs French was the lady who worked part time for "Genetics" and lived in the Forestry houses at Newton; she also had a mature figure and look. Her husband Willie French was the Nursery Lorry driver delivering plants and bringing in collections of seed and cones from all over. That is my version of these people taken from memory, but I think correct. All hardworking characters and loyal servants of the Forestry Commission.
Comment left on 02 January 2017 at 10:32 by John Keenleyside Research CF Newton 79-86
Yes John it was Mrs French and not Mrs Ealand. Thank you.
Comment left on 04 January 2017 at 20:55 by Alan Fletcher
The man on the ladder is confirmed as Donald Chisholm Storeman/ Handyman Cons staff. Confirmed by Allan Green and Myra Younie. Still working on the identity of the lady.
Comment left on 10 February 2017 at 10:37 by John Keenleyside
Definitely not my Father, Charlie Fleming. In 1971 he was teaching in Zambia and returned to the UK in 1973, I believe in Fort Augustus. He was based in Newton nursery from 1982 until 1996.
He is still with us, though has suffered many strokes and is quite incapacitated. Comment left on 21 November 2022 at 20:55 by Shaun Fleming
He is still with us, though has suffered many strokes and is quite incapacitated. Comment left on 21 November 2022 at 20:55 by Shaun Fleming
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