Next week is apple week at Beningbrough Hall. Gardener Mark Pethulis dispels a few myths.

LEAVES are turning golden, nights are drawing in and apples are ready for picking. Clearly autumn is upon us, even if the weather is more settled than it was in what passed for this year's summer.

But every cloud and all that. Mark Pethullis, who looks after the walled garden at Beningbrough Hall, says the wet August and warm September means this year's apple harvest promises to be one of the best.

"Some have got loads on, like the Ribston Pippins and Charles Ross that are really doing well," he says. "Big varieties like lots of water and there's been a lot of sun recently, so the colour is good. By mid October they'll be scarlet all over."

Mark Pethulis with the walled espaliers of Charles Ross and Ribston Pippin apples at Beningbrough Hall. Picture: Matt Clark.

This is a busy time at Beningbrough. Apple Week begins on Sunday, with juice pressings, talks, samples and demonstrations. Then there is the restaurant to restock and winter supplies to store. Mark has perhaps Yorkshire's biggest collection of apples, some as tiny as a 10p coin, others weighing more than a bag of sugar. One or two are almost blue while a few are maroon. And to maximise their yield he employs a clever trick.

"We do summer pruning, people are often surprised and they ask why we do it," says Mark. "But pruning in July with secateurs shocks the trees into producing less growth and more flowers. As soon as light gets to the apples they go a lovely colour."

It's time consuming work, though. Mark and his team have 50 apple trees to look after, 68 of them are tall enough to require a stepladder. And he says new volunteers are always welcome. Could there be a more glorious place to while away a few hours?

Another clever trick at Beningbrough is to grow flowers and lavender in the walled garden to attract pollinating bees and to plant apple trees close together.

A bee takes advantage of an autumn flower on one of the apple trees at Beningbrough Hall. Picture: Matt Clark.

"It takes chance out of the equation," says Mark. "Unlike plums and cherries that can be self-fertile, an apple tree won't pollinate itself, you need another variety. Some, like Ribston Pippin, need two other varieties."

Even then it's no guarantee. Apple trees flower at different times; one that blooms in April will be of no use to another that prefers the warmth of May.

Garden volunteer John Turley picks a ripe Golden Spire apple at Beningbrough Hall. Picture: Matt Clark.

Then there is the problem of reproduction. Seeds produce what is called a chance apple, so the only way to guarantee an offspring is to graft a cutting onto a root stock.

"Nurserymen can do all sorts now," says Mark. "You can even get a tree that has three varieties on it, so pollination is sorted out for you if you have a small garden."

Mark says apples are ready once a few begin to fall in the wind. His advice; cut one open, if the pips are brown, that's a sure sign they are ripe. Once picked, some can be stored throughout the winter in a cool, dry room. During the Dawnay's tenure the clock tower was a favourite place to keep apples. Now fridges take away the hard work.

The clock tower at Beningbrough Hall which was formerly used to store the Dawnay family's apples during winter. Picture: Matt Clark.

And Mark has an odd tip for helping apples to ripen.

"Put a banana next to them," he says. "The ethylene will help bring them on a bit better, because it's a ripening gas."

And there we all were thinking the last thing you should do is put a banana anywhere near other fruit. Apparently they'll do the same thing for green tomatoes.

"Another thing people mistakenly believe is that cooking apples are just for cooking," says Mark. "Now, while they're sharp, maybe, but some varieties, if kept for a couple of months, are sweet enough to eat."

Garden volunteer Liz Beaumont tends the flower beds under the apple trees in the walled garden at Beningbrough Hall. Picture: Matt Clark.

One of Mark's favourites is the lemon shaped Golden Spire with it's nutty, sharp flavour.

Looking around these fabulous gardens as an ethereal mist swirls above mown grass makes you think that apples are as synonymous with an English autumn as snow is to a Swedish winter. But Mark explains they are not native to this country. Indeed the wild ancestor of Malus domestica comes from Kazakhstan. We don't know precisely when they first came to Europe, but manuscripts from ancient Greece, including Homer's Odyssey, refer to apples and describe orchards. In Britain it was, of course, the Romans who introduced varieties with sweeter and greater taste.

The first of this seasons apples from Beningbrough Hall, including the lemon shaped Golden Spire. Picture: Matt Clark.

Not all trees produce annually, but with more than 35 varieties of the fruit grown in the walled garden there will be plenty on offer for Beningbrough's apple week.

Oh, and there's more than a grain of truth about apples keeping the doctor away. They contain phytonutrients which help regulate blood sugar. and when eaten in their whole food form apples can significantly lower many blood fats.

Researchers have also reported an association between apples and the reduction of lung cancer risk. Their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits are involved here, although it is not yet understood exactly how.

That said, Mark reckons most of us are interested in apples for their own sake, not just for their flavour and health benefits.

"People are often surprised at the differences of the apples we have on display, especially compared to what you can buy," he says. "This is a good time to test a few varieties and maybe find a new favourite or find out how best to care for your fruit trees.”

Beningbrough Hall, Gallery and Gardens opens 11am - 5.00pm Tuesday to Sunday. Apple week runs from Sunday for seven days. For more information about visiting Beningbrough, call: 01904 472027, visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/beningbrough, facebook.com/NTBeningbrough or on Twitter @NTBeningbrough.