NOTHING beats the taste of an English apple picked straight from the tree, and there will be plenty of apple events across the region next week to mark Apple Day on October 21. Although imported apples are available all year round, it's far more exciting to wait until the English apple season, especially as so many of these delicious varieties never make it into the supermarkets. Thousands of events are held across the UK throughout October, here are some in the West.

BRISTOL

On Wednesday, October 22, Dave Kaspar and Helen Brent-Smith of Day's Cottage, the excellent apple juice and cider producers from Gloucestershire, will be holding apple displays and tastings on their stall at the Bristol Farmers' Market.

The couple will also be on hand to identify any apples you may have growing in your garden, so if you're puzzled by your pommes, take them down to show Dave and Helen.

Another Apple Day event well worth checking out takes place on Sunday at the Horfield Organic Community Orchard (entry via the lane opposite 23 Kings Drive, Bishopston).

This is the annual opportunity to learn more about the orchard, talk to the experts about how to grow healthy organic fruit and taste many of the different varieties grown on the orchard's 100 trees.

Entrance is free but there are donations of £1 or £2 on the gate. For more information, email organiser Pauline Markovits at Pauline.markovits@blueyonder.co.uk

DORSET

Saturday, October 18 – Burton's Orchard, Shillingstone – Apple Day in this community orchard with music from Tim Laycock and advice and identification* from Chris Hunter of Kingston Maurward College, plus games, entertainment, fun, food and information.

Sunday October 26, and Wednesday, October 29 – Mill House Cider Museum, Owermoigne, nr Dorchester, Dorset DT2 8HZ – two Cider Making Open Days in the October half term as part of Dorset Food Week. There will be traditional cider being made on antique equipment. Also home cider making demonstrations and advice. Over 30 different ciders on sale. Longest peel competition. Games, face painting, mulled cider tastings, Dorset Apple cake, etc. 10am-4pm Admission: adults £1, children free. Contact Penny Whatmoor, Mill House Cider Museum, Owermoigne, tel: 01305 852220; e-mail contact@millhousecider.com or see www.millhousecider.com

Saturday, October 25, – Kingston Maurward College, one mile east of Dorchester on A35 – Apple & Harvest Day. Kingston Maurward horticultural students hav researched the cultivation of a range of fruit and vegetables. Their colourful harvest will be displayed and sold at the end of the day. Farmers' Market. Competitions, prizes, plants, demonstrations, cider, fruit, cakes, jams, chutney, oils and vinegars, cheeses and more. Dorchester Community Choir, Morris Dancers from Bridport & Potty Painters! Advice and identifiction by RHS experts so bring along your unknown apples. Take part in painting pots, candle making, make your own vegetable animal. 10am-4pm. Admission adults £2, children free. Visit the gardens in beautiful autumn colours (£2 extra). Contact Ruth Whitty on 01305 215183 for more information.

GLOUCESTERSHIRE

Until Saturday, November 8 – Gloucester Folk Museum – exhibition entitled "Apple of My Eye", a look at apples and orchards from the perspective of artists, pickers and growers with some folklore and unusual items thrown in. It links with the Apple Day celebrations below. Tuesdays to Saturdays 10am-5pm. Free admission.

Saturday 25th October 2008 – Gloucester Folk Museum, 99-103 Westgate Street, Gloucester GL1 2PG – demonstration of a horse-powered cider mill crushing apples, followed by a huge cider press extracting the juice. Also apple games, activities, music and entertainment for all. 11am-4pm. Contact: 01452 396868

Saturday and Sunday, October 18 and 19 – Westbury Court Garden – Apple Day organied by the National Trust. Originally laid out between 1696 and 1705, this is the only restored Dutch water garden in the country. Visitors can explore canals, clipped hedges and working 17th century vegtable plots and discover many old varieties of fruit trees.

Saturday, October 18 – Church Farm, Leonard Stanley (Near Stroud), Gloucestershire – Apple Day. This is an informal and free event so come and join in the fun of making and tasting fresh apple juice! Bring your own apples (windfalls are fine) or help with the juicing process. There will be live music and also stalls of local produce for sale – meat, vegetables and cheese, etc, and of course fresh apple juice and warm mulled juice. From 11am. Admission free. Contact Leonard Stanley food group, The Mercers House, The Street, Leonard Stanley, Gloucestershire GL10 3NR, tel: 01453 792172; e-mail: cole-newton@tiscali.co.uk or see www.leonardstanley.org.uk

Saturday Sunday, October 18 and 19 – Dean Heritage Centre, Camp Mill, Soudley GL14 2UB – Apple Days. Learn about the history of cider-making in the Forest of Dean. Display and information from the Gloucestershire Orchad Group. Home composting stall from Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. Children's activities on offer. The Dean Heritage Centre is the ideal starting point for a visit to the Forest. With five modern museum galleries set in a converted mill complete with waterwheel and a range of features such as the Victorian Foresters' Cottage, Freemine Entrance and Charcoal Burners' Camp, there is plenty here for all ages to enjoy, all set within five acres of beautiful woodland. 10am-5pm Contact Gina Mills,telephone 01594 822170 or e-mail: info@deanheritagemuseum.com or see www.deanheritagemuseum.com

HEREFORDSHIRE

Saturday and Sunday, October 18 and 19 – Cider Museum, Ryelands Street, Hereford – cider making festival. Other activities include "The Orchard", an exhibition/installation by Edwina Bridgeman (9th September-22nd November), woodland crafts, children's apple pressing, tutored cider tastings, meeting craft cidermakers, free sampling of cider and cider brandy, open both days 10am-5pm Admission: adults £3.50, concessions £3.00, Contact: 01432 354207, e-mail: enquiries@cidermuseum.co.uk or see www.cidermuseum.co.uk

Saturday, October 18 – Leominster Apple Fair at Lion Ballroom, Broadstreet – IDs from 2pm. Details from Felicity Norman, tel: 01584 831650.

Saturday and Sunday, October 25 and 26 – Flavours of Herefordshire Food Festival, Hereford Race Course- Marcher Apple Network will be present at this event with their Apple Day celebration. There will be a large fruit display, identification team and other attractions. For further details, tel: 01432 260621 or see www.marcherapple.net

SOMERSET

Saturday and Sunday, October 18 and 19 – Somerset Rural Life Museum, Abbey Farm, Chilkwell Street, Glastonbury BA6 8DB – Cider-Making Weekend. Traditional cider making in the Abbey Barn using a vintage mill and press and apples from the museum's own orchard. With special event: 18th 2.30-4pm Cooking with Apples, Zaida Haworth will demonstrate using old-fashioned apple recipes in the Victorian Kitchen; 19th 2-5pm Cider Commentary, learn about orchard management and cider making with local expert Les Davis MBE; 18th Oct-1st Nov, visit the tea room. Sit in the original dairy of Abbey Farm to sample delicious food made from locally grown ingredients. Apple juice and apple cake made from fruit grown in Somerset's Community Orchards and produced by Somerset Work Preparation Services will be available during the Food & Drink Festival. Opening hours: 1st Nov until 31st Mar: Tues-Sat 10am-5pm; 1st Apr until 31st Oct, Tues-Fri 10am-5pm Sat & Sun 2pm-6pm. Admission free. Contact Somerset Rural Life Museum: 01458 831197 or see www.somerset.gov.uk/museums

Sunday, October 19 – Orchard at Quiet Corner Farm, off Oak Vale Lane, Henstridge BA8 0RA – Apple Day with guided walks in the orchard which contains mostly traditional apple trees and other fruit varieties including plums, Denniston's Superb, Coe's Golden and the Merryweather Demson. There will be apple tasting, a display of varieties, stalls, produce for sale, apple pies, apple pressing and apple games including the Longest Peel Competition. Competitions for best apple cake and best apple tart. Sale of honey and beeswax products. Flying fish in orchard by Peter Thompson. All day demonstration of dry stone walling by Bill Moore of Shaftesbury. Noon-5pm. Admission £1 per car. Contact Patricia Thompson in advance on 01963 363045

Sunday, October 19 – Horfield Organic Community Orchard on allotment land access on foot/cycle via lane opposite 23 Kings Drive Bishopston, North Bristol BS7 – Apple Day, over 100 trees, local apple juice and other produce on sale, apple trees (dwarfing) on sale, variety tasting, information & stalls from other North Bristol orchard groups. 2-4pm Children must be supervised. No dogs. Bus 20 from City Centre, By car off kellaway Avenue from A38. Contact tel: 0117 924 8124, pauline.markovits@blueyonder.co.uk

Saturday, October 18 – Broadlands OrchardShare, Broadlands Orchard (on the A4Box Road, half a mile east of the Bathford roundabout) – Apple Day.

Sunday, October 19 – Bathford Apple Day.

Saturday, October 25 – Horton Village Hall, Horton, Bristol BS37 6QN – Apple Day with a display of apple varieties and tasting. 'mr Fruit' from Coalpit Heath will do some identifying. There will be ploughman's lunch (booked in advance), stalls, an apple cake competition, children's art, apple pressing and juice making, apple games and twig sculptures, longest peel competition and displays about encouraging wild life. Horton is a village about 10 minutes north of junction 18 (M4), about 15 mins SE of junction 14 (M5). It is 2 1/2 miles east of Chipping Sodbury on the edge of the southern Cotswolds. Contact by e-mail: peterjennycolumba@yahoo.co.uk.

Saturday, October 18 – Merlin Theatre, Bath Road, Frome, Somerset BA11 2HG – Apple Day Craft Fair. This is a fundraising event for the Merlin Theatre and replaces their usual Christmas Craft Fair. The main event will be the craft stalls but there will also be pre-loved clothing, tea and cakes, mulled cider, Leonardo's Bicycle (singers) and for the children, Merlin the Wizard in his cave (lucky dip), face painting, craft corner, apple stories and a tombola. The Frome Apple project (part of Sustainable Frome) will be available to answer any apple related questions and will also be recruiting volunteers for apple pressing the following weekend and other apple related activities around the town in the coming year. 12noon-4pm. Admission £1, under 16 free. Contact The Merlin Theatre, Bath Road, Frome, telephone 01373 465 949 or e-mail claudia@merlintheatre.co.uk or see www.merlintheatare.co.uk

Saturday, October 25 – Montacute House (National Trust) – Cider with Roadies project from the Common Players. For more information and most up to date tour list please see the website www.common-players.org.uk or phone Sera the Tour Administrator on 013892 881400

WILTSHIRE

Wednesday, October 22 – Lower Shaw Farm, Old Shaw Lane, Shaw, Swindon, SN5 5PJ – Apple Celebration: come to the Wednesday Cafe and taste a selection of apple dishes, play a choice of apple games and watch and help apple juice being made. 10am-2pm. Contact: 01793 771080 or e-mail:enquiries@lowershawfarm.co.uk

Sunday, October 19 – Lacock Abbey, High Street, Lacock, Chippenham, Wilts SN15 2LG – Apple Day with a display of apple varieties, guided walk to orchard with tasting, honey and bees, recipe books, apple trees to buy grafted from our stock, apple crafts and games, longest peel competition and cider bar. 11am-4pm. Normal admission applies, NT members free. Contact Sue Carter, National Trust, address as above, tel: 07901 515 671; e-mail: sue.carter@nationaltrust.org.uk or see www.nationaltrust.org.uk