Tom Williamson, Professor of Landscape History at the University of East Anglia, directs HGT’s Research Group

Orchards were for centuries a ubiquitous and essential feature of the rural landscape. They were also an important part of many garden designs, valued for their aesthetic and symbolic qualities. The last half century has seen a catastrophic decline in their numbers, in Hertfordshire as elsewhere, with important impacts on biodiversity, as well as on our cultural heritage. This talk will explain what we know so far about the history of orchards in Hertfordshire, and what we hope to find out in the future.