Testimonials
“Southway owns over 6,500 homes in Greater Manchester and is a community-focused housing association with a vision to provide excellent customer service and quality homes, where communities thrive. Working with a Fruit Tree Coop who are dedicated to helping communities grow, care for, and enjoy fruit trees in shared spaces fits perfectly with our own ethos.
We have community orchards and fruit trees on many of our green spaces where residents and the passing public can pick and enjoy fruit. Since 2023, Manchester Fruit Tree Coop managed these fruit trees with us, carrying out winter and summer pruning with our Urban Rangers. Dan and Solvi’s are fantastic to work with and have shared their knowledge with us as we work with them. We have upskilled significantly due to working alongside them.
Dan and Solvi’s work is transforming our fruit trees and watching the trees improve to become more productive and healthier is so rewarding to see. When a Green Flag Award judge walks onto a site and immediately comments on the shape of the trees and says, “these trees are clearly well pruned and looked after”, we know we are doing right by our trees.
We have been so impressed with Dan and Solvi’s work we asked them to run a pruning workshop for the public at 2 of our orchards last summer. The workshop went really well, we had excellent feedback and we have just rebooked them to run a winter workshop for us.
Long may our work with Dan and Solvi continue.”
Debbie Wallace, Urban Ranger at Southway Housing Trust
“Since February 2023, Dan Hasler from the Manchester Fruit Tree Cooperative (MFTC) has been leading workshops at the Crosstown Community Orchard, including Winter Pruning, Summer Pruning, and Grafting. His expertise is outstanding, and his enthusiasm for orcharding is contagious. Dan is well-organised and provides all the necessary tools for participants. Moreover, he is an excellent teacher who effectively engages every member of the group.
I wholeheartedly recommend MFTC to anyone looking to enhance their orchard knowledge and skills!”
Kevin Griffiths Crosstown Community Orchard Trustee
“Manchester Fruit Tree Co-op have been an invaluable partner, they provided clarity and actionable plans that will make a real difference to our orchards health and resilience. From the outset, they worked closely with us to refine the brief, ensuring the outcomes aligned with our long-term objectives.
The final report was beyond expectations: beautifully designed, well-structured, and enriched with thoughtful details that elevated it beyond a typical audit. They combine deep technical knowledge with a collaborative, approachable style, making required work easy to understand and implement. It is clear that fruit trees are their passion and this infectious enthusiasm bubbles over, thanks for helping to bring the fruit route back to life!”