A Glut of Apples in Huntingdon

Huntingdon sounds like a nice enough place to visit. It's got a little bit of market town charm for sure, and the monthly Farmers Market is certainly one of the better ones I've been to. It's one of those smallish towns which seem to have a little bit of everything, but not much that really stands out from the crowd.

There is however one gem of a shop on the pedestrian High Street which has few peers countrywide, never mind locally. The Flower Patch is a florist with a bit of a difference, and that difference is the best range of locally grown apples you're likely to find on a high street. I always make a bee-line to the Flower Patch whenever I'm in Huntingdon during the apple season. The all-too-brief English apple season has to be taken advantage of whenever the occasion arises, particularly as our supermarkets seem to think the season begins with unripe Discovery's and ends with equally unripe Cox's, with little of interest in between.

Today at The Flower Patch I counted 20 different varieties of apple, including some slightly rarer than others such as John Standish (Berks), and the reasonably local varieties Allington Pippin (Lincs), and Lord Lambourne (Bedfs). They are all grown at an orchard in nearby Somersham, a village I may have to pay a visit to sometime soon. I came away with a couple of varieties, great value at £1.50/bag, and urge anyone who may find themselves in the area to do the same.