With stone fruit the ‘pink stage’ of blossoming is called ‘white bud’, because cherry and plum blossom does not have red petals. Once the bud is burst, the sepals reveal a white cross, under which the petals are ready to unfold. In the Altes Land the first stone fruit blossom is from the early plum and damson varieties. The earliest blossoming ever recorded in the 83 years on record was the 20th March 1990. In 2016 the trees blossomed almost 4 weeks later on 28th April, which is still earlier than the long standing average.
The bloom marks a starting point for tourism, but also brings in thousands of bee colonies that are transported to the Altes Land by their beekeepers. The pollination by the bees is of immense value, as without pollination there is no fruit. For years now, many bee colonies are threatened by disease. The causes are diverse and not easy to explain. We organic orchardists consider it our responsibility to protect the bees and to foster their development. In order for the bees not to come into contact with substances that might harm them, all orcharding measures that are necessary for healthy fruit trees are carried out in the evenings or at night, when the bees are not about.
