New Herefordshire Pomona receives warm welcome in Herefordshire

Whilst the county enjoys the apple harvest, interest has been revived in the Herefordshire Pomona, a unique and rare Victorian encylopaedia of apples and pears. The original works, undertaken by Herefordshire botanists, The Woolhope Club, during the 1800s, has been published as a new facsimile edition by London publishers, The Folio Society. At the launch event at Dewsall Court on October 1st, in gratitude of their efforts, a copy of the new Pomona was presented to The Woolhope Club President, Mrs Jean O'Donnell MBE.

Major Patrick Darling DL MFH, High Sherriff of Herefordshire, was in attendance and spoke of the importance of these great works of Victorian art and their importance to the county. Guests included local apple and pear growers, cider makers and representatives from Bulmers, Westons and The Bulmer Foundation.

The Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club originally commissioned the work in 1874, having noted the sad decline of Herefordshire's orchards. Two local women, Alice Ellis and Edith Bull, painstakingly illustrated the publication. The Herefordshire Pomona is perhaps first and foremost an important work of botanical art, and one of the loveliest printed books ever published in this country. Original editions of the Pomona are rare and can fetch as much as £12,000 at auction. It is hoped that the new edition of the Pomona, which is priced at a much more affordable £395, will allow many more people to enjoy the exquisite artwork and accounts of rural life in Herefordshire during the 1800s. For more information, visit http://www.foliosociety.com/press/the-herefordshire-pomona/ 

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Image information- Left to right- Apple historian James Crowden. Woolhope Club Chair Mrs Jean O'Donnell MBE, Folio Society Joe Whitlock-Blundell, Major Patrick Darling DL MFH