Another orchard

There is another orchard not too far from the town where we like to pop in every once in a while, that of the Kuusisto Manor on the Kuusisto island in Kaarina, a suburb of Turku.

The old orchard of apples, pears, cherries and plums rises from a meadow where a path is being kept mown providing visitors an easy access around the garden. Summer came early this year and our stroll of last week was a bit too late for the peak of blossoming. Luckily all varieties do not bloom at the same time.

The present manor house was built in 1738 as the residence of a colonel. It is one of the oldest preserved wooden dwellings in our country. In the 1980s, the National Board of Antiquities restored it and opened it as a museum but it was closed as an austerity measure in 2012.

Since then the place has acted as a summer art venue, the ‘Kuusisto Art Manor’. Unlike this time, the summers have started late in recent years and therefore this season’s art exhibitions were postponed to open only in mid-June.

The linden alley leading from the manor towards the nearby castle ruins.

The history of the estate dates back at least to the 16th century when it served as the farm of the Kuusisto Castle, the stately residence of the catholic bishop. After the Reformation, the castle was demolished and bricks were reused for construction elsewhere. Excavations, conservations and restorations of the ruins have continued on and off since the late 19th century.

'I'm gonna fix you' by Kimmo Peltola, 2014.

There is much to look forward to at Kuusisto even before harvesting including the ‘Artwork called Café’. I could never resist a picturesque historic site with an idyllic café. If only I learned to resist the cakes.

The interior in 2015.