As well as our own projects, this Group is highly active in a number of areas linking with a number of well established organisations (Kent Wildlife Trust and Bumblebee Conservation Trust) to give them our assistance.

If there are any Flora/Fauna activities that you would like to get involved in, then do contact us.

Helping out in a beautiful Forest Garden on the Marsh

Bird Watching Walks with Experts

MOTH DISCOVERY EVENINGS

For more pictures and run down on the evening follow the LINK.

COMMUNITY ORCHARD/GARDEN

The orchard project is a joint project with Hythe Civic Society. Its Objectives of are to: Enhance an already attractive leisure area; Increase the use of the Eaton Lands site by the local community and help preserve local historical fruit varieties for posterity.

COMMUNITY ORCHARD FRUIT TREE INFORMATION

WHERE? Eaton Lands

WHY? To preserve local fruit varieties for the future

HOW? By involving the community to set up and maintain the site

SO WHAT? This will be a community asset, for educational and recreational use by local schools and groups

WHEN? We are constantly working on it:

Q4 2017: Agreed a site with the Trustee of Eaton Lands

Q4 2017: Initial working party clearance of brambles

Q4 2017: Affinity Water grants funds for site clearance

Q1 2018: Existing tree cover removed by contractor

Q2 2018: Major effort to control nettle / bramble growth

Q3 2018: Contractor to “plough under” the nettles etc

Q3 2018: Kill off roots – black membrane and manure

Q3 2018: Plan orchard layout

Q3 2018: Order trees for delivery Q1 2019

Q1 2019: Planting and orchard set up

2019: Trees establishing well

2022: Trees fruiting well. Meadow establishing well.

2025: See update below.

December 2017

First attack on the existing undergrowth (brambles and small trees)

January 2018

Clearing remaining trees and large bramble growth

June 2018

Clearing regrowth of nettles and brambles

September 2019

Volunteers clearing re-growth of nettles and brambles from the wild flower area (which grew well) and planning next move.

2024 – LOOKS LIKE AN ORCHARD!!

Wild flowers

Heavily laden Apple Tree

Good crop of Gages

Beautiful Red Pears

2025 UPDATE

The orchard has been developing for 5 years since the fruit trees were planted…and a lot more has changed since then…

Hedging – the mixed hedge that was planted in 2021 has now grown into a lovely thick border for the orchard, wrapping around the trees and providing more opportunities for wildlife of all kinds.

Pathway through the orchard – there is a defined pathway through the orchard, which was cut and filled with wood chippings by a team of volunteers from Brockhill Park Performing Arts College. This needs regular attention as there are still plants in the soil that push through the chippings, such as thistles, and need to be removed.

Trees – we planted 15 commercial varieties of fruit tree in 2020 as well as some morello cherry and damson. The fruit trees have mostly thrived and after 5 years most are looking like “proper” trees. Sadly, at the end of 2024 we decided that one pear variety, Louise Bonne de Jersey, was not surviving…it had not leafed up properly and those leaves had shrivelled during the year, so we replaced it with Pear Beth, which we hope will do better.

Meadow – the grass around the trees is mown occasionally, and there are plenty of wildflowers that were planted a few years ago and self-seed annually – this makes for a very wildlife-friendly environment encouraging pollinators, small mammals and other invertebrates

Signage – we have been wonderfully supported by Brockhill Park Performing Arts College students, who have designed the Orchard Map and tree labels which now make sure that everyone can find out what is growing in the orchard. These labels include a QR Code which takes you straight to the Fruit Tree Information Page on this website.

Community engagement – the orchard is a favourite place for walkers through Eaton Lands, and we plan to install some benches in the orchard for those that wish to linger there. The orchard is maintained by volunteers from the community

Future plans / activities – we would like to bring more activities into the orchard, such as:

Wassail – blessing the orchard with music and poetry
Fruit pressing – making juice as a community activity

WORKING TO RESTORE BUMBLEBEE NUMBERS

We now have a strong relationship with the project to re-introduce the Short haired bumblebee to the UK. It was last seen on Romney Marsh and the project monitors Bumblebee numbers and works with residents, farmers and local councils to restore the pollinator friendly habitat that has been devastated over the last 50 years, creating a pathway of suitable habitat spreading eastwards to Hythe. There are opportunities to become proficient in Bumblebee identification, conduct bee surveys, conduct wild flower surveys and lend a hand with planting and habitat management.