The orchards at Killerton Estate, near Exeter, are full to bursting this autumn. On the weekends of 5/6 October and 13/14 October, from 11am until 4pm each day, families are invited to head into the orchard to help collect up apples to be pressed for Killerton’s award-winning cider.

The ‘Big Pick Up’ is a free family activity, with mini wheelbarrows for the children and free cider tasters in the orchard for the adults. There is also an apple quiz and members of Killerton’s countryside team will be on hand to help with the answers.

Killerton’s medium-dry cider has consistently won awards from Taste Of The West and the National Trust Fine Farm Foods Awards for its unique and delicious flavours created by the different varieties of old English apples which grow on the National Trust estate’s well-loved orchards.

Helen Trebble from Killerton’s Countryside Team said: “The Big Pick Up is a chance to explore one of our orchards at Killerton and see some of the 100 varieties of English apples that grow on the estate. We very much rely on the help from our volunteers and local community to harvest all the apples in time. The fruit will then be pressed and made into Killerton's famous cider which is always popular at our Cider and Apple Festival.”

The Killerton Cider and Apple Festival takes place on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 October, 10am-5pm. Full details about this annual family event in the orchard can be found at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/killertonapples