Visit a Working Orchard in Devon
Bowhayes Orchards is a working cider apple orchard in East Devon, a few miles from the coast near Sidmouth. We grow traditional cider varieties and manage the orchard through the seasons — blossom in spring, harvest in autumn, and the quieter work in between.
When to Visit the Orchard
Spring (April–May) — Blossom
The orchard comes into flower for a short window each year. Rows of trees in bloom, bees working, and everything quietly getting on with it.
Autumn (September–October) — Harvest
Fruit comes in steadily, and the orchard shifts from growing to gathering. It's a working period — practical, not staged.
Summer & Winter
Summer is quieter — fruit developing, grass managed, everything ticking over. Winter is for pruning and planning — less to see, but where next year starts.
What It's Like
This isn't a visitor attraction. It's a working orchard.
That means:
- uneven ground
- tractors moving when needed
- no fixed routes or signage
- a place that changes week to week
If you come, you're seeing it as it is.
In East Devon
The orchard sits in East Devon, near Sidmouth and Ottery St Mary.
- Sidmouth — the nearest stretch of coast.
- Ottery St Mary — home of the Tar Barrels.
- East Devon walks — footpaths and the East Devon National Landscape (formerly AONB) on the doorstep.
You can be in the orchard in the morning, and at the sea twenty minutes later.
Plan a Visit
We open the orchard at certain times of year — usually around blossom. The simplest way to hear about it is to join the mailing list.