It begins with gathering fruit from old, unknown garden trees around Forres, and with an increasing interest in orchard history and practice. There are images from our first attempts at apple pressing, which were far more challenging than expected, and from the early days of watching demijohns begin to ferment. These moments marked the start of learning to work with processes that unfold in their own time, and to become comfortable with waiting, uncertainty, and change.

The diary includes watering young trees late at night, observing grafted apple trees through different seasons and weather, and searching out wild apple trees to learn from and graft. It records the yearly rhythm of grafting as a family at the start of spring, the brief intensity of blossom, and visits to other orchards to learn from different approaches and growing conditions.

There are also images of building a small, practical setup for pressing and fermenting at home, bottling cider and vinegar, and sharing it with friends and neighbours. Alongside this are notes and records that track the process over time: pH values, specific gravity, apple mixes, and small adjustments from year to year. Gradually, connections between practices begin to appear, including experiments with using woodblock prints for bottle labels and thinking about how craft, fermentation, and orchard work inform one another.

Taken together, these images trace a long, slow process of learning through doing. They show a practice rooted in returning, observing, and working with living systems, and they form the practical foundation for the research I am now proposing: a way of working shaped by time, attention, and care.