Derwent Valley Preservers Circle were hard at work again yesterday.

Michael and Roberto came to help us bottle and preserve the last 3 crates full of apples.

The apple peeler/corer/spiralisers worked very hard – they’re marvelous time and effort saving machines.

Last year we wore two out completely but their replacements performed well, only one minor breakdown, easily remedied.

I was given those gorgeous brown Fowlers jars. I read somewhere that this type of jar was made from recycled beer bottles during the war.

Four batches of jars of apples are now in their respective preservers, very satisfying.

The old wood stove kept us warm as we worked. We lunched on homemade soups and fresh baked cheese and bacon scrolls.

Outside the geese, the delinquents on the block, paced and squawked while the sheep supervised from a little distance away, even Shadow with her twin babies born a couple of days ago.

Not a bad way at all to spend a winter’s day in the lovely Derwent Valley.