Stocken Orchard
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Rebecca Road, Besford Bridge, Pershore WR10 2AD
Grid reference SO928 460 Purchased 3rd October 2014. Access: view from public right of way along southern edge between orchard and woodland and from Tiddesley Wood access track (Worcestershire Wildlife Trust). |
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Dabinett apples ripenning at Stocken Orchard
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This is a ten-acre cider apple orchard consisting predominantly of two varieties; Somerset Redstreak and Dabinett, with occasional Michelin, planted in the 1970s to supply fruit to Bulmers.
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The trees are in close rows and had been neglected for several years prior to the purchase by VLHT. The orchard was overgrown and the trees were producing very little fruit. The grassland was dominated by tussock grasses and contained very few wildflowers.
Stocken Orchard 2014 before restoration work
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The orchard was neglected and overgrown when VLHT purchased it.
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During 2014/2015 the trees were pruned hard to encourage a centre-leader growth. This allows more light into the tree to encourage better fruit production and it also opens up the grassland to encourage more wildflowers and associated pollinators. We were left with an incredible amount of arrisings (pruned branches) covering the ground so contractors spent several days chipping the branches. Horse-loggers were then employed to carry out further restoration work and to divide the orchard in to four sections by removing two rows of the trees, making the site more manageable.
Prunning left us with huge piles of branches to deal with at Stocken
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Horse-loggers at work in the orchard
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Stocken after the restoration work
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Each year one quarter of the orchard is pruned and then fenced before introducing sheep to graze the other three sections. The timing of the grazing (June to August) is to ensure that the cider apples are not contaminated during the harvesting but this means that the wildflowers are grazed off before setting seed. The temporary fencing of one quarter each year in rotation has ensured that the wildflowers continue to thrive. If the orchard is not grazed it will very soon turn in to an Ash and Hawthorn thicket due to its location adjacent to the woodland.
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Common Spotted Orchids now grow in patches across the orchard and Pyramidal, Greater Butterfly, Twayblade and Bee Orchids are also present. Amongst the Bee Orchids we occassionally find several of an uncommon form known as Wasp Orchids. Other plants in the grassland includes Cowslips, Red and White Clovers, Selfheal, Hedge Bedstraw, Hairy Saint-John’s-wort and Lady’s Smock with a variety of grasses.
Common Spotted Orchids at Stocken
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Greater Butterfly Orchid at Stocken
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Twayblade at Stocken
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'Wasp' Orchid at Stockeb
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Roe Deer are regularly seen in the orchard and in winter hundreds of Redwings and Fieldfares feed on the left-over apples.
Roe Deer in Stocken Orchard
Stocken Orchard was purchased with the generous support of Severn Waste Services through a Landfill Communities Fund Biodiversity Grant. The grant was given because the orchard offers an ideal area for Noble Chafers to colonise from the near by Tiddesley Orchard which is a Nationally important site for these secretive beetles. It is surprisingly difficult to find these large green beetles, usually the only sign is the droppings (frass) of their laravae. In 2019 we set up lures in Stocken Orchard and caught (and re-released) Noble Chafers so we were able to prove that these rare beetles are using our orchard.
VLHT Trustees Harry Green and Bob Gilmore setting Noble Chafer lures in Stocken
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Noble Chafer beetle and frass
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We leave as much deadwood on site as possible to encourage beetles and other insects, many of which are pollinators of our fruit. Pollinators so far noted in Stocken Orchard include Honeybees, bumblebees, various solitary bees, longhorn beetles malachite beetles, cardinal beetles, Dark-bordered Beefly and Orange-tip butterfly.
Lichens are common in the orchard, covering many of the tree branches like aerial coral.
Lichens are common in the orchard, covering many of the tree branches like aerial coral.
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