Happy Mondays star Bez buys Shropshire trees for home city of Salford
When rock-star turned political hopeful Bez wanted to get hold of some vintage apple trees, he knew where to come – the Shropshire countryside.
Mark Berry – better known as Bez – of Manchester band The Happy Mondays, stopped off in Picklescott, near Church Stretton, to pick up some fruit trees, including the county's own Onibury Pippin variety.
He was visiting the Karuna project, a green-living scheme in the south Shropshire Hills where the Wheelhouse family has transformed 18 acres of land into an example of eco-friendly living.
Bez, who is running as a candidate to be an MP in his home city of Salford, will take the trees to plant some on an inner city plot there, and some at a permaculture community he is involved with in south Herefordshire.
In return the winner of Celebrity Big Brother 2005 donated a bee hive to the Karuna scheme.
It is the third time Bez has visited the Shropshire project after filming for a Channel 4 documentary series following his political progress at the site in November.
Janta Wheelhouse at the Karuna project said: "He has gone mad for permaculture and has this community in Herefordshire, but his home is in Salford.
"I think he realised Karuna is a convenient place to stop off when travelling in between the two.
"Karuna nursery produces its own organically grown apple trees, on various rootstocks, specialising in practical, old and modern interest varieties. Bez was fortunate and very pleased to get hold of a rare vintage Onibury Pippin tree.
"As a token of thanks, Bez donated Karuna a newly-made bee hive, one of several which he created a few months back with children at a school in Herefordshire."
The episode of ongoing Channel 4 documentary 24 Hour Party Politics featuring Karuna has yet to air, but focuses on the roundhouse made from straw bales and cordwood that husband and wife team Janta and Merav Wheelhouse are currently building.
The eco-friendly house will be both a visitor attraction and the family's new home. They hope it can be used as an example of how people can build their own green home without breaking the bank.
The project had hit financial difficulties at the end of last year, but funds were trickling in slowly, Mr Wheelhouse said.
"The main work is done and materials are being gathered, but it's slow progress," he said. "Things are coming together – we'll get there. We'd be very, very unfortunate to not be living in the house by the end of this summer."
One way to raise money was by selling Karuna Insight Design T-shirts, he said – one of which he had given to Bez, who said he would wear it on stage.
He said the Karuna team was also happy to help out with orchard or forest garden planting projects and would be running a grafting course in March.
